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College Football Preseason AP Poll: Purdue To Face Four Ranked Teams

Purdue's schedule features nine teams that received consideration in either the AP or FCS poll.

By BoilerTMill
Remember Purdue Harbor!
Remember Purdue Harbor!
Joe Robbins

The College Football AP Poll is out and, no surprise, it does not contain Purdue. The Boilermakers did not even reach the "others receiving votes" category, being passed over by such powerhouses as Arkansas State, Rutgers, Toledo, Central Florida, Utah State, and Ohio. Even Darrell Hazell's old team, Kent State, received three votes.

Rank Team Record Votes Previous
1 Alabama (58) 0-0 1,498 NR
2 Ohio State (1) 0-0 1,365 NR
3 Oregon 0-0 1,335 NR
4 Stanford 0-0 1,294 NR
5 Georgia (1) 0-0 1,249 NR
6 South Carolina 0-0 1,154 NR
7 Texas A&M 0-0 1,104 NR
8 Clemson 0-0 1,083 NR
9 Louisville 0-0 1,042 NR
10 Florida 0-0 894 NR
11 Florida State 0-0 845 NR
12 LSU 0-0 802 NR
13 Oklahoma State 0-0 755 NR
14 Notre Dame 0-0 748 NR
15 Texas 0-0 677 NR
16 Oklahoma 0-0 579 NR
17 Michigan 0-0 531 NR
18 Nebraska 0-0 382 NR
19 Boise State 0-0 328 NR
20 TCU 0-0 323 NR
21 UCLA 0-0 286 NR
22 Northwestern 0-0 199 NR
23 Wisconsin 0-0 185 NR
24 USC 0-0 134 NR
25 Oregon State 0-0 129 NR
Others Receiving Votes: Michigan State 95, Baylor 92, Virginia Tech 86, Miami (FL) 85, Arizona State 53, Kansas State 43, Fresno State 36, Vanderbilt 19, Washington 17, Northern Illinois 16, Mississippi 11, Utah State 8, Georgia Tech 6, North Carolina 3, Arizona 3, Cincinnati 3, Penn State 2, Brigham Young 1

The Boilers will face four teams in the preseason top 25, however, and another four that received votes. The highest ranked team Purdue faces is No. 2 Ohio State, who also received three first place votes. That just makes Purdue Harbor 2: Urban's Reckoning that much bigger on November 2nd. Notre Dame checks in at No. 11, with the strong possibility of being a top 10 team when the Fighting Irish come to Ross-Ade on September 14.

Next is No. 18 Nebraska, who comes to Purdue on October 12, giving me a birthday game against a ranked team. The final top 25 team Purdue faces is No. 23 Wisconsin in Madison on September 21. Two of the three teams Purdue does not play in Big Ten play are also in the top 25 with Michigan at No. 17 and Northwestern at No. 22.

As for the "others receiving votes" teams, Michigan State was just outside the poll at 28th with 89 votes. They very well could be ranked when Purdue goes to East Lansing on October 19. Northern Illinois received 19 votes coming off of their BCS bowl appearance and would have to leapfrog a lot of teams to be in the top 25 on September 28. They should be at least 3-0 by going to Iowa and Idaho before hosting Eastern Illinois.

Cincinnati, Purdue's opening opponent, received three votes. Those are three votes Purdue can claim two weeks from now. Unlike the coaches poll, Penn State is eligible to receive votes in the AP poll. They did receive two, giving Purdue its eighth opponent that received consideration for a preseason ranking. Purdue visits them November 16th.

For good measure, Indiana State received 90 votes in the preseason FCS poll to clock in at No. 34. Eastern Kentucky, Last season's FCS foe, was 26th with 468 votes. That makes Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa as the only teams Purdue plays that did not receive votes in either the AP, Coaches, or FCS poll. Indiana, with a very weak schedule, will likely receive votes if they start strong too.

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