Sports

AP Top 25 Podcast: ESPN's Rece Davis on preseason polling

21 of August 2018

FILE - In this Oct. 22, 2016, file photo, Alabama wide receiver Gehrig Dieter (11) and offensive lineman Jonah Williams (73) look for blocks during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Texas A&M, at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Jonah Williams was selected to the AP Preseason All-America team, Tuesday, Aug. 21, 2018. (Vasha Hunt/AL.com via AP, File),FILE - In this Oct. 22, 2016, file photo, Alabama wide receiver Gehrig Dieter (11) and offensive lineman Jonah Williams (73) look for blocks during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Texas A&M, at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Jonah Williams was selected to the AP Preseason All-America team, Tuesday, Aug. 21, 2018. (Vasha Hunt/AL.com via AP, File)

Putting together a preseason Top 25 for The Associated Press college football poll is more art than science for ESPN’s Rece Davis.

Davis said on the AP Top 25 College Football Podcast that he tries to blend his preseason assessment of a team with how that team might develop. As each week of the season goes by, Davis filters out preconceived notions and replaces them with results.

The preseason Top 25 was released Monday and Alabama is No. 1 again. Davis is one of 61 voters for the second consecutive year. He is more bullish on Notre Dame and Michigan than most poll voters, but not quite as high on Oklahoma.

Davis also discussed the impact of Ohio State’s investigation into Urban Meyer had on his ranking of the Buckeyes.

___

Follow Ralph D. Russo at www.Twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at https://www.podcastone.com/AP-Top-25-College-Football-Podcast

___

More AP college football: http://collegefootball.ap.org/poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25