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Michigan football a top-15 team in preseason coaches poll

clayton-sayfieby: Clayton Sayfie08/04/25CSayf23
Michigan Wolverines football head coach Sherrone Moore is facing a short suspension. (Photo by Lon Horwedel / TheWolverine.com)
Michigan Wolverines football head coach Sherrone Moore is facing a short suspension. (Photo by Lon Horwedel / TheWolverine.com)

The 2025 college football preseason coaches poll was released Monday, and Michigan Wolverines football checked in No. 14. The Maize and Blue finished the 2024 campaign unranked but received 20 votes in the final installment, going 8-5 in their first year under head coach Sherrone Moore.

Texas is ranked No. 1 heading into the season, with the rest of the top 10 filled out by No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Penn State, No. 4 Georgia, No. 5 Notre Dame, No. 6 Clemson, No. 7 Oregon, No. 8 Alabama, No. 9 LSU and No. 10 Miami.

Michigan is also behind No. 11 Arizona State, No. 12 Illinois and No. 13 South Carolina.

The Wolverines are the fifth-highest rated Big Ten team, behind No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Penn State, No. 7 Oregon and No. 12 Illinois. The only other team from the league to appear in the poll is No. 19 Indiana.

The SEC led the way with nine teams in the top 25, including four in the top nine. The Big Ten has the second most among conferences with six, including Michigan.

While Michigan won its rivalry and trophy games — versus Ohio State, Minnesota, Northwestern and Michigan State — the team disappointed with an 8-5 record a season ago. The Wolverines believe times can be better in 2025, however.

 ”Last year, we hit a couple of speed bumps, but we didn’t allow those to become roadblocks,” Moore said at Big Ten Media Days. “We overcame a lot of adversity and had a successful end of the year. But really, we’re not living on that. We know that’s done. We know that’s past us and our jobs now are to write a new story on what the University of Michigan and Team 146 is all about.

“We’re a team. It’s not one person who wins or loses a game; it’s a team. So for us, we’ve done a really good job of being a cohesive unit and team over me and gaining trust with each other and being in the battle. We’re just gonna be a better team this year.”

Coaches poll: Preseason top 25 in 2025

1. Texas (28 first-place votes)
2. Ohio State (20)
3. Penn State (14)
4. Georgia (3)
5. Notre Dame
6. Clemson (2)
7. Oregon
8. Alabama
9. LSU
10. Miami
11. Arizona State
12. Illinois
13. South Carolina
14. Michigan
15. Ole Miss
16. SMU
17. Florida
18. Tennessee
19. Indiana
20. Kansas State
21. Texas A&M
22. Iowa State
23. BYU
24. Texas Tech
25. Boise State