The Texas Longhorns fell two wins short of capturing the national championship in each of the past two seasons. The college-football commentariat expects Steve Sarkisian's squad to finally break through this winter.

Texas' No. 1 AP preseason ranking is a first for the Longhorns and their highest to start the season since being No. 2 in 2009, the last time they played for a national title.

Texas received 25 first-place votes and 1,552 points to give the Southeastern Conference the preseason No. 1 team for a record fifth straight year. The Nittany Lions got 23 first-place votes and 1,547 points for their highest preseason ranking since they were No. 1 to open the 1997 season.