Aug. 1, 2008
COLUMBIA, Mo. - Fresh off last season's 12-2 campaign and armed by the return of 17 starters, Missouri Football continued to make headlines on Friday, checking in at No. 7 in the initial USA Today Top 25 Coaches' Poll of the 2008 season.
The No. 7 preseason ranking is the highest in school history for the Tigers, eclipsing their No. 10 preseason mark in the Associated Press poll at the start of the 1969 campaign.
The Tigers had 1,143 total points in the rankings, just 20 behind 2007 National Champion LSU, who is sixth. Georgia is this year's preseason No. 1, followed by Southern California, Ohio State and Oklahoma. Florida rounds out the Top Five, while Texas is ranked No. 10, giving the Big 12 Conference three preseason Top 10 clubs. Missouri travels to Texas on Oct. 18.
Other Missouri opponents in the Top 25 of the Coaches' Poll include Kansas at No. 13 and the season-opening opponent, Illinois, at No. 19.
Mizzou is led by a host of preseason All-Americans in 2008. Record-setting quarterback Chase Daniel leads a Tiger offense that racked up 6,864 total yards last season. Daniel set a school record with 4,306 passing yards as a junior in 2007 en route to an invitation to the Heisman Trophy ceremony in New York City and Big 12 Conference Offensive Player of the Year accolades. Two of his favorite targets, sophomore wide receiver / return special Jeremy Maclin and senior tight end Chase Coffman are also preseason All-Americans. Senior safety William Moore headlines a defense that returns 10 starters. Moore was an All-American in 2007 and appears on a number of preseason All-America ledgers prior to the 2008 campaign.
Missouri opens the 2008 season on Aug. 30 in the State Farm Arch Rivalry vs. No. 19 Illinois at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis. Game time is slated for 7:30 p.m. (CT) on ESPN.
Preseason USA Today Top 25 Coaches’ Poll
| Rank | Team (First Place Votes) | 2007 Record | Points | Final 2007 Ranking |
| 1. |
Georgia (22) |
11-2 |
1,438 |
3 |
| 2. |
Southern California (14) |
11-2 |
1,430 |
2 |
| 3. |
Ohio State (14) |
11-2 |
1,392 |
4 |
| 4. |
Oklahoma (3) |
11-3 |
1,329 |
8 |
| 5. |
Florida (5) |
9-4 |
1,293 |
16 |
| 6. |
LSU (3) |
12-2 |
1,163 |
1 |
| 7. |
Missouri |
12-2 |
1,143 |
5 |
| 8. |
West Virginia |
11-2 |
1,008 |
6 |
| 9. |
Clemson |
9-4 |
999 |
22 |
| 10. |
Texas |
10-3 |
979 |
10 |
| 11. |
Auburn |
9-4 |
888 |
14t |
| 12. |
Wisconsin |
9-4 |
747 |
21 |
| 13. |
Kansas |
12-1 |
714 |
7 |
| 14. |
Texas Tech |
9-4 |
644 |
23 |
| 15. |
Virginia Tech |
11-3 |
568 |
9 |
| 16. |
Arizona State |
10-3 |
560 |
13 |
| 17. |
Brigham Young |
11-2 |
547 |
14t |
| 18. |
Tennessee |
10-4 |
506 |
12 |
| 19. |
Illinois |
9-4 |
422 |
18 |
| 20. |
Oregon |
9-4 |
399 |
24 |
| 21. |
South Florida |
9-4 |
350 |
NR |
| 22. |
Penn State |
9-4 |
313 |
25 |
| 23. |
Wake Forest |
9-4 |
203 |
NR |
| 24. |
Michigan |
9-4 |
112 |
19 |
| 25. |
Fresno State |
9-4 |
91 |
NR |
