How Utah football's dominant win over Colorado impacted its ranking in the AP Top 25 poll

Being included in the Associated Press Top 25 poll one week and getting bounced the next has created a sort of revolving door effect for the Utah football team this season.

That trend continued Sunday, as the Utes re-entered the fray following a dominant win over Colorado on Saturday.

A week after falling out of the media poll due to a setback against BYU, Utah earned enough votes to claim the No. 24 spot on Sunday, receiving 162 points from the panel after crushing the Buffaloes, 53-7, the night before.

How it happened

The Utes' insertion in the latest top 25 poll was likely due, in large part, to their thorough performance in all three phases of the game on Saturday.

Headlined by an impressive performance from freshman quarterback Byrd Ficklin, Utah recorded its second-most rushing yards in the Whittingham era, racking up 422 yards on the ground against a Buffaloes squad that had sorely struggled against the run in Big 12 play. Ficklin led the way with 151 rushing yards as the Utes averaged 8.3 yards per carry.

Ficklin, stepping in for Devon Dampier, also threw for 140 yards and 2 touchdowns in his first collegiate start. The former three-star recruit shook off a shaky start to finish 10-of-22 through the air.

Oct 25, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Utes quarterback Byrd Ficklin (15) is pressured by Colorado Buffaloes linebacker Jeremiah Brown (42) during the third quarter at Rice-Eccles Stadium. | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

Defensively, Morgan Scalley's unit stifled Colorado throughout, holding the Buffaloes to -18 total yards of offense while recording five sacks, an interception, a safety and a blocked punt in the first half.

"Great team effort tonight from start to finish," Whittingham said after the game. "Offense, defense, special teams all hitting on all cylinders. Very few negative things at all."

Utah also got back in the media poll with some help from some other teams. Namely, South Florida, which fell to Memphis, 34-31; LSU, which got rolled over by Texas A&M in a 49-25 final from Baton Rouge; Illinois, which lost to Washington, 42-25, on the road; and Big 12 counterpart Arizona State, which came up short to Houston, 24-16, just before the Utes-Buffaloes game kicked off in Salt Lake City.

Those four outcomes dropped the Bulls, Tigers, Fighting Illini and Sun Devils from the top 25 poll, creating multiple openings for teams previously on the outside looking in — like Utah — to snag.

Why it matters

The recognition the national media gave Utah after its 46-point win sets up an intriguing top-25 matchup in Salt Lake City next Saturday, when No. 17 Cincinnati is set to visit Rice-Eccles Stadium for a pivotal Big 12 battle featuring all sorts of conference title and College Football Playoff implications.

With ESPN's College GameDay pregame show in town, the Utes have an opportunity to earn a signature win on their home field that would keep their Big 12 championship aspirations on life support for the time being, in addition to knocking off one of the last unbeaten teams in league play.

According to ESPN FPI, the Bearcats hold a better chance of making the College Football Playoff (13.7%) than the Utes (11.6%) do going into their Week 10 contest. BYU (69.4%) and Texas Tech (38.4%) currently lead the Big 12 pack in that regard. But with plenty of football to be play, the Utes could improve their chances if they take care of business down the stretch of the regular season.

AP Top 25 poll (post-Week 9)

Ohio State (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) [54 first-place votes]
Indiana (8-0, 5-0 Big Ten) [11]
Texas A&M (8-0, 4-0 SEC) [1]
Alabama (7-1, 5-0 SEC)
Georgia (6-1, 4-1 SEC)
Oregon (7-1, 4-1 Big Ten)
Ole Miss (7-1, 4-1 SEC)
Georgia Tech (8-0, 5-0 ACC)
Vanderbilt (7-1, 3-1 SEC)
Miami (6-1, 2-1 ACC)*
BYU (8-0, 5-0 Big 12)*
Notre Dame (5-2)
Texas Tech (7-1, 4-1 Big 12)
Tennessee (6-2, 3-2 SEC)
Virginia (7-1, 4-0 ACC)
Louisville (6-1, 3-1 ACC)
Cincinnati (7-1, 5-0 Big 12)
Oklahoma (6-2, 2-2 SEC)
Missouri (6-2, 2-2 SEC)
Texas (6-2, 3-1 SEC)
Michigan (6-2, 4-1 Big Ten)
Houston (7-1, 4-1 Big 12)
USC (5-2, 3-1 Big Ten)
Utah (6-2, 3-2 Big 12)
Memphis (7-1, 3-1 AAC)

*BYU and Miami each earned 1,069 points from the voters, creating a tie for the No. 10 spot

Dropped out

South Florida (No. 18), LSU (No. 20), Illinois (No. 23), Arizona State (No. 25)

New to the poll

No. 22 Houston, No. 23 USC, No. 24 Utah, No. 25 Memphis

Biggest riser

No. 17 Cincinnati and No. 21 Michigan moved up four spots

Others receiving votes

Navy 86, Tulane 59, Washington 46, Iowa 27, South Florida 22, San Diego State 14, LSU 11, James Madison 9, North Texas 4, Illinois 3, Pitt 1