For the 18th time in program history, BYU finds itself listed in the College Football Playoff rankings.
The Cougars checked in at No. 7 in the initial rankings of 2025, which were released Tuesday night on ESPN.
It’s the highest position BYU has ever held in the initial rankings, beating last year’s opening spot of No. 9. The program’s highest-ever ranking was No. 6, which was achieved after starting 9-0 in 2024.
If the current rankings were final, the Cougars would host No. 10 Notre Dame in Provo for the first round of the Playoff.
Right behind BYU at No. 8 is fellow Big 12 foe Texas Tech, which also happens to be the Cougars’ opponent this weekend in one of the biggest games in BYU history.
Utah came in at No. 13, sitting just outside of the top 12 but still ranking ahead of a number of one-loss teams — an encouraging sign for the Utes and Big 12 as a whole.
How the initial College Football Playoff rankings are helping the Big 12
As of now, there is a path for the Big 12 to get three teams — BYU, Texas Tech and Utah — into the Playoff field.
It may not be the most clear or likely path, but it’s a path nonetheless, and one the Big 12 should be excited about after having been a one-bid league last year.
The Playoff committee clearly doesn’t want to punish Utah for its two losses being against the conference favorites in BYU and Texas Tech. Should the Utes win out and get a bit of outside help — such as the ACC only putting one team in the playoff, among other results — Kyle Whittingham’s squad could crash the Playoff party with an at-large bid.
As of Tuesday night, Utah holds a 15.4% chance of making the Playoff, according to ESPN’s Football Power Index. Those odds are better than all but three ACC teams.
As for BYU (74.1% playoff chance) and Texas Tech (51.6%), the loser of this weekend’s matchup will still almost definitely be ranked ahead of Utah in next week’s rankings.
But the best chance for the Big 12 to get both the Cougars and Red Raiders into the Playoff would be one of the two winning this weekend and the other winning a rematch in the conference championship game.
Texas Tech currently holds a 60.9% chance of victory over BYU this weekend, according to ESPN’s analytics.
Full rankings
- Ohio State (8-0), Big Ten.
- Indiana (8-0), Big Ten.
- Texas A&M (8-0), SEC.
- Alabama (7-1), SEC.
- Georgia (7-1), SEC.
- Ole Miss (8-1), SEC.
- BYU (8-0), Big 12.
- Texas Tech (8-1), Big 12.
- Oregon (7-1), Big Ten.
- Notre Dame (6-2), Independent.
- Texas (7-2), SEC.
- Oklahoma (7-2), SEC.
- Utah (7-2), Big 12.
- Virginia (8-1), ACC.
- Louisville (7-1), ACC.
- Vanderbilt (7-2), SEC.
- Georgia Tech (8-1), ACC.
- Miami (6-2), ACC.
- USC (6-2), Big Ten.
- Iowa (6-2), Big Ten.
- Michigan (7-2), Big Ten.
- Missouri (6-2), SEC.
- Washington (6-2), Big Ten.
- Pitt (7-2), ACC.
- Tennessee (6-3), SEC.
The rankings will be updated each week before the final 12-team Playoff bracket is released on Sunday, Dec. 7.
The SEC leads the way with nine teams in the rankings, followed by the Big Ten with seven and the ACC with five.
However, each of the three Big 12 teams in the rankings are ahead of every ACC squad, which could be a positive sign for the Big 12’s chances of getting multiple Playoff bids.