August 15, 2022

Buckeyes appear in AP poll for record 34th consecutive season

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State will begin the 2022 season ranked No. 2 in the Associated Press poll, as the organization released its preseason poll on Monday. The Buckeyes’ inclusion in the initial poll continues a number of impressive streaks.

Ohio State has appeared in the AP preseason poll for 34 consecutive years, which is the longest active streak of any program in the country. Oklahoma is second at 23 years. The streak, which began in 1989, includes 13 appearances in the top-five of the poll.

The Buckeyes also tied Penn State for the longest poll run in AP history. The Nittany Lions appeared in every preseason poll from 1968 through 2002. On Monday, Ohio State’s passed Nebraska (1970-2002) for the second-longest streak.

Since the AP preseason poll was introduced in 1950, Ohio State has appeared 69 of 73 times – the most of any program in the country. The only years it was not included was 1966, 1967, 1979 and 1988.

Total Appearances in AP Preseason Poll
1. Ohio State – 69
2. Oklahoma – 64
3. USC – 61
4. Notre Dame – 59
5. Alabama – 56

The Buckeyes have now been ranked in at least one AP poll for the 55th consecutive season, which is by far the longest active streak in the country and the longest in AP poll history. No other team currently has a stretch longer than 26 consecutive years.

AP Poll Season Appearance Streak
1. Ohio State – 55 (1968-2022)
2. Georgia and Wisconsin – 26 (1997-2022)
4. Oregon – 25 (1998-2022)
5. Oklahoma – 24 (1999-2022)

In more recent history, Ohio State has begun the season ranked within the top five nine of the last 10 years (the one exception was 2016 when it came in at No. 6). Between the 2013-22 seasons, Ohio State has earned rankings of No. 2, 5, 1, 6, 2, 5, 5, 2, 4 and 2, respectively. Dating back to 2012, it’s been ranked for 163 consecutive polls in which it’s been eligible. That ranks as the fifth-longest streak in poll history.

No school has appeared in more polls – or a larger percentage of them – than Ohio State.

Total Appearances in the AP Poll
1. Ohio State – 950 (79.1 percent)

2. Michigan – 887 (73.9 percent)

3. Oklahoma – 877 (73.0 percent)

4. Notre Dame – 849 (70.7 percent)

5. Alabama – 841 (70.0 percent)

Top Five Matchup to Begin the Season
While the Buckeyes check in at No. 2 to start the season, Ohio State’s opponent in the season-opener – Notre Dame – is No. 5. It will be just the 10th time that the Buckeyes have opened a season against a ranked opponent and the first time it has featured a pair of top-five teams. Only twice has Ohio State’s season opener pitted the Buckeyes against a top-10 ranked team: in 1986 vs. fifth-ranked Alabama at the Kickoff Classic in East Rutherford, N.J. and in 1978 when sixth-ranked Ohio State took on fifth-ranked Penn State.

Ohio State Single Game Tickets
Single game tickets for a terrific slate of 2022 Ohio State home football games can be purchased online at http://go.osu.edu/fbtix.

Ohio State’s home schedule this fall includes three games against teams that appear in today’s AP preseason poll: No. 5 Notre Dame, No. 8 Michigan and No. 18 Wisconsin.

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COURTESY OHIO STATE ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS