The Miami Hurricanes, when the season concluded, ranked 18th in the nation. That was heavily aided by the fact that they had a Heisman finalist in Cam Ward, a player who would go on to be the number one overall pick in the NFL draft.
Obviously, he's gone now. The Hurricanes got a huge year from the most important position in football en route to 10 wins, the most they've had since 2017. Without Ward, the outlook might seem bleak, but the first AP Poll just painted a very different picture.
With the program Mario Cristobal has put together and the incoming transfer of Carson Beck, another top collegiate quarterback, the Associated Press clearly thinks there won't be a step back without Ward.
In fact, this seems to imply that the Hurricanes might overall be a better team in 2025. They had higher rankings than 18th at times last year, but not much higher than 10th very often, so this is a huge win for the program.
Whether or not Beck and company can live up to the expectations remains to be seen, as teams in the preseason top 10 don't always pan out. Nevertheless, for now, things look really good in South Florida.