BYU’s unbeaten start earned the Cougars a small but meaningful bump in the first regular-season AP Top 25 poll.
After opening the 2026-27 season with wins over Ohio State at the Delta Center and Omaha in the home opener, BYU climbed two spots from No. 25 to No. 23 in the latest rankings.
The Cougars are one of five Big 12 teams in the poll this week, with Houston sitting at No. 8, Arizona at No.
12, Kansas at No. 15 and Texas Tech at No. 16.
The biggest swing among Big 12 teams came from Arizona, which dropped seven places after its season-opening loss to UCLA in Las Vegas. That win pushed UCLA from No. 22 to No.
BYU now turns to a pair of home games this week, hosting Queens from the Atlantic Sun Conference and Montana State from the Big Sky.
The AP Top 25 for the week of November 9, 2026, is led by Florida at No. 1, followed by Duke, Illinois, UConn and Michigan State. Florida, Duke, Illinois, UConn and Michigan State are all 2-0, while Virginia checks in at No. 6 at 3-0.
The rest of the top 10 includes Texas, Houston, UCLA and Louisville. Tennessee is No.
11, Arizona No. 12, St.
John’s No. 13, Gonzaga No.
14, Kansas No. 15 and Texas Tech No. 16.
Rounding out the poll are Miami, Alabama, Arkansas, Michigan, USC, Vanderbilt, BYU, Kentucky and Nebraska.
Others receiving votes: Memphis, Saint Louis, Iowa State, North Carolina, Iowa, Baylor, TCU, Marquette, Indiana, Nevada, Texas A&M, High Point, Santa Clara, East Texas A&M, Creighton, Utah State.
In Other News...
BYU Could Be Getting Two Key Starters Back At The Right Time
BYUs depth chart for the Baylor game offered a welcome bit of movement, with running back LJ Martin and cornerback Evan Johnson both appearing for the first time since injuries knocked them out. Martin already eased back in last week with limited touches, and his presence now points to a bigger workload as the Cougars try to settle back into a rhythm on offense. Johnsons return to the chart is just as notable on the other side of the ball, especially after he missed the last two games.
There is still some uncertainty layered into the update, though, because tight end Roger Saleapaga is also listed despite his recent injury. For BYU, the timing matters as much as the names themselves, with the Cougars heading into a matchup where reinforcements at key spots could help stabilize both the ground game and the secondary. The only question now is how much each player can actually handle once the game starts. [Read more 🡒]
BYU Just Became Part Of A Brutal Utah Milestone
BYUs latest trip through the rivalry left it on the wrong side of a significant Utah moment, as the Utes moved up to No. 2 in the AP Top 25 after beating the Cougars. It is the highest ranking in Utah program history, and it comes with the kind of momentum that can reshape a season in a hurry, especially when the team at the center of it is still trying to keep its focus on the week-to-week grind.
Morgan Scalley said the message inside the Utah program remains the same: treat every opponent the same and keep working on the parts of the game that still need cleaning up. The next test is a road date with No. 22 Arizona, which gives the Utes another ranked matchup and another chance to prove this climb is about more than one big win over BYU. [Read more 🡒]
BYU Freshman Bruce Branch Is Drawing An AJ Dybantsa Question
Kevin Youngs ability to land elite talent has already changed the conversation around BYU mens basketball, and the latest name drawing attention is freshman Bruce Branch III. Branch, a top prospect who reclassified to 2026, has started to show more in recent games, and Young has pointed to the kind of defensive upside that can make a young player valuable long before the offense fully catches up.
The comparison naturally brings up AJ Dybantsa, the one-and-done star BYU secured in December 2024 before he went on to lead the nation in scoring and become the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft. Young has even described Branchs style in similar terms, which only adds to the intrigue around how he develops the freshman early and how quickly that progress might show up in a BYU rotation built around high-end recruits. [Read more 🡒]