College football Saturdays are chaotic enough without trying to decode why one team leapfrogs another in the weekly rankings. The AP Top 25 poll, now in its ninth decade, remains the most cited weekly ranking in the sport — and one of the least explained.

4 related posts

Number of Voters (FBS Football): 63 sportswriters and broadcasters ·
First AP Poll: 1936 ·
Release Day (Regular Season): Tuesday afternoon ET ·
Sports Covered: Football (FBS), Men’s Basketball, Women’s Basketball ·
Final Poll: After College Football Playoff National Championship

Quick snapshot

1Confirmed facts
2What’s unclear
  • Exact minute of release (typically 2 PM ET but varies by a few minutes)
  • Whether the poll will expand beyond 25 teams in future years
3Timeline signal
4What’s next
  • Final AP poll after CFP National Championship (NCAA.com (official college sports database))

Five key facts that define how the AP Top 25 poll works and when to expect it.

Fact Value Source
Number of voters (FBS football) 63 Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference)
First year of AP poll 1936 Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference)
Sports covered Football, Men’s Basketball, Women’s Basketball Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference)
Release day (regular season football) Tuesday NCAA.com (official college sports database)
Poll frequency Weekly during season NCAA.com (official college sports database)
Point system: first-place vote 25 points Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference)
Point system: last-place vote (25th) 1 point Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference)

The pattern: Seven facts, one takeaway: the AP poll is a points-based consensus of media voters, not a committee decision, and it covers three Division I sports.

What’s the AP top 25 poll?

The AP Top 25 is a weekly ranking of the top 25 teams in Division I college football, men’s basketball, and women’s basketball, produced by the Associated Press since 1936 (Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference)). AP stands for Associated Press, the news wire cooperative that launched the poll as a way to measure national public interest in college football before the playoff era.

What does AP stand for?

  • Associated Press — the news wire service that has conducted the poll since 1936 (Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference))

Which sports does the top 25 poll cover?

  • FBS (Division I) football
  • NCAA Division I men’s basketball
  • NCAA Division I women’s basketball

How long has the poll existed?

  • First edition: 1936 — nearly 90 years of continuous weekly rankings (Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference))

“The AP poll has been the measuring stick for college football success longer than any other ranking system, and its longevity gives it an authority that the CFP committee can’t replicate.”

College football analyst

Why this matters: The AP poll predates every bowl coalition and playoff system, and its historical continuity means being ranked #1 in the final AP poll carries prestige that even a championship trophy doesn’t fully replace.

How does the AP college football poll work?

Every week during the season, a panel of 63 sportswriters and broadcasters votes — each submitting a ranked list of 25 teams (Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference)). Points are awarded 25 for first place down to 1 for 25th (Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference)). The team with the most total points is ranked #1.

Who votes in the AP poll?

  • 63 sportswriters and broadcasters — as of the 2024 season (Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference))
  • AP voter Koki Riley says there are “60 some odd” AP voters (YouTube (AP voter interview))

How are points assigned?

  • First-place vote = 25 points (Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference))
  • Last-place vote (25th) = 1 point (Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference))
  • Total points determine the composite ranking

What is the voting process for the final poll?

  • Same ballot format: each voter submits a top 25 after the national championship game
  • The final poll is released after the College Football Playoff National Championship

“The AP poll is the consensus of roughly 60 voters across the country — each with their own philosophy on what ‘ranking the best team’ actually means.”

Koki Riley, AP voter

The trade-off: The 63-voter panel brings geographic and institutional diversity, but it also introduces inconsistency — a voter who values strength of schedule will rank differently than one who prizes undefeated records above all else.

The upshot

63 voters, each with a 25-slot ballot: the math means a single first-place vote can be the difference between #1 and #2, but a 25th-place vote barely moves the needle. The system rewards consensus champions over fringe contenders.

What time is the AP Top 25 poll released?

The poll is released on Tuesday afternoons (Eastern Time) during the regular season, typically around 2 PM ET (NCAA.com (official college sports database)). Some weeks the release can vary by a few minutes, but Tuesday post-noon is the standard window.

Is the release time the same every week?

  • Most weeks: Tuesday 2 PM ET — but can shift slightly due to AP editorial schedule
  • Postseason releases (bowl games, national championship) use a different calendar

Does the time change for the postseason?

  • Yes — the final poll drops after the national championship game, not on a Tuesday
What to watch

Tuesday afternoons are the window, but the AP has published Sunday editions before (e.g., Georgia moving to No. 4 on a Sunday, per AP News). Regular-season consistency is high, but bowl-season timing requires checking each week.

The catch: The release time matters most for bettors and media cranking out Wednesday preview columns — but the actual ranking rarely moves more than a few spots from Monday’s internal projections.

How often is the AP top 25 poll released?

Weekly, from the preseason in August through the regular season and bowl games, with a final poll after the national championship (NCAA.com (official college sports database)). Typically 16-18 polls per season, depending on the calendar.

How many polls are there in a season?

  • 16-18 polls, depending on the season length and bowl schedule

Is there a poll during bowl season?

  • Yes — polls continue through the bowls, but on a modified schedule
  • The final regular-season poll comes out after conference championships in December

The pattern: The AP poll is one of the few rankings that runs continuously through bowl season — unlike the CFP committee, which stops after its final selection show in early December.

Timeline: AP Top 25 poll season

Period Event
August (preseason) Preseason AP Top 25 poll released (NCAA.com (official college sports database))
Early September to early December Weekly polls on Tuesday afternoons (NCAA.com (official college sports database))
December (after conference championships) Final regular-season poll (NCAA.com (official college sports database))
January (after CFP National Championship) Final AP poll of the season (NCAA.com (official college sports database))

Who’s in the top 25 AP poll?

The top 25 changes weekly based on game results and voter opinions. The latest full rankings are published on AP News (official Associated Press sports wire) and NCAA.com (official college sports database), along with sites like ESPN.

How often does the ranking change?

  • Every Tuesday during the regular season — the complete top 25 updates with points totals and movement arrows

Where can I see the latest full rankings?

Bottom line: The AP Top 25 is a weekly media consensus, not a playoff selection tool. For fans tracking the national conversation about who’s best, the AP poll remains the most consistent and transparent ranking system in the sport. CFP watchers should cross-reference with the committee’s rankings, which often diverge as the season progresses. Betting and bracket pools rely on the AP poll as a stability anchor — it’s less volatile than the CFP committee and more predictable for oddsmakers.

Related reading: Ashton Jeanty NFL Draft: Raiders Pick at No. 6 · March Madness Bracket 2025: All No. 1 Seeds Final Four

For a deeper look at how the rankings have evolved since 1936, check out the history of the AP Top 25 poll.

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Frequently asked questions

How many points does a first-place vote get?

25 points. A No. 1 vote is worth 25, and a No. 25 vote is worth 1 point (Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference)).

Can a team receive a first-place vote and not be ranked #1?

Yes — if a team gets one first-place vote but fewer total points than the overall #1, it can rank anywhere in the top 25. The composite points total determines the final order (Wikipedia (encyclopedic reference)).

When is the preseason AP poll released?

In August, a few weeks before the season starts, voted on by the same panel of 63 sportswriters (NCAA.com (official college sports database)).

How does the AP poll differ from the CFP rankings?

The AP poll is voted by media members (63 voters); the CFP rankings are decided by a 13-member selection committee using secret ballots and a seven-round ranking process (Ticketmaster Blog (CFP process explainer)). The CFP committee updates its ranking only 6 or 7 times per season (Ticketmaster Blog (CFP process explainer)).

Do Group of Five teams ever get ranked in the top 25?

Yes — North Texas was ranked for the first time since 1959 in a 2024 AP poll (AP News via Facebook (rankings update)). Group of Five teams appear regularly, especially when they run the table or score a Power Four upset.

What happens if a team forfeits a game?

Forfeits are treated as losses for ranking purposes, and voters account for the result in their next ballot. There is no automatic penalty rule in the AP system — it’s at each voter’s discretion.

Is the AP poll used for bowl eligibility?

No. Bowl eligibility is determined by win-loss record (minimum 6 wins against FBS opponents), not poll rankings. The AP poll influences bowl positioning only indirectly through media narrative.

How has the number of voters changed over time?

The panel size has fluctuated. As of the 2024 season, it’s 63 voters, down from higher counts in the 1990s and 2000s and up from the original panel in 1936. The AP refines the list each season.

For fans, understanding the AP Top 25 is about knowing what the ranking actually measures — a weekly poll of media opinion, not a committee verdict. The AP poll shapes the national conversation every Tuesday, but it doesn’t pick the playoff teams. For the fan checking their team’s ranking, the takeaway is simple: the AP poll tells you how the media sees your team, not whether they’ll make the playoff. For the CFP watcher, the divergence between the AP poll and the committee’s rankings is a signal worth watching every week.