The Alabama Crimson Tide will begin the college football season ranked No. 1 in the country, according to the Associated Press preseason Top 25 poll released this week. It marks the ninth time in program history that Alabama has opened a season atop the AP poll, and the second consecutive year the Tide have been tabbed the preseason favorite after falling to Georgia in last season’s national championship game.
Alabama collected 54 of the 63 first-place votes cast by the AP’s panel of media members. Ohio State picked up six first-place votes and was slotted second, while defending national champion Georgia received the remaining three first-place votes and was ranked third. Clemson rounds out the top four, followed by Notre Dame, Texas A&M, Utah, Michigan, Oklahoma and Baylor to complete the top 10.
Oregon opens the season at No. 11, trailed by Oklahoma State, North Carolina State, USC and Michigan State. Miami checks in at No. 16, with Pitt and Wisconsin at 17 and 18, respectively. Three Southeastern Conference programs — Arkansas, Kentucky and Ole Miss — occupy the No. 19 through No. 21 spots. Wake Forest, Cincinnati, Houston and BYU close out the rankings at No. 22 through No. 25.
In total, six SEC teams landed in the preseason Top 25, and six additional conference members — Tennessee, LSU, Mississippi State, Auburn, Florida and South Carolina — received at least one vote without cracking the rankings. Only Missouri and Vanderbilt failed to receive any votes among SEC programs. Appalachian State was the sole Sun Belt Conference team to receive votes in the poll, though not enough to land inside the Top 25.
While the national spotlight is on Tuscaloosa, the University of South Alabama football program has been busy building for the future closer to home. The Jaguars added their third verbal commitment for the 2023 recruiting class last week when Blount High School offensive lineman Willis Anderson announced on social media that he intends to sign with South Alabama. Anderson, a 6-foot-4, 305-pound blocker, is expected to anchor the Leopards’ offensive line Friday when Blount squares off with rival Vigor in the annual “Battle of Prichard,” one of the most anticipated high school football games in Mobile County each fall.
Anderson joins two other Mobile-area-connected prospects who have already committed to the Jaguars’ 2023 class. McGill-Toolen wide receiver and kick returner Anthony Eager, listed at 6-foot-1 and 170 pounds, put together a standout junior season, hauling in 24 receptions for 412 yards and four touchdowns while also averaging 35.6 yards on 16 kickoff returns, including two return touchdowns. His combination of receiving production and special-teams explosiveness made him one of the more versatile playmakers on the Gulf Coast recruiting scene.
The Jaguars also picked up a commitment from James Clemens quarterback Gio Lopez, a left-handed passer who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 210 pounds. Lopez threw for 2,767 yards and 29 touchdowns last season while leading his team to a 10-1 record, earning first-team All-State recognition in the process. Landing a productive, accurate passer like Lopez gives South Alabama’s coaching staff a potential building block at the position as the program looks to keep pace in the competitive Sun Belt Conference.
With National Signing Day still months away, South Alabama’s coaching staff is expected to continue targeting standout talent from Mobile County high schools and across the region as it fills out its 2023 recruiting class. For local football fans, the mix of a nationally ranked Alabama squad and a growing crop of homegrown Jaguars commitments gives plenty to follow as the season approaches.