It’s officially August, which means college football is right around the corner. Teams all across the country have begun fall camp activities and, in the blink of an eye, we’ll be getting prepped for the first slate of games.
As we reach the pinnacle of the preseason, the top 25 lists are starting to filter out from the bigger outlets covering the sports. Today, CBS Sports dropped their “CBS Sports 134,” ranking every FBS program from 1 to 134.
College football experts from both CBS Sports and 247Sports turn in ballots on a weekly basis which are averaged out to provide the Top 25 poll and the teams ranked 26-134.
Five Big 12 teams cracked the list, with Utah leading the way at No. 10. One of the biggest movers from last year to this preseason poll, Utah moved up a whopping 22 spots to its current placement ahead of the 2024 season. After injuries piled up and left the Utes at 8-5 on the year, Kyle Whittingham’s team appears healthy and ready to compete for a Big 12 title and perhaps more.
“It speaks to the quality of Utah’s foundation that the team racked up significant injuries at nearly every position group — especially at quarterback with star senior Cam Rising (knee) not playing a snap — and still finished with eight wins in the regular season,” CBS Sports’ Chip Patterson writes. “With a better bill of health, our voters have the Utes positioned where they’d been the previous two seasons, which is right on the edge of the top 10.”
Kansas State is next on the list at No. 17 after finishing at No. 19 with a 9-4 record a season ago. The Wildcats are getting plenty of preseason respect with Avery Johnson set to take over at quarterback. If things transition smoothly around him on offense, K-State could be scary good in 2024.
Two spots back at No. 19 is Oklahoma State, who switched placed with K-State after finishing last year ranked 17th in this poll. The Pokes went 10-4 last season and bring back virtually everyone from the team that fell just short of a Big 12 title, including Doak Walker Award winner Ollie Gordon.
Arizona checks in at No. 22 on the list after finishing at No. 11 last season with an Alamo Bowl victory over Oklahoma. Despite returning Noah Fifita, Tetairoa McMillan, and Tacario Davis among other stars, Jedd Fisch is out and Brent Brennan is in at head coach, leaving some big questions about the Wildcats heading into 2024.
Finally, staying right where they finished the 2023 season, is Kansas, who checks in at No. 25. The Jayhawks’ 2024 season rides on the health of star quarterback Jalon Daniels, who enters the year as healthy as we’ve seen him since emerging as a star. If KU can keep him upright, the Jayhawks should be a team to watch out for in the Big 12, as they have one of the easiest schedules in America.
Here’s a look at where the rest of the Big 12 checks in on the CBS Sports 134.
- Iowa State: No. 27
- West Virginia: No. 31
- UCF: No. 39
- TCU: No. 41
- Texas Tech: No. 42
- Colorado: No. 55
- Baylor: No. 61
- BYU: No. 67
- Cincinnati: No. 73
- Houston: No. 82
- Arizona State: No. 85
