Poll Ranks Top NCAA Football Teams with the American Football Coaches Association
USA TODAY Sports, part of Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), today launched the 2023 US LBM Coaches Poll in conjunction with the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA). For over 30 years, USA TODAY Sports has partnered with the AFCA to publish weekly rankings of the top 25 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Men’s Football teams throughout the regular college football season. The poll will be sponsored through the 2026 football season by US LBM, a leading, national distributor of specialty building materials to professional builders.
The US LBM Coaches Poll is voted on by a panel of AFCA-member Division I head coaches who are chosen by random draw from a pool of coaches willing to participate. Each coach submits a Top 25 team ranking weekly, with a first-place vote worth 25 points, second place worth 24 points, and so forth. The coaches ranking results are published by USA TODAY Sports online on Sundays and in print on Mondays during the college football season.
As part of their new entitlement sponsorship, US LBM will present the US LBM AFCA Coaches’ Trophy to the Division I men’s football team that receives the highest point total from the coaching panel in the final poll of the season in January. The US LBM AFCA Coaches’ Trophy will also be a part of a national trophy tour starting in the ’24-’25 season, visiting various colleges and universities on game day and interacting with fans.
“Teamwork, leadership and building communities are essential to both US LBM and college football, and we are incredibly excited to partner with the American Football Coaches Association and USA TODAY for the weekly US LBM Coaches Poll and to be the presenting sponsor of the National Championship Trophy,” said US LBM President and CEO L.T. Gibson.
“Our Coaches Poll is an invaluable tool that allows passionate fanbases to see how their teams size up to the rest of the nation,” said Nate Scott, Publisher of USA TODAY Sports Media Group. “USA TODAY Sports is proud to partner with US LBM and the Coaches Association to put out this weekly poll, along with the deep insights and analysis that fans count on from our network.”
The sponsorship was organized by Independent Sports and Entertainment (ISE), a leading representation, management, sales, consulting, and marketing agency in conjunction with USA TODAY.
“Finding the right partner for the AFCA Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports and AFCA Coaches’ Trophy was key. And we’ve found that partner in US LBM,” says Owen Shull, Executive Vice President and Head of ISE Properties division. “ISE Properties spans sports and entertainment properties nationwide; however, our industry-leading expertise in college athletics is what has allowed for entitlements like this.”
“The AFCA and USA TODAY Sports have been producing a weekly Coaches Poll for millions of college football fans across the country,” AFCA Executive Director Todd Berry said. “We are both excited to announce that US LBM, one of the largest building products distributors in the United States, has come on board as title sponsor of our Coaches Poll and the iconic AFCA Coaches’ Trophy. We look forward to this partnership for many great years.”
For more information on the US LBM Coaches Poll, visit the poll’s website on USA TODAY Sports.
