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SALT LAKE CITY — Its fall season may be postponed (or potentially canceled) but Utah still had enough talent on its roster to be considered a preseason Associated Press Top 25 team.
The consensus poll, which was released Monday morning, ranked the Utes No. 22 in the organization’s first poll of an unusual season where only three Power Five conferences will play due to coronavirus concerns. For its preseason poll, every Division I team was eligible for the AP poll, though only active teams will be eligible in subsequent polls.
As such, Utah’s spot in the Top 25 will be short lived, though the AP will continue with its Top 25 ranking if there is a winter/spring season.
In the AP’s preseason poll, Utah is joined by Oregon and USC from the Pac-12. The Ducks were expected to be the conference favorite coming into the season as the reigning Pac-12 champions and are ranked No. 9. The Trojans, behind the stellar performance of quarterback Kedon Slovis and a slew of talent, came in at No. 17 as the early-season favorite to win the South Division.
All three teams were also ranked in the USA Today Coaches Poll that was released earlier in the month. Three Pac-12 teams were also in the "receiving votes" category, with Arizona State being the leading candidate. Washington and California followed.
AP voters, of which I am one of 62 sports writers that vote in the poll (and you can see my ballot here), selected Clemson as the top team coming into the 2020 season. With quarterback Trevor Lawrence and a whole host of talent, the Tigers remain a viable College Football Playoff contender. Behind the Tigers is No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Alabama, No. 4 Georgia and No. 5 Oklahoma. The Buckeyes, however, will be dropped from the ranking in subsequent polls.
A total of nine teams slated in the preseason Top 25 poll will be dropped from the ranking in the first week of play due to their conferences postponing the season. The include, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 7 Penn State, No. 9 Oregon, No. 12 Wisconsin, No. 16 Michigan, No. 17 USC, No. 19 Minnesota, No. 22 Utah and No. 24 Iowa.
