SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Utes have been receiving all kinds of hype heading into the 2019 college football season, and on Monday that culminated in them being ranked No. 14 in the preseason AP Top 25 poll.
Elsewhere locally, Utah State received eight votes.
The Utes’ ranking comes after they were slotted at No. 15 in the Coaches poll released at the beginning of August.
This year’s poll is the highest Utah has ever been ranked in the AP preseason rankings.
Utah football in the AP preseason Top 25 poll
| Year | Rank | Final record | Final AP rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | No. 20 | 12-0 | No. 4 |
| 2009 | No. 19 | 10-3 | No. 18 |
| 2019 | No. 14 | TBD | TBD |
The defending College Football Playoff champion Clemson Tigers are ranked No. 1 in Monday’s poll.
Two of the Utes’ fellow Pac-12 opponents are ranked higher in the AP poll, as the Oregon Ducks are ranked No. 11 and the Washington Huskies are No. 13. Elsewhere in the conference, Washington State is ranked No. 23 and Stanford is No. 25.
Associated Press preseason Top 25 poll
| Team | 2018 Record | Pts. | Prv. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Clemson (52) | 15-0 | 1,540 | 1 |
| 2. Alabama (10) | 14-1 | 1,496 | 2 |
| 3. Georgia | 11-3 | 1,403 | 7 |
| 4. Oklahoma | 12-2 | 1,331 | 4 |
| 5. Ohio State | 13-1 | 1,261 | 3 |
| 6. LSU | 10-3 | 1,199 | 6 |
| 7. Michigan | 10-3 | 1,164 | 14 |
| 8. Florida | 10-3 | 1,054 | 7 |
| 9. Notre Dame | 12-1 | 1,044 | 5 |
| 10. Texas | 10-4 | 1,005 | 9 |
| 11. Oregon | 9-4 | 860 | — |
| 12. Texas A&M | 9-4 | 852 | 16 |
| 13. Washington | 10-4 | 786 | 13 |
| 9-5 | 772 | — |
| 15. Penn State | 9-4 | 651 | 17 |
| 16. Auburn | 8-5 | 578 | — |
| 17. UCF | 12-1 | 410 | 11 |
| 18. Michigan State | 7-6 | 377 | — |
| 19. Wisconsin | 8-5 | 370 | — |
| 20. Iowa | 9-4 | 330 | 25 |
| 21. Iowa State | 8-5 | 302 | — |
| 22. Syracuse | 10-3 | 209 | 15 |
| 23. Washington State | 11-2 | 200 | 10 |
| 24. Nebraska | 4-8 | 154 | — |
| 25. Stanford | 9-4 | 141 | — |
Others receiving votes: Missouri 117, Army 94, Mississippi State 87, Miami 70, Northwestern 63, TCU 57, Virginia 44, Boise State 38, Cincinnati 16, South Carolina 15, Virginia Tech 12, Fresno St. 8, Utah State 8, Minnesota 7, Memphis 6, Appalachian State 5, UAB 3, West Virginia 3, Oklahoma State 3, Arizona State 3, Arizona 1, Southern Cal 1.
Here’s a look at the previously released Coaches poll.
Coaches preseason Top 25 poll
| Team | 2018 Record | Pts | Pvs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Clemson (59) | 15-0 | 1,619 | 1 |
| 2. Alabama (6) | 14-1 | 1,566 | 2 |
| 3. Georgia | 11-3 | 1,447 | 8 |
| 4. Oklahoma | 12-2 | 1,415 | 4 |
| 5. Ohio State | 13-1 | 1,368 | 3 |
| 6. LSU | 10-3 | 1,218 | 7 |
| 7. Michigan | 10-3 | 1,155 | 14 |
| 8. Florida | 10-3 | 1,103 | 6 |
| 9. Notre Dame | 12-1 | 1,100 | 5 |
| 10. Texas | 10-4 | 1,038 | 9 |
| 11. Texas A&M | 9-4 | 893 | 16 |
| 12. Washington | 10-4 | 834 | 13 |
| 13. Oregon | 9-4 | 787 | NR |
| 14. Penn State | 9-4 | 699 | 17 |
| 9-5 | 642 | NR |
| 16. Auburn | 8-5 | 606 | NR |
| 17. UCF | 12-1 | 436 | 12 |
| 17. Wisconsin | 8-5 | 436 | NR |
| 19. Iowa | 9-4 | 343 | NR |
| 20. Michigan State | 7-6 | 313 | NR |
| 21. Washington State | 11-2 | 274 | 10 |
| 22. Syracuse | 10-3 | 227 | 15 |
| 23. Stanford | 9-4 | 200 | NR |
| 24. Iowa State | 8-5 | 169 | NR |
| 25. Northwestern | 9-5 | 161 | 19 |
Others receiving votes: Nebraska 152, Boise State 118, Mississippi State 111, Miami 94, Army 91, Kentucky 79, Virginia Tech 64, TCU 63, USC 47, Fresno State 32, Utah State 32, Virginia 30, Cincinnati 25, West Virginia 24, Memphis 24, Oklahoma State 20, South Carolina 15, NC State 12, Duke 10, Boston College 5, Florida State 4, Baylor 4, Appalachian State 4, Houston 3, North Texas 3, Temple 2, Arizona State 2, UCLA 2, Minnesota 1, Ole Miss 1, Tennessee 1, Troy 1.