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The USA Today Coaches' Poll will matter in college football for only two more seasons. After that, it'll no longer play a role in determining which teams make which postseason, as the entire BCS formula will more or less be replaced by a selection committee. Pretty happy thought, huh?
RELATED: The latest preseason BlogPoll Top 25, featuring LSU over USC. || SB Nation Studios' Top 25 Video Countdown
However, for the time being it still plays into the BCS, and is thus the most important poll, disregarding the obvious reasons (IT'S A COACHES POLL) why it shouldn't be. Still, its release signifies we're even closer to the season than we thought we were, so let the warm vibes continue.
To some surprise, USC is ranked behind both LSU and Alabama to start the year, despite entering the year with quite a bit of preseason No. 1 talk. The rest of it is SEC-heavy as well, with half the top 10 coming from the SEC.
The complete Coaches' Poll Top 25 heading into the 2012 season:
| Rank | Team (first-place votes) | Record | Points | Final 2011 rank | |
| 1. | LSU (18) | 13-1 | 1,403 | 2 | |
| 2. | Alabama (20) | 12-1 | 1,399 | 1 | |
| 3. | Southern California (19) | 10-2 | 1,388 | NR | |
| 4. | Oklahoma | 10-3 | 1,276 | 15 | |
| 5. | Oregon | 12-2 | 1,258 | 4 | |
| 6. | Georgia | 10-4 | 1,061 | 20 | |
| 7. | Florida State | 9-4 | 1,055 | 23 | |
| 8. | Michigan | 11-2 | 1,023 | 9 | |
| 9. | South Carolina | 11-2 | 981 | 8 | |
| 10. | Arkansas | 11-2 | 948 | 5 | |
| 11. | West Virginia | 10-3 | 833 | 18 | |
| 12. | Wisconsin | 11-3 | 743 | 11 | |
| 13. | Michigan State | 11-3 | 717 | 10 | |
| 14. | Clemson | 10-4 | 598 | 22 | |
| 15. | Texas | 8-5 | 549 | NR | |
| 16. | Nebraska | 9-4 | 501 | 24 | |
| 17. | TCU | 11-2 | 499 | 13 | |
| 18. | Stanford | 11-2 | 497 | 7 | |
| 19. | Oklahoma State | 12-1 | 476 | 3 | |
| 20. | Virginia Tech | 11-3 | 461 | 17 | |
| 21. | Kansas State | 10-3 | 398 | 16 | |
| 22. | Boise State | 12-1 | 271 | 6 | |
| 23. | Florida | 7-6 | 250 | NR | |
| 24. | Notre Dame | 8-5 | 166 | NR | |
| 25. | Auburn | 8-5 | 66 | NR | |
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| Others receiving votes (with 2011 records) | |||||
| Washington (7-6) 64; Louisville (7-6) 46; Georgia Tech (8-5) 35; Cincinnati (10-3) 32; Texas A&M (7-6) 28; Baylor (10-3) 23; Utah (8-5) 22; Mississippi State (7-6) 21; South Florida (5-7) 12; N.C. State (8-5) 11; BYU (10-3) 10; Louisiana Tech (8-5) 10; Virginia (8-5) 9; Houston (13-1) 7; Southern Mississippi (12-2) 6; Central Florida (5-7) 5; Rutgers (9-4) 5; Florida International (8-5) 3; Missouri (8-5) 3; Tennessee (5-7) 3; Northern Illinois (11-3) 2; Texas Tech (5-7) 1. | |||||
While we’re here, let’s watch some of the many fine college football videos from SB Nation’s YouTube channel:
