The Associated Press released its preseason Top 25 poll on Monday for the upcoming football season and UCF was ranked No. 21 in the nation. The Knights were also slotted 21st in the preseason Amway Coaches Poll released earlier this month.
At the conclusion of the 2019 season, UCF was ranked 24th in the final AP Poll and the final Coaches Poll after going 10-3 and winning the 2019 Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl. It was the third straight year that the Knights finished the season in the Top 25.
UCF has ranked in the AP Top 25 for the last three consecutive preseasons, the only program in the state of Florida to do so. The Knights improved three spots on last season’s final ranking with 229 total points.
Like in the Coaches Poll, UCF is one of two American Athletic Conference teams in the Top 25, as Cincinnati polled 20th in the AP Poll. Clemson topped the poll with Ohio State, Alabama, Georgia, and Oklahoma rounding out the top five.
When considering only the ranked teams that are currently planning to play football this fall — the Big Ten and Pac-12 have opted out due to the pandemic — UCF stands at 14th overall.
UCF is scheduled to open the season at Georgia Tech on Sept. 19.
