Ahead of the 2026 season, the Washington Huskies have found their way into the preseason edition of the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll at No. 19.
As Jedd Fisch’s team aims to take the program’s third trip to the College Football Playoff in his third season at the helm, the Huskies are united in their goal to return to the expanded 12-team format after competing in the four-team playoff in both 2016 and 2023.
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However, Fisch’s team will face several major challenges along the way. The Huskies are ranked as the No. 7 team in the Big Ten behind No. 1 Ohio State, No. 2 Oregon, No. 6 Indiana, No. 14 USC, No. 16 Michigan, and No. 17 Penn State, while No. 22 Iowa rounds out the conference’s eight teams in the rankings.
The Huskies will match up with five of those programs, which begins with a road trip to USC in early October before returning to play Iowa on a short week the following Friday. Then in November, the month begins when the Nittany Lions head to Seattle, before it closes with Fisch’s team hosting the defending national champion Hoosiers on senior day and a trip south to face their arch-rival Ducks in Eugene.
As Fisch looks to continue to elevate his program and improve on a 9-4 2025 campaign, he’ll have several opportunities to earn a signature win over top-tier opponents.
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Here’s how the rest of the initial poll shaped up.
2026 Preseason USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll
|
Rank |
School (Record) |
Points |
Last Season’s Rank |
1st Place Votes |
|
1 |
Ohio State (12-2) |
1,741 |
6 |
38 |
|
2 |
Oregon (13-2) |
1,637 |
4 |
6 |
|
3 |
Georgia (12-2) |
1,591 |
5 |
7 |
|
4 |
Texas (10-3) |
1,544 |
13 |
2 |
|
5 |
Notre Dame (10-2) |
1,524 |
11 |
5 |
|
6 |
Indiana (16-0) |
1,522 |
1 |
14 |
|
7 |
Miami, FL (13-3) |
1,409 |
2 |
– |
|
8 |
Texas A&M (11-2) |
1,174 |
8 |
– |
|
9 |
Oklahoma (10-3) |
1,104 |
10 |
– |
|
10 |
Mississippi (13-2) |
1,096 |
3 |
– |
|
11 |
Alabama (11-4) |
1,050 |
9 |
– |
|
12 |
Texas Tech (12-2) |
1,034 |
7 |
– |
|
13 |
LSU (7-6) |
951 |
NR |
– |
|
14 |
USC (9-4) |
838 |
21 |
– |
|
15 |
BYU (12-2) |
781 |
12 |
– |
|
16 |
Michigan (9-4) |
719 |
22 |
– |
|
17 |
Penn State (7-6) |
463 |
NR |
– |
|
18 |
Tennessee (8-5) |
428 |
NR |
– |
|
19 |
Washington (9-4) |
406 |
NR |
– |
|
20 |
SMU (9-4) |
378 |
NR |
– |
|
21 |
Utah (11-2) |
313 |
14 |
– |
|
22 |
Iowa (9-4) |
291 |
17 |
– |
|
23 |
Clemson (7-6) |
235 |
NR |
– |
|
24 |
Houston (10-3) |
194 |
19 |
– |
|
25 |
Missouri (8-5) |
158 |
NR |
– |
Others Receiving Votes
Louisville 153; Florida 147; TCU 63; Illinois 62; South Carolina 50; Arizona 50; Virginia 40; Vanderbilt 37; Auburn 29; Georgia Tech 26; Boise State 24; Oklahoma State 22; UNLV 17; North Carolina State 13; Florida State 13; Virginia Tech 12; Nebraska 12; Memphis 9; Arizona State 8; James Madison 6; Duke 6; Pittsburgh 4; New Mexico 4; Western Michigan 3; Navy 3; San Diego State 2; Kansas State 1; Jacksonville State 1; Hawaii 1; California 1;
This article originally appeared on Huskies Wire: Washington makes top 25 of Preseason USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll
