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PAGE 10 October 2025
Preseason AP Top 25 Men's Basketball Poll
The Men's Basketball Top 25 Preseason Poll has been released and the Florida men's basketball ranks third. The Gators are the only SEC team ranked in the top 5 and only one of two SEC teams in the Top 10. The Kentucky Wildcats are ranked No. 9 This marks the second time in program history that Florida has received a top- five preseason ranking (No. 1, 2006-07) and the 14th time opening a season in the top 10. The Gators have nine games scheduled against eight preseason AP top-25 opponents, with a potential 10th game vs. Wisconsin at the Rady Children's Invitational. Six additional
2025-26 opponents are receiving votes in the poll. The Gators tip the 2025-26 season against 13th-ranked Arizona at the Hall of Fame Series Las Vegas on Nov. 3. Arkansas (No. 14), Alabama (No. 15), Tennessee (No. 18) and Auburn (No. 20) represent the other teams in the preseason Top 25 AP Preseason Top 25 First-place votes in parentheses
9. Kentucky* 10. Texas Tech 11. Louisville 12. UCLA 13. Arizona* 14. Arkansas* 15. Alabama* 16. Iowa State 17. Illinois 18. Tennessee* 19. Kansas
20. Auburn* 21. Gonzaga 22. Michigan State 23. Creighton 24. Wisconsin^ 25. North Carolina
1. Purdue (35) 2. Houston (16) 3. Florida (8) 4. UConn (2)* 5. St. John's 6. Duke* 7. Michigan 8. BYU
Receiving votes: NC State, Oregon, San Diego St., Texas*, Ohio St., Kansas St., Ole Miss*, Missouri*, Vanderbilt*, Mississippi St.*, Oklahoma*, and Baylor
Photo Courtesy Alabama Athletics
The Talladega Superspeedway is once again slated to help narrow the field of championship hopefuls in high-stakes Playoff races in 2026, as NASCAR released the full schedule for 2026. The Superspeedway will also once again play host to a heart-pounding April race weekend to give drivers an opportunity to lock in their Playoff hopes. In addition to the schedule news announcement earlier this fall, NASCAR announced a multi-year partnership with O’Reilly Auto Parts that makes the leader in the automotive replacement parts industry the title sponsor of what is now known as the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Fans will get their traditional spring trip to the track as the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series will provide drivers with an early chance to drive through the drama and lock themselves into the Playoffs, April 25-26, 2026. Then the Playoff action will thrill fans across all three NASCAR national series during the Playoffs Round of 8, on October 23-25, 2026. Talladega will once again be part of the trio of races (Phoenix Raceway, Talladega Superspeedway, Martinsville Speedway) that will cut the field of eight title hopefuls to the Championship 4 for the Cup Series, O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The four drivers who make it through that gauntlet will then have a chance to race for the 2026 crown at Homestead- Miami Speedway. “Talladega’s two race weekends are positioned in the schedule to provide fans with the edge-of-your-seat excitement they come to expect at the biggest and baddest track in NASCAR,” said Brian Crichton, Talladega Superspeedway President. “There’s nothing like seeing the fans on their feet watching the full field come roaring out of Turn 4 to take the green flag, knowing anyone can win at Dega and get a shot at chasing championship glory.” Below are the dates for the 2026 NASCAR races at Talladega Superspeedway: April 25-26 • Saturday, April 25 – NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Ag-Pro 300 • Sunday, April 26 – NASCAR Cup Series Jack Link’s 500 October 23-25 • Friday, Oct. 23 – NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Love’s RV Stop 225 Earlier this year, Team Penske driver Austin Cindric punched his ticket to the NASCAR Playoffs by narrowly edging out Ryan Peece in a photo finish in the Jack Link’s 500, securing his first win at the 2.66-mile Superspeedway NASCAR Playoff action returned to the Talladega Superspeedway this month. The CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Love’s RV Stop 225 was scheduled for October 17. The NASCAR Xfinity Series United Rentals 250 was set for Saturday, October 18. The fall race excitement culminated on Sunday, October 19, with the YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. All three October 2025 races were set to be held after the press deadline for this issue of The Sports Ledger. • Saturday, Oct. 24 – NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Race • Sunday, Oct. 25 – NASCAR Cup Series YellaWood 500 Dates set for 2026 Races at Talladega The University of Alabama softball team fell to Mississippi State 4-0 at Rhoads Stadium in Tuscaloosa on Saturday, October 11, 2025. As of October 12, the Crimson Tide is 2-1 this fall, with wins over Memphis (17-1) and West Alabama (10-2).
Auburn Basketball Opens SEC Men's Action at Georgia
Miss (Jan. 20), Florida (Jan. 24), Tennessee (Jan. 31), Arkansas (Feb. 14), Mississippi State (Feb. 18), Oklahoma (Feb. 24) and Alabama (March 7). The schedule will feature the first-ever Neville Arena meeting between Auburn and Texas on Jan. 28 and Tigers’ first game at Oklahoma in Norman on Feb. 24. Auburn will play home- and-home series in 2026 with Alabama, Arkansas and Ole Miss. The 2026 SEC Tournament will be held March 11-15 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN. Auburn finished last season with a 27-8 overall record and the Tigers were 13-5 in SEC action.
The 2025 SEC Men's Champion Auburn Tigers will defend their conference crown under first-year head coach Steven Pearl beginning on Saturday, January 3 at Georgia. The Tigers open SEC home play on Tuesday, Jan. 6 against Texas A&M at 8 p.m. CT before hosting Arkansas on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 5 p.m CT. Auburn’s other home games will be against South Carolina (Jan. 17), Texas (Jan. 28), Alabama (Feb. 7), Vanderbilt (Feb. 10), Kentucky (Feb. 21), Ole Miss (Feb. 28) and LSU (March 3). Auburn’s remaining Basketball road games will include at Missouri (Jan. 14), Ole
New Auburn Head Coach Steven Pearl. Photo Courtesy of Auburn
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