The Associated Press released its 2011 Preseason Top 25 on Saturday. The Vols are receiving five points, to place them tied for 39th if you extend the rankings out. Tennessee will take on six teams in the Top 25: No. 2 Alabama, No. 4 LSU, No. 12 South Carolina, No. 15 Arkansas, No. 19 Georgia, No. 22 Florida. Also ranked from the SEC are No. 20 Mississippi State and No. 23 Auburn.Â
The Top 25 teams in The Associated Press college football preseason poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, 2010 records, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote, and 2010 final ranking:
| Record | Pts | Pv | |
| 1. Oklahoma (36) | 12-2 | 1,464 | 6 |
| 2. Alabama (17) | 10-3 | 1,439 | 10 |
| 3. Oregon (4) | 12-1 | 1,330 | 3 |
| 4. LSU (1) | 11-2 | 1,286 | 8 |
| 5. Boise St. (2) | 12-1 | 1,200 | 9 |
| 6. Florida St. | 10-4 | 1,168 | 17 |
| 7. Stanford | 12-1 | 1,091 | 4 |
| 8. Texas A&M | 9-4 | 965 | 19 |
| 9. Oklahoma St. | 11-2 | 955 | 13 |
| 10. Nebraska | 10-4 | 910 | 20 |
| 11. Wisconsin | 11-2 | 900 | 7 |
| 12. South Carolina | 9-5 | 848 | 22 |
| 13. Virginia Tech | 11-3 | 821 | 16 |
| 14. TCU | 13-0 | 690 | 2 |
| 15. Arkansas | 10-3 | 686 | 12 |
| 16. Notre Dame | 8-5 | 530 | NR |
| 17. Michigan St. | 11-2 | 519 | 14 |
| 18. Ohio St. | 12-1 | 443 | 5 |
| 19. Georgia | 6-7 | 369 | NR |
| 20. Mississippi St. | 9-4 | 361 | 15 |
| 21. Missouri | 10-3 | 258 | 18 |
| 22. Florida | 8-5 | 228 | NR |
| 23. Auburn | 14-0 | 219 | 1 |
| 24. West Virginia | 9-4 | 207 | NR |
| 25. Southern Cal | 8-5 | 160 | NR |
Others receiving votes: Texas 114, Penn St. 75, Arizona St. 67, Miami 32, Utah 25, Southern Miss. 20, Iowa 19, BYU 15, NC State 15, Air Force 14, Houston 13, Pittsburgh 9, Michigan 7, Tennessee 5, UCF 5, Hawaii 4, N. Illinois 4, Tulsa 3, Arizona 2, Maryland 2, Nevada 1, Northwestern 1, Washington 1.
