BYU is entering next week with real playoff buzz, and the national projections are starting to pile up around the Cougars.
The biggest reason is simple: this is a veteran team that has won 23 games over the last two seasons, more than any other team that still hasn’t reached the 12-team College Football Playoff. With that kind of recent production, multiple analysts think BYU has a legitimate path to break through in 2026.
Sports Illustrated’s national staff split on the Big 12 race, but BYU got plenty of support. Three of the six analysts picked the Cougars to win the league, while the other three went with Texas Tech. That matters because a Big 12 title would send BYU straight into the playoff with an automatic bid.
In the same set of projections, Sports Illustrated had BYU as the 11-seed and lined up against 6-seed Miami in Florida. The pick there was Miami moving on to the quarterfinals. That group also went with Notre Dame to win the national championship, and the Fighting Irish could be ranked among the top two or three teams in the country when they come to Provo in October.
ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach also slotted BYU into the field. Bonagura has the Cougars as the 11-seed against 6-seed Oregon, with the Ducks advancing.
Schlabach was even higher on BYU, giving the Cougars the 6-seed and a first-round home game against 11-seed Texas A&M. In that bracket, Schlabach had BYU winning that matchup before running into Notre Dame in the quarterfinals.
Both ESPN analysts also projected Texas Tech in the playoff.
Nicole Auerbach went a step further and put two Big 12 teams in the CFP: BYU and Texas Tech. Her bracket, though, sends those two teams against each other in the first round. If that matchup happens, it would likely be a rematch of the Big 12 championship game.
Brett McMurphy’s projection also includes BYU and Texas Tech. He has BYU as the 10-seed heading to Bloomington, Indiana, to face reigning national champion Indiana. McMurphy picked Indiana to win that game and move on.
His Texas Tech path is deeper. McMurphy put the Red Raiders at No. 5 against 12-seed UNLV, with Texas Tech advancing to face 4-seed Notre Dame in the quarterfinals. He had the Red Raiders beating the Fighting Irish and then falling to 1-seed Ohio State in the semifinals.
In Other News...
BYU Fall Camp Clarified Some Crucial Battles Fans Needed To Watch
BYUs fall camp wrapped up with a clearer picture of where several of the biggest position battles stand as the Cougars head toward the new season. The staff now has a better sense of how the depth chart is sorting out, and camp observations point to a handful of players who appear to have separated themselves in the kind of competition that tends to shape early-season playing time.
Among the most notable names are receivers Jojo Phillips, Kyler Kasper and Legend Glasker, along with left guard Sonny Makasini and defensive ends Bodie Schoonover and Tausili Akana. The picture also includes backup quarterback Treyson Bourguet and special teams contributors Matthias Dunn and Cannon DeVries, though these remain projections based on camp performance rather than any official announcement from the program. [Read more 🡒]
BYUs Big 12 Hopes Ride On A Backfield Fans Trust
Bear Bachmeier and LJ Martin give BYU something every Big 12 contender needs: a backfield with proven production and a clear sense of trust. Bachmeier arrives after transferring from Stanford with a rsum that includes more than 3,000 passing yards and 527 rushing yards last season, while Martin is back after leading the Big 12 in rushing with 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns. For a program trying to keep pace in a demanding league, that kind of dual threat can change the way a defense has to prepare.
The bigger question is how far that combination can carry the Cougars once the season gets rolling. Both players have voiced optimism about what they can become together, and Kalani Sitake has sounded similarly encouraged about their impact. BYU does not need to wonder whether it has talent in the backfield. It needs to see how quickly that trust turns into results against the kind of defenses that decide conference races. [Read more 🡒]