We are officially just 17 days away from the Utah Utes football team’s season opener. And as it turns out, when Cam Rising, Kyle Whittingham, and company run onto the field for their game against Southern Utah, they’ll be doing it as the 12th-ranked team in the country, according to the Associated Press.
The AP Preseason Poll was released on Monday afternoon and it was full of good news, and a little bit of bad news for one of the newest members of the Big 12. On the plus side, Utah would be headed to the playoffs if this were season’s end as opposed to the beginning.
Considering that Whittingham’s squad is the highest-ranked Big 12 team by a lot, it would appear they are also being projected to win their new conference the first year of their tenancy. It’s important to note that, the No. 12 ranking doesn’t look as bad as it does at first blush either.
Utah Utes football projected to stay home for playoffs
In the first year of the 12-team playoff field, the rules are simple, if a little convoluted. Essentially, the top 12 ranked teams at the end of the season make the playoffs.
The five highest-ranked conference champions are followed by the next seven highest-ranked teams. The four highest-ranked conference champions are seeded one through four and receive a first-round bye. The remaining teams, seeded five through 12, play first-round games hosted by the higher seed.
Utah Utes football gears up for bye
At the moment, it would appear that not only will the Utes host a playoff game, but they’ll get a first-round bye since everyone ranked above them are from the Big Ten, the SEC or the ACC. Notre Dame is also ranked ahead of them in this poll, but they cannot qualify for a bye.
All that is to say that should the Utah Utes finish the 2024 regular season ranked No. 12 in the College Football Playoff Rankings, and the rest of the rankings in the AP Preseason Poll are reflected in a similar fashion, then the Muss is going to be awfully fired up for a chance to make a real run in the postseason.