See "notes" following the table for more information on its contents.
| Magazine | Rank | Total Score |
2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 |
| Pick Six Previews | 1 | 1747.6 | 344.5 | 225 | 167.5 | 169 | 160.1 |
| Athlon | 2 | 1753.4 | 348 | 218 | 172 | 180 | 183.4 |
| Phil Steele | 3 | 1756.1 | 339 | 221.5 | 176 | 174 | 160.1 |
| McIllece Sports | 4 | 1781 | 350.5 | 216.5 | 160 | 183 | 185.5 |
| Arena Fanatic | 5 | 1,804.9 | 370.5 | 226.5 | 188 | 169.5 | 178.9 |
| DRatings.com | 6 | 1811.5 | 353 | 229 | 174 | 175 | 186 |
| ESPN | 7 | 1825.9 | 389 | 244 | 174 | 188 | 181.9 |
| Lindy's | 8 | 1,833.1 | 368 | 218 | 177 | 190 | 187.1 |
| Versus Sports Simulator | 9 | 1,878 | 385.5 | 216.5 | 168 | 176.5 | 191 |
| CollegeFootballPoll.com | 10 | 1,924 | 373.5 | 237.5 | 184 | 201 | 127 |
This page shows the accuracy of preseason magazines' conference predictions for the five-year span 2020-2024 ("the last five years" going into the 2025 season). In order to qualify for either table, a magazine must have been published for every year used in that table.
There is also a "2022-2024 (last three years)" table and a "2014-2023 (last ten years)" table.
Tables with more years have the advantage of having a larger sample of data: a single unusually lucky or unlucky year has less impact on the standings. However, tables with fewer years have the advantage of including more magazines: several of the magazines available today were not published if one goes back far enough.
Notes: