Where Notre Dame football ranks in 2025 preseason Associated Press Poll

Beginning the season with a ranked matchup has become commonplace for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Monday’s release of the 2025 preseason Associated Press Poll confirms it what we all already knew; both Notre Dame and Miami are ranked, so it’ll be a third ranked head-to-head in Week 1 in the last four seasons for head coach Marcus Freeman and his Irish.

Notre Dame is ranked No. 6. Miami is ranked No. 10.

All three of the aforementioned ranked bouts to begin seventy-five percent of the Freeman era will have come on the road for Notre Dame. The Irish went to No. 2 Ohio State in 2022, No. 20 Texas A&M in 2024 and now No. 10 Miami in 2025. The only year Freeman did not face a ranked team to open a season during his four-year tenure in South Bend was when the Irish went to Ireland to face Navy in Week 0 of 2023.

So, this isn’t anything new for Notre Dame. Neither is playing ranked opponents throughout the course of the regular season, no matter what your blue and gold-hating neighbor tries to tell you. The Irish played four ranked regular season games last season, including the opener at A&M. Freeman has seven ranked wins in three seasons at the helm. Seven of those came in 2024 including the three College Football Playoff victories.

This season, Notre Dame is set to square off against three ranked teams according to the preseason AP Top 25. Texas A&M is ranked No. 19, and Boise State is ranked No. 25.

It’s not the most daunting of Notre Dame schedules, but it is quite a way to kick things off with the two toughest games on paper coming in the first two slots of the season. The Irish have a rare Week 2 bye before returning home to host the Aggies in Week 3.

The Irish only have two true road games in the first two months of the season — at Miami in Week 1 and at Arkansas in the final week of September. Their next road game after visiting the Razorbacks isn’t until Nov. 1 at Boston College.

Here’s a look at the entire preseason AP Top 25.

2025 Preseason Associated Press Poll: Notre Dame No. 5

1. Texas
2. Penn State
3. Ohio State
4. Clemson
5. Georgia

6. Notre Dame
7. Oregon
8. Alabama
9. LSU
10. Miami

11. Arizona State
12. Illinois
13. South Carolina
14. Michigan
15. Florida

16. SMU
17. Kansas State
18. Oklahoma
19. Texas A&M
20. Indiana

21. Ole Miss
22. Iowa State
23. Texas Tech
24. Tennessee
25. Boise State