The Big 12 Preseason Media Poll is in! Where does BYU football stand?

The almighty media has spoken, and BYU football was a footnote. The Big 12 Football Media Preseason Poll was released this week, setting expectations for the upcoming football season with incoming membership from the "four corners" schools.

Following a difficult year for Cougars fans, hopes for the program aren't all too high. Though a year's experience in a power conference will certainly be an asset for the football program, the Cougs aren't projected to see much improvement from last season's 5-7 campaign. The Big 12 is no slouch (no matter what Twitter Utes may tell you), and BYU will have a fight on their hands week in and week out.

There comes a time in every man's life where he must look in the mirror and admit to himself that BYU probably isn't as good as Utah this season... probably. The media seems to think so, as the Utes stand atop the rankings as favorites to take home the conference title in their first season as Big 12 members. Kalani Sitake's Cougars are standing at 13th.

Here is the full order for the Big 12 Football Media Preseason Poll (with first place votes in parenthesis):

1. Utah (20)
2. Kansas State (19)
3. Oklahoma State (14)
4. Kansas (5)
5. Arizona (3)
6. Iowa State
7. West Virginia
8. UCF
9. Texas Tech
10. TCU
11. Colorado
12. Baylor
13. BYU
14. Cincinnati
15. Houston
16. Arizona State

As we all know, these polls are completely accurate every time, and have never been met with controversy of any sort (I hope you can hear the sarcasm). With this preseason poll, though, expectations feel realistic. Of course, I'll never stop talking myself into blind optimism for the BYU football season, and the Cougs are going to beat Utah by about 50 when the two sides meet this fall.

With the Cougars, you can never be certain of how their year will play out. Quarterback battles and abundant optimism have been coming out of BYU football practices as we inch closer to the dawn of the 2024 season, but we'll never be sure of what to expect until the Cougars take the field. Let us pray we don't have our hearts ripped out this year.

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