College football rankings: Florida Gators in Preseason Coaches Poll top 25 for first time since 2021

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Expectations have been raised for Florida Gators football in Year 4 under head coach Billy Napier, especially with sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway in tow. An experienced, talented roster that has returned numerous key pieces from a hot end to the 2024 season has been acknowledged all offseason as a team that could surprise in 2025.

The Gators on Monday found themselves ranked No. 17 in the Preseason Coaches Top 25. It is the first time since 2021 that UF has been ranked by the coaches ahead of a season.

Florida will open the 2025 season on Saturday, Aug. 30 against Long Island. It will begin SEC play two weeks later when it visits LSU for a rare early season meeting on Sept. 13.

As was the case a year ago, the Gators enter 2025 with the nation’s toughest schedule. This as the SEC decided to simply flip the home-away assignments from the 2024 campaign rather than create a fresh conference slate as it initially promised when introducing last season’s slate, which was supposed to serve as a one-year stop gap amid the additions of Oklahoma and Texas to the league.

Florida will face seven ranked opponents as part of its 12-game slate, including four top 10 teams: Texas (No. 1), Georgia (No. 4), LSU (No. 9), Miami (No. 10), Ole Miss (No. 15), Tennessee (No. 18) and Texas A&M (No. 21-t). Five of those seven games will be played away from home with only the Longhorns and Volunteers set to visit The Swamp as top 25 programs.

Preseason Coaches Poll

1. Texas (28)
2. Ohio State (20)
3. Penn State (14)
4. Georgia (3)
5. Notre Dame
6. Clemson (2)
7. Oregon
8. Alabama
9. LSU
10. Miami (FL)
11. Arizona State
12. Illinois
13. South Carolina
14. Michigan
15. Ole Miss
16. SMU
17. Florida
18. Tennessee
19. Indiana
20. Kansas State
21. Texas A&M
21. Iowa State
23. BYU
24. Texas Tech
25. Boise State

Napier is one of 67 coaches voting this season. Others that are notable as it concerns the Gators include Kirby Smart (Georgia), Mike Elko (Texas A&M) and Jedd Fisch (Washington).