On Monday morning, the second list of the national media's pecking order dropped and the Hurricanes will start the 2026-27 college football season as the nation's No. 7 team in the country. This is Miami's highest preseason ranking in over two decades, dating back to their No. 6 spot in 2004.
The Hurricanes will only have to play one preseason ranked opponent, Notre Dame, which slots in as the No. 4 team in the land. The Hurricanes are the highest-ranked ACC team, with SMU coming in at No. 19 and Louisville at No. 24. Clemson, Pittsburgh, and Virginia Tech, are all receiving votes.
Miami is led by Darian Mensah, who is arguably one of the top signal-callers in all of college football. The entire running back group is back, and the Hurricanes also return Malachi Toney, who is one of the most exciting players on the team. Duke transfer wide receiver Cooper Barkate joins Miami as a 1,000 yard receiver. The offensive line has been rebuilt and is ready to go for the season, while the defensive line remains the same old scary unit. However, the Hurricanes cannot easily replace the dynamic duo of Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor, so they dug into the SEC and grabbed Damon Wilson to try to replace that production. The Hurricanes also added one of the best hitters in the ACC, Omar Thornton, and retained Mohamed Toure.
Check out the entire pre-season AP Poll down below:
Pre-Season AP Poll:
1. Ohio State Buckeyes
2. Oregon Ducks
3. Georgia Bulldogs
4. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
5. Texas Longhorns
6. Indiana Hoosiers
7. Miami Hurricanes
8. Texas A&M Aggies
9. Ole Miss Rebels
10. Oklahoma Sooners
11. LSU Tigers
12. Texas Tech Red Raiders
13. Alabama Crimson Tide
14. BYU Cougars
15. USC Trojans
16. Michigan Wolverines
17. Washington Huskies
18. Penn State Nittany Lions
19. SMU Mustangs
20. Tennessee Volunteers
21. Utah Utes
22. Iowa Hawkeyes
23. Houston Cougars
24. Louisville Cardinals
25. Missouri Tigers
Others receiving votes: Clemson Tigers (112), Florida Gators (51), Boise State Broncos (43), Arizona Wildcats (32), TCU Horned Frogs (11), Navy Midshipmen (10), South Carolina Gamecocks (10), Illinois Fighting Illini (9), Oklahoma State Cowboys (8), Vanderbilt Commodores (8), Pittsburgh Panthers (7), Virginia Tech Hokies (6), Minnesota Golden Gophers (5), UNLV Rebels (4), New Mexico Lobos (4), Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (4), James Madison Dukes (3), Auburn Tigers (3), Memphis Tigers (2), California Golden Bears (2), Liberty Flames (1), Western Michigan Broncos (1), Tulane Green Wave (1), Virginia Cavaliers (1)
The Hurricanes will only have to play one preseason ranked opponent, Notre Dame, which slots in as the No. 4 team in the land. The Hurricanes are the highest-ranked ACC team, with SMU coming in at No. 19 and Louisville at No. 24. Clemson, Pittsburgh, and Virginia Tech, are all receiving votes.
Miami is led by Darian Mensah, who is arguably one of the top signal-callers in all of college football. The entire running back group is back, and the Hurricanes also return Malachi Toney, who is one of the most exciting players on the team. Duke transfer wide receiver Cooper Barkate joins Miami as a 1,000 yard receiver. The offensive line has been rebuilt and is ready to go for the season, while the defensive line remains the same old scary unit. However, the Hurricanes cannot easily replace the dynamic duo of Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor, so they dug into the SEC and grabbed Damon Wilson to try to replace that production. The Hurricanes also added one of the best hitters in the ACC, Omar Thornton, and retained Mohamed Toure.
Check out the entire pre-season AP Poll down below:
Pre-Season AP Poll:
1. Ohio State Buckeyes
2. Oregon Ducks
3. Georgia Bulldogs
4. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
5. Texas Longhorns
6. Indiana Hoosiers
7. Miami Hurricanes
8. Texas A&M Aggies
9. Ole Miss Rebels
10. Oklahoma Sooners
11. LSU Tigers
12. Texas Tech Red Raiders
13. Alabama Crimson Tide
14. BYU Cougars
15. USC Trojans
16. Michigan Wolverines
17. Washington Huskies
18. Penn State Nittany Lions
19. SMU Mustangs
20. Tennessee Volunteers
21. Utah Utes
22. Iowa Hawkeyes
23. Houston Cougars
24. Louisville Cardinals
25. Missouri Tigers
Others receiving votes: Clemson Tigers (112), Florida Gators (51), Boise State Broncos (43), Arizona Wildcats (32), TCU Horned Frogs (11), Navy Midshipmen (10), South Carolina Gamecocks (10), Illinois Fighting Illini (9), Oklahoma State Cowboys (8), Vanderbilt Commodores (8), Pittsburgh Panthers (7), Virginia Tech Hokies (6), Minnesota Golden Gophers (5), UNLV Rebels (4), New Mexico Lobos (4), Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (4), James Madison Dukes (3), Auburn Tigers (3), Memphis Tigers (2), California Golden Bears (2), Liberty Flames (1), Western Michigan Broncos (1), Tulane Green Wave (1), Virginia Cavaliers (1)
