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After opening the season unranked, the Mississippi State Bulldogs managed to sneak into the top-25 of the AP poll while remaining unranked in the Coaches' Poll.
The ten SEC teams ranked in the AP represents a record for a conference in a single poll.
| AP | Coaches | |
| 1 | Ohio State (61) | Ohio State (63) |
| 2 | Alabama | Alabama (1) |
| 3 | TCU | TCU |
| 4 | Baylor | Baylor |
| 5 | Michigan State | Oregon |
| 6 | Auburn | Michigan State |
| 7 | Oregon | Auburn |
| 8 | USC | Florida State |
| 9 | Notre Dame | Georgia |
| 10 | Georgia | USC |
| 11 | Florida State | Notre Dame |
| 12 | Clemson | Clemson |
| 13 | UCLA | UCLA |
| 14 | LSU | Ole Miss |
| 15 | Georgia Tech | LSU |
| 16 | Texas A&M | Georgia Tech |
| 17 | Ole Miss | Oklahoma |
| 18 | Arkansas | Arkansas |
| 19 | Oklahoma | Texas A&M |
| 20 | Boise State | Arizona |
| 21 | Missouri | Missouri |
| 22 | Arizona | Boise State |
| 23 | Tennessee | Tennessee |
| 24 | Utah | Wisconsin |
| 25 | Mississippi State | Utah |