College Football Rankings 2021: Projected AP Top 25 for Week 2

After a year of disjointed starts across the country as conferences debated how to react to COVID-19, college football has taken a back-to-business-as-usual approach heading into the 2021 season. The opening weekend showed packed stands of largely unmasked crowds, from sea to shining sea, as college stadiums have become spaces of escapism for people hoping that positive thinking will wish away viral spread.

Playing football in a pandemic is a calculated decision on the part of athletic departments and athletes alike. The rewards have been deemed more substantial than the risks, especially for young men who can now capitalize on their on-field results to monetize their name, image, and likeness off the field.

So here we are, the first set of games behind us and plenty of questions about where teams will fall in the next batch of AP Top 25 rankings. For, as much as fans grumble about the appearance of the poll before the season has even started, the AP Top 25 manufactures interest and drives eyeballs to certain games over others.

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• Oklahoma State (1-0)
• TCU (1-0)
• BYU (1-0)
• Nevada (1-0)
• UCF (1-0)

In that regard, the AP Top 25 is incredibly important — even if that importance becomes ephemeral by the time the College Football Playoff selection committee starts releasing their own rankings midway through the regular season.

Because these rankings are so important, where a team falls on a list can have real economic impacts. College GameDay often makes its decisions about where to go from week to week based on the rankings of the teams playing on the schedule. Games originally scheduled for noon kickoffs can push up to prime time, drawing even more attention.

With that in mind, how will the AP voters rank college football teams now that actual gameplay can be factored into the decisions? Here are our latest Top 25 projections ahead of Week 2 play.