Ohio State Starts Season as No. 1 Team

When Troy Smith, Ted Ginn Jr. and the rest of the Ohio State Buckeyes were last seen on a big stage, they were dashing around Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Ariz., at warp speed.

That 34-20 victory over Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl made a lasting impression.

For the first time since 1998, Ohio State is the preseason No. 1 in the Associated Press top 25.

The Buckeyes received 35 of 65 first-place votes from a panel of media members in the poll released Friday. Notre Dame was No. 2, the best preseason showing for the Fighting Irish since they were second in 1994.

Texas will start the defense of its national title as the No. 3 team in the country. Auburn was fourth and West Virginia fifth. USC was No. 6. Florida, Louisiana State, California and Oklahoma rounded out the top 10.

Unlike the previous two seasons, when the Trojans started the season as an overwhelming No. 1, the Buckeyes received 54% of the first-place votes, and all the teams in the top six received at least three votes for No. 1.

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Senior Sam Keller has been chosen over sophomore Rudy Carpenter as the starting quarterback for 24th-ranked Arizona State.

Coach Dirk Koetter told the two players of his decision shortly before the team’s public scrimmage on Friday night.

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California cornerback Tim Mixon will sit out the regular season after tearing a ligament in his right knee during a scrimmage.

Mixon, a senior who also returns punts, was injured on a non-contact play while fielding a punt Thursday.

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Top 25

The Associated Press’ top 25 college football poll. Records and previous rankings denote last season’s final poll. Number of first-place votes in parentheses:

*--* Rk. Team Record Pts. Prv. 1. Ohio State (35) 10-2 1,558 4 2. Notre Dame (10) 9-3 1,470 9 3. Texas (8) 13-0 1,411 1 4. Auburn (3) 9-3 1,395 14 5. West Virginia (6) 11-1 1,354 5 6. USC (3) 12-1 1,345 2 7. Florida 9-3 1,178 t12 8. Louisiana State 11-2 1,144 6 9. California 8-4 975 25 10. Oklahoma 8-4 960 22 11. Florida State 8-5 949 23 12. Miami 9-3 893 17 13. Louisville 9-3 844 19 14. Michigan 7-5 824 NR 15. Georgia 10-3 743 10 16. Iowa 7-5 720 NR 17. Virginia Tech 11-2 614 7 18. Clemson 8-4 479 21 19. Penn State 11-1 386 3 20. Nebraska 8-4 332 24 21. Oregon 10-2 324 t12 22. Texas Christian 11-1 257 11 23. Tennessee 5-6 215 NR 24. Arizona State 7-5 182 NR 25. Texas Tech 9-3 181 20

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* Others receiving votes: Alabama 141, Utah 52, Boston College 41, Georgia Tech 39, Boise State 23, Arkansas 18, Wisconsin 18, South Carolina 15, Tulsa 11, Texas A&M; 10, BYU 4, Purdue 4, UTEP 4, Iowa State 3, Mississippi 3, N. Illinois 3, Michigan State 2, Arizona 1.