Coaches Top 25: Why Auburn football should be elated with preseason ranking

The preseason Amway Coaches Poll was released Thursday and the Auburn football team couldn’t have asked for a better set up entering the 2018 season.

The 65 FBS coaches who vote on the weekly Amway Coaches Poll (yes, that includes Gus Malzahn) placed the Auburn football team 10th in its first poll. That’s not rolling Toomer’s worthy — far from it — but coaches, players and fans should be thrilled with what the coaches did.

First off, like it or not, Auburn hasn’t been at its best when expectations are sky high. Expectations are up there this season, but settling in at No. 10 to start the season when you’re playing the game of the college football season’s opening weekend is perfect.

Why? Because that Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta is against Washington. That’s the sixth-ranked Huskies, making the trip all the way from Seattle.

Auburn is no stranger to Atlanta. The crowd should lean heavily orange and blue. But the pressure squarely has been placed on Washington. A victory in Week 1 not only will look good against a higher-ranked team, but will do wonders for Auburn’s confidence after kicking off the 2017 season with a dud against Clemson.

To be honest, Auburn could start the season ranked No. 20 and climb its way into the playoff picture with the schedule it faces: three top 10 teams and five overall in the Top 25.

Coaches Top 25 poll observations

• Alabama is No. 1. Of course Alabama is No. 1. There’s zero reason to be upset about that. You know it was going to be that way. Everyone knew it. Alabama begins every season with a target on its back and 2018 won’t be different. The road to the SEC Championship game, the College Football Playoff and a national title go through the Crimson Tide.
• Georgia is No. 4. Also, you shouldn’t worry yourselves with that. Have you seen the Bulldogs’ schedule? It’s laughable. South Carolina could provide a decent test in Week 2, but beyond that, you’re looking at an Oct. 13 trip to Baton Rouge to face an LSU team that was picked to finish fifth in the West at SEC Media Days. Then there’s Nov. 10 at home against Auburn. If the Bulldogs lose any other game on their schedule, they’re not deserving of a No. 4 ranking.
• Ohio State is No. 3 and the Buckeyes have the talent to back that up, but watch what happens with Urban Meyer. Take him out of the equation and Ohio State is not the same team. At all.
• Mississippi State sits at No. 18. The Bulldogs are getting all kinds of hype because of the return of Nick Fitzgerald and two first-team All-SEC defensive tackles in Montez Sweat and Jeffrey Simmons. That’s a lot to place on first-year coach Joe Moorhead.
• LSU begins at No. 24 despite the media projecting the Tigers will finish fifth in the SEC West. That shows just how difficult that division is. And don’t count out LSU. The season could go a lot of ways for Ed Orgeron’s group and up definitely is one of the options.