Utah football gets preseason ranking love, even with no fall season

Even though there will be no fall football for the Utes, they have been getting recognition in the preseason national polls, with the AP Poll ranking them No. 22, the third time in program history the school has been ranked in the preseason AP Poll.

1. Clemson
2. Ohio State
3. Alabama
4. Georgia
5. Oklahoma
6. LSU
7. Penn State
8. Florida
9. Oregon
10. Notre Dame
11. Auburn
12. Wisconsin
13. Texas A&M
14. Texas
15. Oklahoma State
16. Michigan
17. USC
18. North Carolina
19. Minnesota
20. Cincinnati
21. UCF
22. Utah
23. Iowa State
24. Iowa
25. Tennessee

Utah, and other schools not playing in the fall, will fall out of the rankings, obviously, when the season starts in about a week. Utah was one of three Pac-12 schools ranked, behind Oregon and USC. The respect that Utah is receiving now, especially losing a ton of starters, plus a starting quarterback and running back is very impressive, and shows the foundation that they are building upon as they become a national program. The Utes were also ranked No. 20 in the first Coaches Poll.

A ranking like this, although not a super high ranking, is bitter sweet for a Utah program that is in the process of reloading with a ton of young talent, and a potentially exciting offense with a lot of returning pieces. We will have to wait until the spring, at the earliest, to see what the next chapter in this program’s history is going to look like.