BYU’s bye week did not cost the Cougars much in the latest AP Top 25, but it did drop them one spot.
The Cougars slipped to No. 10 after Florida surged past them following a dominant home win over No. 4 Ole Miss. Even so, BYU still held its place ahead of LSU, a notable bit of favor from voters after the Tigers rolled Texas A&M at home.
The updated poll keeps BYU as the top-ranked team in the Big 12. The league now has five teams in the top 20: BYU at No.
10, Texas Tech at No. 12, Utah at No.
13, Oklahoma State at No. 19 and Houston at No. 20.
Oklahoma State entered the rankings for the first time after a convincing road win over West Virginia.
For BYU, the Big 12 picture looks manageable the rest of the way. Among those five ranked league teams, the Cougars are set to face only Utah. That gives BYU a conference path that could put it in position for another run at the Big 12 championship game in December.
The opportunity to climb is still there, and it starts with the games in front of them. BYU will be favored against both TCU and Iowa State, and those matchups loom as the first chances to move back up.
If the Cougars reach the Notre Dame game undefeated, that one could feature two teams sitting in the top 7 or 8. A win there in October would send BYU rocketing toward the top three or four.
There are also some openings ahead of that. No.
7 Alabama travels to face No. 16 Mississippi State, No.
8 Florida goes on the road against No. 25 Missouri, and No.
4 Miami has to deal with a road trip to Clemson. The following week brings Alabama and Georgia together in what should be a top-10 showdown.
In Other News...
BYUs Big 12 Path Suddenly Runs Through Two Huge Tests
BYU used its weekend off to catch its breath, but the break did little to simplify the road ahead. The Cougars return to Big 12 play next weekend at TCU, and the conversation around their season is already shifting toward how they handle the stretch that follows, with Iowa State waiting as another major test. With BYU still in the mix near the top of the conference picture, every week now feels like a sorting exercise, especially in a league where the standings remain crowded and a few teams still have a realistic path to the championship game.
The Cougars have given themselves a chance because of the way they have played on offense, while their defense has been good enough to keep them in the race. But the next two games will say plenty about whether that profile translates against the kind of competition that can separate contenders from the pack. Utah, Texas Tech, Oklahoma State and Houston remain part of the broader Big 12 conversation too, which only adds to the pressure on BYU as it heads into a run that could either strengthen its case or leave it chasing from behind. [Read more 🡒]
BYUs Bye Week Brought A Telling Shift In The Top 25
BYUs bye week arrived at a useful moment, not just for rest but for perspective. While the Cougars sat out, the broader college football picture kept moving, and the latest Top 25 ballot offered a reminder of how quickly the sport can shift when teams keep stacking wins and standout performances.
Texas stayed at No. 1 in the ranking, with Miami, Notre Dame, Georgia and Ohio State filling out the top tier, a snapshot that says as much about recent form as it does about reputation. For BYU, the takeaway is less about any single slot and more about the pressure to stay in the conversation when the calendar and the standings both start tightening. [Read more 🡒]
Utah Just Sent A Clear Message In The Latest AP Poll
BYUs place in the AP Top 25 took a small hit after Week 4, slipping from No. 9 to No. 10 as the latest rankings settled in. The Cougars still sit well inside the national conversation, but the movement around them underscored how crowded the Big 12 picture is becoming, with Utah climbing two spots to No. 13 and other league teams continuing to jockey for position.
Oklahoma State also joined the poll at No. 19 after its win over West Virginia, adding another layer to a conference race that already has plenty of traffic. Texas Tech and Houston held steady or moved up as well, so for BYU the message from the latest poll was simple: every week is going to matter, and the margin between a rise and a slide is already razor thin. [Read more 🡒]