The University of Florida earned the No. 1 ranking in the Associated Press preseason men’s college basketball poll released on Monday, October 19, 2026. Florida received 47 of 59 first-place votes, placing them ahead of Duke and Illinois, who also received first-place votes. This selection marks the first time since 2006 that the Gators have started a season at the top of the AP rankings.
The ranking follows an offseason in which head coach Todd Golden retained four starters—Thomas Haugh, Rueben Chinyelu, Alex Condon, and Boogie Fland—from a team that won 27 games and earned a No. 1 seed in the previous NCAA Tournament. The roster was further supplemented by the return of Denzel Aberdeen, who received a court injunction to play a fifth season after transferring from Kentucky. Florida is seeking its second national championship in three seasons, having previously won the title in 2025.
Duke received 10 first-place votes to secure the No. 2 spot, while Illinois earned two first-place votes for No. 3. Rounding out the top five were UConn at No. 4 and Arizona at No. 5. Defending national champion Michigan entered the poll at No. 16, a placement that follows the departure of head coach Dusty May to the NBA and a season-ending injury to পাঁচ-star recruit Brandon McCoy Jr.
The scale of this poll involves 59 media voters who distributed points across dozens of teams, with Florida receiving 1,461 total points. The Gators will open their season against No. 14 Miami in Tampa, a game that will serve as an immediate test of their ranking. Other programs, such as Kansas at No. 17 and Texas Tech at No. 19, are starting the season lower in the rankings than their roster talent might suggest due to unresolved eligibility status for three players on each of their respective teams.
The rankings also influence the visibility of specific players, such as Michigan's Elliot Cadeau, the lone returning starter from the championship team, and Duke's Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, a freshman projected as a top professional prospect. Following the season openers in early November, the AP will release weekly updates to the poll. These rankings often dictate broadcast schedules and ticket demand for high-profile matchups throughout the winter months, leading up to the NCAA Tournament in April 2027.