Where Utah landed in College Football Playoff rankings ahead of regular season finale

Utes drop in the rankings heading into Week 14 matchup at Kansas

Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham and his team have to beat the Kansas Jayhawks to remain in contention for the Big 12 title game. | Chris Jones-Imagn Images

Utah's come-from-behind win over a .500 team in Week 13 put into question the Utes' College Football Playoff at-large bid hopes going into the final week of the regular season.

Tuesday's CFP rankings reveal confirmed Utah would need quite a bit of help if it were going to earn a spot on the 12-team bracket without winning the Big 12.

The Utes (9-2, 6-2 Big 12) dropped from No. 12 to No. 13 following their come-from-behind victory over Kansas State, which rushed for 472 yards and led by as many as 12 in the fourth quarter of Saturday's 51-47 final from Rice-Eccles Stadium.

Miami leapfrogged its way to the No. 12 spot heading into a pivotal ACC clash with No. 22 Pitt (10 a.m. MT, ABC). The Hurricanes (9-2, 5-2 ACC) needed a win to have a chance at playing for the conference championship. Utes fans, meanwhile, would prefer a Panthers victory with the hope that a third loss would knock Miami out of at-large contention.

Utah would probably like as much chaos as possible to ensue over the Thanksgiving weekend, especially if it involves other at-large contenders (any team around the No. 12 spot) losing.

An appearance in Arlington, Texas, for the Big 12 title game would give the Utes their best hope at punching a ticket to the playoff.

For that to happen, four scenarios would need to play out over the weekend: Utah would need to beat Kansas (Friday 10 a.m. MT, ESPN); Arizona State has to defeat Arizona (Friday 7 p.m. MT, Fox); BYU must take care of business against UCF (Saturday 11 a.m. MT, ESPN2); and (probably the least likely outcome of the bunch) West Virginia has to upset Texas Tech (Saturday 10 a.m. MT, ESPN).

That would set up a rematch between Utah and BYU for the right to be called Big 12 champions and earn an automatic bid into the College Football Playoff.

Fourth CFP Rankings of 2025

1. Ohio State (11-0, 8-0 Big Ten)
2. Indiana (11-0, 8-0 Big Ten)
3. Texas A&M (11-0, 8-0 SEC)
4. Georgia (10-1, 7-1 SEC)
5. Texas Tech (10-1, 7-1 Big 12)
6. Oregon (10-1, 7-1 Big Ten)
7. Ole Miss (10-1, 6-1 SEC)
8. Oklahoma (9-2, 5-2 SEC)
9. Notre Dame (9-2)
10. Alabama (9-2, 6-1 SEC)
11. BYU (10-1, 7-1 Big 12)
12. Miami (9-2, 5-2 ACC)
13. Utah (9-2, 6-2 Big 12)
14. Vanderbilt (9-2, 5-2 SEC)
15. Michigan (9-2, 7-1 Big Ten)
16. Texas (8-3, 5-2 SEC)
17. USC (8-3, 6-2 Big Ten)
18. Virginia (9-2, 6-1 ACC)
19. Tennessee (8-3, 4-3 SEC)
20. Arizona State (8-3, 6-2 Big 12)
21. SMU (8-3, 6-1 ACC)
22. Pitt (8-3, 6-1 ACC)
23. Georgia Tech (9-2, 6-2 ACC)
24. Tulane (9-2, 6-1 AAC)
25. Arizona (8-3, 5-3 Big 12)

Projected College Football Playoff bracket

• No. 12 Tulane vs. No. 5 Texas Tech (winner plays No. 4 Georgia)
• No. 9 Notre Dame vs. No. 8 Oklahoma (winner plays No. 1 Ohio State)
• No. 11 Miami vs. No. 6 Oregon (winner plays No. 3 Texas A&M)
• No. 10 Alabama vs. No. 7 Ole Miss (winner plays No. 2 Indiana)

Utah's College Football Playoff Résumé

Rankings based on ESPN FPI

• Strength of record: No. 17 (No. 3 in Big 12)
• Strength of schedule: No. 55 (No. 11 in Big 12)
• Remaining strength of schedule: No. 47 (No. 10 in Big 12)
• Notable wins: vs. No. 20 Arizona State, vs. Cincinnati
• Losses: vs. No. 5 Texas Tech, at No. 11 BYU