Florida Football Opens at No. 23 in Associated Press Poll
Saturday, August 18, 2012 | Football
The University of Florida football team will open the 2012 season ranked No. 23 in the Associated Press Preseason Poll, announced on Saturday. The Gators are also ranked No. 23 in the preseason USA Today/ESPN Top 25 football coaches' poll.
Florida is ranked in the preseason AP poll for the ninth year in a row, dating back to 2003. That streak ranks third in the SEC behind LSU (12 straight) and Georgia (10 straight). Nationally, that streak ranks sixth, also trailing Ohio State (19), Oklahoma (13) and Southern Cal (10).
On the Gators' 2012 schedule there are four teams ranked in the preseason top 10 according to the AP poll. Florida will play No. 3 LSU on October 6 after its bye week. To close the month, UF faces back-to-back top 10 opponents in No. 9 South Carolina and No. 6 Georgia. The regular-season finale will be against No. 7 Florida State.
2012 Associated Press Preseason Poll
| Rank | Team | Pts |
| 1 | USC (25) | 1445 |
| 2 | Alabama (17) | 1411 |
| 3 | LSU (16) | 1402 |
| 4 | Oklahoma (1) | 1286 |
| 5 | Oregon | 1274 |
| 6 | Georgia | 1107 |
| 7 | Florida State | 1093 |
| 8 | Michigan (1) | 1000 |
| 9 | South Carolina | 994 |
| 10 | Arkansas | 963 |
| 11 | West Virginia | 856 |
| 12 | Wisconsin | 838 |
| 13 | Michigan State | 742 |
| 14 | Clemson | 615 |
| 15 | Texas | 569 |
| 16 | Virginia Tech | 548 |
| 17 | Nebraska | 485 |
| 18 | Ohio State | 474 |
| 19 | Oklahoma State | 430 |
| 20 | TCU | 397 |
| 21 | Stanford | 383 |
| 22 | Kansas State | 300 |
| 23 | FLORIDA | 214 |
| 24 | Boise State | 212 |
| 25 | Louisville | 105 |
- Others receiving votes: Notre Dame 83, Washington 55, Auburn 53, North Carolina 32, Utah 30, Georgia Tech 25, Brigham Young 22, Tennessee 15, South Florida 11, Baylor 9, Texas A&M 5, UCF 4, Missouri 3, North Carolina State 3, Cincinnati 3, Houston 1, Louisiana Tech 1, Mississippi State 1, Northern Illinois 1
