Florida State, Florida, Miami among AP's top 100

Seminoles, Gators ranked among top 10; Hurricanes ranked No. 13

PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – The Florida State Seminoles, Florida Gators and Miami Hurricanes rank among the top 13 of the 100 greatest college football programs, according to a poll released Tuesday by The Associated Press.

Florida State ranks ninth all-time, while Florida is right behind the Seminoles at No. 10.

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Ohio State took home the No. 1 spot in the all-time rankings, followed by Oklahoma at No. 2, Notre Dame at No. 3, Alabama at No. 4, Southern California at No. 5, Nebraska at No. 6, Michigan at No. 7 and Texas at No. 8.

Miami ranks 13th all-time behind No. 11 Louisiana State and No. 12 Penn State.

To determine the all-time rankings, the AP formula counted poll appearances (one point) to mark consistency, No. 1 rankings (two points) to acknowledge elite programs and gave a bonus for AP championships (10 points).

The Seminoles received 714 points, while the Gators garnered 674 points and the Hurricanes collected 642 points.

Florida State has held the No. 1 ranking 72 times over the course of the AP poll, compared to Miami's 67 top rankings and Florida's 41.

The Seminoles and Gators each have three national championships, with Florida State winning in 1993, 1999 and 2013 and Florida winning in 1996, 2006 and 2008.

That's fewer than Miami's five national championships in 1983, 1987, 1989, 1991 (although the coaches awarded Washington the national championship after both teams finished the season undefeated) and 2001.

Miami has appeared in 458 AP polls. Of those poll appearances, 367 came between Sept. 29, 1980, and Jan. 4, 2006.

Florida has appeared in the most AP polls among the three programs. The Gators have appeared in 562 AP polls compared to Florida State's 540 appearances.

All three programs had their best full decade in the 1990s, but Florida State appeared to be the model of consistency, appearing in 100 percent of the AP polls.

From Nov. 11, 1990, to Sept. 9, 2001, the Seminoles were never ranked lower than 11th under former head coach Bobby Bowden.

Florida State went 14 straight seasons with 10-or-more-win, top-five finishes from 1987-2000.

Ohio State has fewer national championships (five) than Oklahoma, Notre Dame and Alabama, but the Buckeyes have been ranked No. 1 more often.

The AP has been ranking the best teams in college football since 1936. The poll grew to its current 25 teams in 1989.

Click here to see the full list of the top 100 teams.


About the Author:

Peter Burke returned for a second stint of duty at Local 10 News in February 2014.