The preseason, which has been nothing but a lack of expectations for Duke football, continued on Monday as the 2026 preseason AP Poll was released.
Not only were the Blue Devils not ranked in the top 25, but Manny Diaz’s squad did not receive a single vote from the voters heading into the season.
Many are questioning whether Duke can recover from the departure of starting quarterback Darian Mensah and leading receiver Cooper Barkate, who abruptly left for ACC rival Miami after helping lead the Blue Devils to their first outright conference title since 1962.
Out of the top 25, Diaz’s team only faces the Hurricanes, who come in at No. 7 while also receiving one first-place vote. Mensah is expected to fill in the shoes of Carson Beck, who led Miami to the national championship game last season, ultimately falling to Indiana.
Two other ACC schools – SMU (19th) and Louisville (24th) – are in the preseason top 25, but the Blue Devils miss those two on the schedule. Clemson, who comes to Wallace Wade Stadium on Nov. 20, is just outside the rankings, receiving 112 votes.
Full AP Poll:
- Ohio State
- Oregon’
- Georgia
- Notre Dame
- Texas
- Indiana
- Miami
- Texas A&M
- Ole Miss
- Oklahoma
- LSU
- Texas Tech
- Alabama
- USC
- BYU
- Michigan
- Washington
- Penn State
- SMU
- Tennessee
- Utah
- Iowa
- Houston
- Louisville
- Missouri
Others receiving votes: Clemson 112, Florida 51, Boise State 43, Arizona 32, TCU 11, South Carolina 10, Navy 10, Illinois 9, Vanderbilt 8, Oklahoma State 8, Pittsburgh 7, Virginia Tech 6, Minnesota 5, UNLV 4, Louisiana 4, New Mexico 4, Georgia Tech 4, James Madison 3, Auburn 3, Memphis 2, California 2, Western Michigan 1, Tulane 1, Liberty 1, Virginia 1
This article originally appeared on Duke Wire: Duke football starts season unranked in preseason AP Poll