MSU 15th; U-M 8th In Initial AP CFP Poll

In the first Associated Press (AP) college football media poll, released on Monday, Michigan State is rated 15th while arch-rival and defending Big Ten champion Michigan is rated 8th.

Alabama (head coach Nick Saban, pictured) is ranked number 1, while Ohio State is rated 2nd.  Defending national champion Georgia is ranked 3rd.  Clemson (4th) and Notre Dame (5th) round out the top five.

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Only one other Big Ten team made the first AP poll and that is Wisconsin, who is rated 18th.  A number of Big Ten teams are in the Receiving Votes Category.  They are:  Iowa, Penn State, Minnesota, Purdue, and Nebraska.

The AP Poll comes out one week after the first USA TODAY/Amway Coaches poll was released.  That poll had Michigan 6th and Michigan State 14th. The top 5 in the Coaches and the AP poll are exactly the same.

The AP poll dates back to 1936, the oldest college football poll in America.