BYU Football: ESPN Future Power Rankings analysis

ESPN just released the Future Power Rankings going into the 2019 college football season and it has some early implications for BYU Football.

The T.V. ratings and social media engagement on ESPN may be down in recent years but there is no question that when ESPN releases a preseason ranking people pay attention; the kind of people who vote in the AP rankings.

The AP rankings are what sets the bar until the BCS rankings are released just past the midway point of the season. The BCS rankings although heavily influenced by computer there is still a human influence that determines who is number one and how good a schedule/opponent is.

Sometimes this plays in favor of teams such as in 1984 when BYU took down then No. 3 Pittsburg in the season opener. This put BYU on the map and set them up to win the National Championship. Pittsburg finished 3-7-1 on the season and obviously did not deserve the preseason ranking they had but it worked in BYU’s favor.

In other words, the preseason rankings have huge implications on how wins/losses look for BYU and even though the ESPN preseason rankings aren’t official, their influence is sort of like a letter of recommendation for a job from the VP of the company you are applying for.

It is no surprise that BYU is not on the list but surprisingly only one of their opponents is. Some of the teams are about where everyone expects them but there are also some surprises. Here is a list of where teams are at.

Not looking favorable for BYU

While Washington is higher than most are expecting, there are three teams that very well could have been on the list but are not; Utah, Boise State and Utah State. The most questionable team is Utah who on nearly every preseason poll is in the No. 14-19 range.

Although it isn’t a surprise the Boise State and Utah State are not ranked, especially the Aggies, it is a bit of swipe at the Mountain West Conference who had three teams alongside Fresno State win ten games last season with Fresno winning 12. All three of those teams return probably as much if not more production than the average team from last season which makes one question why a team like Nebraska who went 4-8 last season is higher than them.

If these rankings hold up once the season starts, BYU playing Utah will not be a top 25 win if the Cougars can end the streak and win. Boise State and Utah State would both have their chance to be ranked by the time the Cougars play them, but teams who lose a game while in the Top 25 tend not to drop as much as teams not in the Top 25 who lose, meaning both may need to be undefeated by the time BYU plays them.

The official preseason rankings will come later this summer as teams finalize their rosters, know more about injuries and fall camp shows a bit more about the teams. Last season, BYU played three teams who were in the preseason top 25 with Wisconsin (4th), Washington (6th) and Boise State (22).