Ohio State, Notre Dame top AP poll

For the first time since 1998, Ohio State is preseason No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25.

“Around here, whether you’re high in the polls or not, the expectations are still the same,” Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said in a telephone interview after the release of the poll Friday.

The Buckeyes received 35 of a possible 65 first-place votes from a panel of media members. Notre Dame was No. 2, the best preseason showing for the Fighting Irish since they were second in 1994.

Texas will start the defense of its national title as the No. 3 team in the country. Auburn was fourth and West Virginia fifth.

Southern California, preseason No. 1 the past two years, was No. 6. Florida, LSU, California and Oklahoma rounded out the top 10.

Unlike the past two seasons, when USC started the season as an overwhelming No. 1, the Buckeyes received 54 percent of the first-place votes, and all the teams in the top six received at least three votes for No. 1. Notre Dame had 10 first-place votes, Texas eight.

Cal loses Mixon

California cornerback Tim Mixon will miss the regular season after tearing a ligament in his right knee during a scrimmage.

Mixon, a senior who also returns punts, intercepted three passes last season, though he was frequently targeted by opposing offenses who stayed away from fellow starter Daymeion Hughes. Mixon was injured on a non-contact play while fielding a punt in Thursday’s scrimmage, and the extent of the injury was discovered Friday.

Notes

Minnesota running back Jay Thomas was suspended for the season opener against Kent State because of an unspecified violation of team rules, two days after coach Glen Mason suspended running back Brylee Callender indefinitely. … Marshall coach Mark Snyder received a three-year contract extension through the 2013 season.