Utah drops out of coaches poll following loss to BYU

Utes fell out of the coaches poll after being ranked No. 22

Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham (right) argues a call with field judge Matt Mills during the second half of a game against the Utah Utes at LaVell Edwards Stadium. | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

The Utah football team entered the weekend with an opportunity to pick up a second consecutive win over a ranked opponent and subsequently increase its stature on a national level.

Instead, the Utes had their top-25 status revoked after coming up short against their in-state rival in a loss that put their Big 12 conference title hopes in serious jeopardy.

Following a 24-21 loss to BYU on Saturday, Utah dropped out of the US LBM Coaches Poll that was released Sunday, a week removed from checking in as the No. 22-ranked team.

The Utes received 51 votes from the panel of coaches who voted on the Week 9 poll. The Cougars, meanwhile, ascended to No. 10 after picking up their third straight win in the Holy War rivalry.

Despite racking up nearly 500 yards of total offense, Utah failed to capitalize with points in the red zone on two separate occasions, committed two turnovers and several costly penalties that gave BYU just enough momentum down the stretch of another closely-contested affair between the two schools. The Utes held a 14-10 lead early in the fourth quarter before surrendering 14 straight points to their opponent, falling behind by double-digits in the blink of an eye, essentially.

The loss dropped Utah back two games in the Big 12 standings, tying it with a cluster of teams that sit at 2-2 in league play. BYU and Cincinnati remain as the conference's only undefeated teams after Texas Tech's comeback bid at Arizona State came up short, improving the Sun Devils to 5-2 on the season and vaulting them back into the top 25 as the No. 25 team. The Red Raiders, meanwhile, dropped from No. 7 to No. 15.

Utah will look to bounce back in Week 9 when it hosts Colorado at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

Coaches Poll Top 25 (post-Week 8)

1. Ohio State (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) [65 first-place votes]
2. Indiana (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten)
3. Texas A&M (7-0, 4-0 SEC)
4. Alabama (6-1, 4-0 SEC)
5. Georgia (6-1, 4-1 SEC)
6. Oregon (6-1, 3-1 Big Ten)
7. Georgia Tech (7-0, 3-0 ACC)
8. Ole Miss (6-1, 3-1 SEC)
9. Miami (5-1, 1-1 ACC)
10. BYU (7-0, 4-0 Big 12)
11. Oklahoma (6-1, 2-1 SEC)
12. Vanderbilt (6-1, 2-1 SEC)
13. Notre Dame (5-2)
14. Missouri (6-1, 2-1 SEC)
15. Texas Tech (6-1, 3-1 Big 12)
16. Virginia (6-1, 3-0 ACC)
17. Tennessee (5-2, 2-2 SEC)
18. Texas (5-2, 2-1 SEC)
19. LSU (5-2, 2-2 SEC)
20. South Florida (6-1, 3-0 AAC)
21. Cincinnati (6-1, 4-0 Big 12)
22. Louisville (5-1, 2-1 ACC)
23. Illinois (5-2, 2-2 Big Ten)
24. Michigan (5-2, 3-1 Big Ten)
25. Arizona State (5-2, 3-1 Big 12)

Schools Dropped Out

No. 20 Memphis, No. 21 USC, No. 22 Utah

New to the poll this week

No. 25 Arizona State, No. 24 Michigan, No. 22 Louisville

Others Receiving Votes

Navy 59, USC 52, Utah 51, Tulane 45, Houston 34, Iowa 17, James Madison 9, Iowa State 9, San Diego State 4, North Texas 4, Washington 3, UNLV 3, SMU 3, Memphis 3, TCU 2, Pitt 2, Boise State 2, Northwestern 1