Ohio State starts the season ranked No. 2 in the Coaches Poll Top 25

This afternoon, the Amway Coaches Poll announced it’s preseason college football rankings, and while it was no surprise to see the Alabama Crimson Tide in the poll’s top spot, it was nice to see the familiar Scarlet and Gray occupying the No. 2 slot. The Buckeyes received 1,512 points, behind only the Tide’s 1,603. Rounding out the top-five are Florida State (1,434), Southern California (1,415), and the defending national champions, the Clemson Tigers (1,367).

Just on the outside, Ohio State’s Big Ten East brethren, the Penn State Nittany Lions came in at 6th, with Michigan and Wisconsin at 9th and 10th respectively. OSU’s Week Two opponent, the Oklahoma Sooners, will enter the season ranked No. 8.

Other Big Ten teams receiving votes were Northwestern, Nebraska, Minnesota, Michigan State, and Maryland.

The panel of coaches participating in the poll is selected at random based off “coaches who have indicated to the American Football Coaches Association their willingness to participate.” From there, every coach submits a weekly Top-25 ballot, with a first-place vote worth 25 points, and a 25th-place vote worth one point.

The biggest risers from the year-end poll in January were the Georgia Bulldogs, who climbed from 36th to 15th. The furthest fallers were the Virginia Tech Hokies, who dropped from 16th to 22nd.

Ohio State will kick off their season by taking on conference foe Indiana on Thursday, August 31st in Bloomington. The game will kick off on ABC at 8/7 p.m. CT.