Where Clemson and South Carolina rank in first Top 25 of football season
The first major college football poll of the season is here.
Unsurprisingly, expectations are high for Clemson and South Carolina.
Clemson debuted at No. 6 and USC debuted at No. 13 in the first 2025 coaches poll of the season, which was released by USA Today Sports on Monday.
The top 5 teams in the poll are No. 1 Texas, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Penn State, No. 4 Georgia and No. 5 Notre Dame. Clemson, at No. 6, received two first-place votes.
The preseason AP Top 25 poll comes out next Monday.
Monday’s preseason coaches poll rankings are another example of the hype surrounding the state of South Carolina’s two largest football programs.
Last year, Clemson went 10-4 (7-1 ACC), won the ACC championship and appeared in its first College Football Playoff since 2020. Coach Dabo Swinney’s Tigers lead the nation in returning production and bring back 16 of 22 starters, including senior quarterback Cade Klubnik.
South Carolina had a stellar 2024 season, too, going 9-4 (5-3 SEC) and remaining in the mix for a 12-team CFP spot until early December. The Gamecocks and coach Shane Beamer return star QB LaNorris Sellers, DE Dylan Stewart and others.
VegasInsider.com currently has Clemson’s season-long win total over/under at 9.5 wins and South Carolina at 7.5 wins. The Tigers were picked as the 2025 preseason ACC champion, and USC was picked to finish fifth in the SEC this season.
This year’s coaches poll voting panel consists of 67 FBS head coaches (essentially half of the 136 FBS coaches). Swinney and Beamer are not listed as voters for 2025.
2025 preseason coaches poll
Listed by total voting points; first-place votes in parentheses
1. Texas, 1606 (28)
2. Ohio State, 1565 (20)
3. Penn State, 1525 (14)
4. Georgia, 1466 (3)
5. Notre Dame, 1360
6. Clemson, 1324 (2)
7. Oregon, 1307
8. Alabama, 1210
9. LSU, 1056
10. Miami, 823
11. Arizona State, 806
12. Illinois, 734
13. South Carolina, 665
14. Michigan, 580
15. Ole Miss, 573
16. SMU, 555
17. Florida, 498
18. Tennessee, 492
19. Indiana, 460
20. Kansas State, 438
T-21. Texas A&M, 392
T-21. Iowa State, 392
23. BYU, 287
24. Texas Tech, 261
25. Boise State, 246
Others receiving votes
Oklahoma, 221; Missouri, 142; Louisville, 126; Southern Cal, 116; Utah, 86; Baylor, 76; Auburn, 50; Iowa, 49; Memphis, 34; Army, 33; Tulane, 31; Georgia Tech, 27; TCU, 24; Nebraska, 19; Syracuse, 16; Washington, 15; Navy, 14; Arkansas, 14; Duke, 12; Colorado, 12; Minnesota, 11; UNLV, 8; Florida State, 8; Kansas, 6; Vanderbilt, 3; Buffalo, 1
This story was originally published August 4, 2025 at 12:01 PM with the headline "Where Clemson and South Carolina rank in first Top 25 of football season."
