Utah Football Ranked In Associated Press Preseason Top 25

Aug 24, 2020, 11:42 AM

Utah Utes wide receiver Jaylen Dixon (25) jumps as he celebrates with Utah Utes wide receiver Samson Nacua (45) as Nacua scores a touchdown as Utah and UCLA play a college football game in Salt Lake City at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 16, 2019. Utah won 49-3. (Scott G Winterton, Deseret News)

(Scott G Winterton, Deseret News)

BY TREVOR ALLEN, KSL SPORTS

KSL Sports

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The University of Utah football program is ranked in the Associated Press Preseason Top 25 poll that was released on Monday.

The Utes came in at No. 22 in the country after finishing the 2019 season ranked No. 16 after an 11-3 season.

Utah will not play football in the fall after the Pac-12 elected to postpone all fall sports and all competitions until at least January 1, 2021.

It’s the third time in school history that Utah has been ranked in the preseason AP poll.

Utes come in at No. 22 in the preseason AP Top 25. This makes the postponement of the season even more heartbreaking. https://t.co/v0lolGfXn9

— Trevor Allen (@TrevorASports) August 24, 2020

Utah was going to have a new defense after 9 players departed from last year’s roster, returning just two starters from 2019. On offense, Utah was going to replace their starting quarterback, running back and left tackle from last season with new talent.

The AP voters voted on the poll regardless if the team was going to play or not. Nine teams that appeared in the 2020 Top 25 poll are not scheduled to play football in the fall. The Big Ten was the only other Power-5 conference to postpone fall sports.

Here is the entire Preseason AP Top 25 poll (last year’s record):

Clemson (14-1)
Ohio State (13-1)*
Alabama (11-2)
Georgia (12-2)
Oklahoma (12-2)
LSU (15-0)
Penn State (11-2)*
Florida (11-2)
Oregon (12-2)*
Notre Dame (11-2)
Auburn (9-4)
Wisconsin (10-4)*
Texas A&M (8-5)
Texas (8-5)
Oklahoma State (8-5)
Michigan (9-4)*
USC (8-5)*
North Carolina (7-6)
Minnesota (11-2)*
Cincinnati (11-3)
UCF (11-3)
Utah (11-3)*
Iowa State (7-6)
Iowa (10-3)*
Tennessee (8-5)

Others receiving votes: Memphis (86), Virginia Tech (85), Boise State (68)*, Arizona State (66)*, Miami (42), Louisville (32), Appalachian State (26), Washington (21)*, Kentucky (20), Indiana (19)*, Baylor (15), California (11)*, TCU (9), Virginia (7), Navy (6), Florida State (6), SMU (3), Mississippi State (3), Air Force (3)*, Northwestern (1)*, UAB (1).

*Not playing in the fall.

Trevor Allen is a Utah Utes Insider for KSLSports.com and host of the Crimson Corner podcast. Follow him on Twitter: @TrevorASports. You can download and listen to the podcast, here.