BYU Football One Spot Out of Preseason AP Poll

BYU cornerback Nate Johnson in Alamo Bowl win over Colorado | BYU Photo

The BYU football program will not be ranked entering the 2025 season. After losing quarterback Jake Retzlaff to Tulane in July, the AP voters downgraded the Cougars and knocked them out of the preaseon AP Top 25. However, the Cougars did receive votes and are only one spot outside the top 25.

BYU will have a good chance to be ranked by mid September if they start the season 2-0.

2025 Preseason AP Top 25

Here is the full preseason AP Top 25. The Texas Longhorns enter the season as the no.1 team in the country. Penn State, Ohio State, Clemson, and Georgia also received first-place votes.

1. Texas
2. Penn State
3. Ohio State
4. Clemson
5. Georgia
6. Notre Dame
7. Oregon
8. Alabama
9. LSU
10. Miami
11. Arizona State
12. Illinois
13. South Carolina
14. Michigan
15. Florida
16. SMU
17. Kansas State
18. Oklahoma
19. Texas A&M
20. Indiana
21. Ole Miss
22. Iowa State
23. Texas Tech
24. Tennessee
25. Boise State

Others receiving votes: BYU (156), Utah (144), Baylor (132), Louisville (90), USC (64), Georgia Tech (63), Missouri (33), Tulane (23), Nebraska (23), UNLV (21), Toledo (13), etc.

BYU Opponents in the Top 25

Four Big 12 teams will enter the season ranked: ASU (11), Kansas State (17), Iowa State (22), and Texas Tech (23). BYU is only scheduled to play two of those teams: Iowa State and Texas Tech. The Cougars play the Cyclones and the Red Raiders in back-to-back road games later this year. However, those two games will be separated by a bye week for BYU.

Like BYU, there are multiple Big 12 teams that are just outside the AP Top 25. Behind BYU, Utah and Baylor received the most votes of teams outside the top 25. If both BYU and Utah bring solid records into the rivalry game in October, that game could be a game featuring two ranked teams.

2024 Final AP Poll

BYU finished last season ranked no. 13 in the AP poll after finishing the season 11-2. A top 15 finish was the best finish for BYU and Kalani Sitake since 2020 and the second best finish in Sitake's tenure. As a result, BYU was expected to start the 2025 season in the preseason top 25. That changed when Jake Retzlaff announced his plans to withdraw from BYU and enroll at Tulane.

1. Ohio State
2. Notre Dame
3. Oregon
4. Texas
5. Penn State
6. Georgia
7. Arizona State
8. Boise State
9. Tennessee
10. Indiana
11. Ole Miss
12. SMU
13. BYU
14. Clemson
15. Iowa State
16. Illinois
17. Alabama
18. Miami
19. South Carolina
20. Syracuse
21. Army
22. Missouri
23. UNLV
24. Memphis
25. Colorado