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The Arizona Wildcats received five points in the USA Today Preseason Coaches Poll for the 2013 college football season, good enough to rank them a technical 42nd in the nation.
USA Today released the poll at noon Eastern Time on Thursday and five Pac-12 squads made the initial top-25 list.
The Alabama Crimson Tide earned the most votes and garnered 58 of 62 first-place nods. The Ohio State Buckeyes, fresh off a poll ban, came in second. Pac-12 North powers Oregon and Stanford went third and fourth, while Georgia rounded out the top-five.
The SEC dominated the top of the Coaches Poll by filling five of the top 10 slots.
Pac-12 South Division favorite UCLA came in at No. 21 and usual powerhouse USC barely slipped into the top-25. The Trojans were ranked No. 24 in the preseason rankings. Arizona State also received more votes than the Wildcats and enter 2013 with 51 points.
Arizona finished the 2012 season unranked but did receive a single vote in the final USA Today poll following its New Mexico Bowl comeback win.
Here's the entire preseason poll:
| RANK | TEAM | RECORD | POINTS | PREVIOUS RANK | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama (58) | 13-1 | 1545 | 1 | |
| 2 | Ohio St. (3) | 12-0 | 1427 | NR | |
| 3 | Oregon | 12-1 | 1397 | 2 | |
| 4 | Stanford | 12-2 | 1262 | 6 | |
| 5 | Georgia | 12-2 | 1250 | 4 | |
| 6 | Texas A&M (1) | 11-2 | 1215 | 5 | |
| 7 | South Carolina | 11-2 | 1136 | 7 | |
| 8 | Clemson | 11-2 | 1047 | 9 | |
| 9 | Louisville | 11-2 | 1010 | 13 | |
| 10 | Florida | 11-2 | 930 | 10 | |
| 11 | Notre Dame | 12-1 | 872 | 3 | |
| 12 | Florida St. | 12-2 | 844 | 8 | |
| 13 | LSU | 10-3 | 797 | 12 | |
| 14 | Oklahoma St. | 8-5 | 726 | NR | |
| 15 | Texas | 9-4 | 622 | 18 | |
| 16 | Oklahoma | 10-3 | 620 | 15 | |
| 17 | Michigan | 8-5 | 589 | NR | |
| 18 | Nebraska | 10-4 | 426 | 23 | |
| 19 | Boise St. | 11-2 | 420 | 14 | |
| 20 | TCU | 7-6 | 400 | NR | |
| 21 | UCLA | 9-5 | 202 | NR | |
| 22 | Northwestern | 10-3 | 186 | 16 | |
| 23 | Wisconsin | 8-0 | 172 | NR | |
| 24 | USC | 7-6 | 165 | NR | |
| 25 | Oregon St. | 9-4 | 135 | 19 | |
| Schools Dropped Out | |||||
| No. 11 Kansas State (11-2), No. 17 Utah State (11-2), No. 20 Vanderbilt (9-4), No. 21 San Jose State (11-2), No. 22 Cincinnati (10-3), No. 24 Northern Illinois (12-2), No. 25 Tulsa (11-3). | |||||
| Others Receiving Votes | |||||
| Kansas State (11-2) 113; Miami (Fla.) 101; Michigan State 89; Baylor 80; Virginia Tech 65; Fresno State 62; Arizona State 51; Mississippi 32; Vanderbilt (9-4) 29; Utah State (11-2) 23; Brigham Young 20; North Carolina 19; Northern Illinois (12-2) 19; Tulsa (11-3) 9; Ohio 8; San Jose State (11-2) 8; Arizona 5; Cincinnati (10-3) 3; East Carolina 3; Kent State 3; Mississippi State 3; Washington 3; Central Florida 2; Arkansas 1; Arkansas State 1; Rutgers 1; Tennessee 1; Toledo 1. | |||||