Alabama No. 1 in preseason AP Top 25

Alabama will enter the season ranked No. 1 in both major national polls, as the Crimson Tide was named the No. 1 team in the Associated Press Top 25 on Monday.

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Alabama achieved the ranking by receiving 52 of the 61 possible first-place votes. Ohio State was ranked No. 2 earning three first-place votes, while Florida State (four first-place votes), Southern California (two first-place votes) and Clemson round out the top five.

This marks the second straight year Alabama has started the season ranked atop the AP Top 25. However, the early honor is no guarantee for success.The last preseason No. 1 to win a championship was Southern California in 2004. Since then, preseason No. 1s have gone a combined 135-25 and have finished in the top five just seven times.

Earlier in the month, Alabama was ranked as the No. 1 team in the preseason Amway Coaches Poll, receiving 49 of the 65 possible first-place votes.

“The identity of this team, regardless of what anybody says, regardless of where anybody ranks you and rates you... is based on what they do moving forward and the games they have in the future,” Alabama head coach Nick Saban said Saturday. “That's what the players should be looking at relative to what they need to do to improve, and that's what I hope we're focused on."

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If Alabama is to become the first preseason No. 1 to win the national title in more than a decade it will have a tough road to climb. The Tide will face four teams ranked inside the top 25, beginning with its season opener against No. 3 Florida State on Sept. 2 in Atlanta.

From there, Alabama will host No. 25 Tennessee on Oct. 21 and No. 13 LSU on Nov. 4 before traveling to No. 12 Auburn for the Iron Bowl on Nov. 25. Other SEC schools ranked inside the top 25 include No. 15 Georgia and No. 17 Florida.