OU No. 3 in First Harris Poll

Yesterday, the first Harris Poll of the 2011 season was released. The poll is “compiled from rankings submitted by the Harris Interactive panel of former coaches, players and administrators, and current and former members of the media.” You can see who sits on the panel this year here.

The first BCS rankings will be released next week. It’s important to note that those rankings are made up of three components: (1) USA Today Coaches’ Poll; (2) Harris Poll; and (3) an average of six computer rankings.

Now, onto the first Harris Poll (first-place votes in parentheses):

1. LSU (71)
2. Alabama (17)
3. Oklahoma (24)
4. Wisconsin (1)
5. Boise State (1)
6. Oklahoma State
7. Stanford (1)
8. Clemson
9. Oregon
10. Michigan
11. Arkansas
12. Georgia Tech
13. Nebraska
14. Illinois
15. South Carolina
16. West Virginia
17. Kansas State
18. Virginia Tech
19. Arizona State
20. Texas
21. Baylor
22. Michigan State
23. Texas A&M
24. Houston
25. Florida