Big 12 media preseason poll gives newcomer Utah Utes the nod for No. 1

The Utah Utes have entered the Big 12 with a bang, earning the No. 1 spot in the conference's 2024 football preseason poll from the media.

The Utes eked out their No. 1 finish ahead of the Kansas State Wildcats by just one first-place vote which translates to only 17 points.

1. Utah Utes
2. Kansas State Wildcats
3. Oklahoma State Cowboys
4. Kansas Jayhawks
5. Arizona Wildcats
6. Iowa State Cyclones
7. West Virginia Mountaineers
8. UCF Knights
9. Texas Tech Red Raiders
10. TCU Horned Frogs
11. Colorado Buffaloes
12. Baylor Bears
13. BYU Cougars
14. Cincinnati Bearcats
15. Houston Cougars
16. Arizona State Sun Devils

Oklahoma State finished in third with 14 first-place votes, followed by the Kansas Jayhawks (5 votes) and the Arizona Wildcats (3 votes).

Deion Sanders and the infamous Colorado Buffaloes earned 0 fist-place votes and found themselves near the bottom of the pack, in eleventh.

Utah, Arizona, Colorado, and Arizona State are joining the Big 12 after a stint in the Pac-12 which dissolved during the conference realignment.

BYU, UCF, Cincinnati, and Houston joined the Big 12 in 2023, earning spots in a Power-5 conference just a year ahead of the nation-wide realignment.

The Utes are clearly the highest ranked newcomer in the conference but the Arizona Wildcats earned a surprising No. 5 finish despite having a below average season last year.

Unsurprisingly, the Arizona State Sun Devils are projected to finish last in the conference as head coach Kenny Dillingham struggles to turn the program around.

Big 12 football is scheduled to kickoff during week 1 of the 2024 season on August 29.

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