Utah expected to get its highest CFP ranking ever

Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham pumps his fist after beating the Washington Huskies in Seattle on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2019. Utah won 33-28. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

Committee to release its first 2019 placements Tuesday night

SALT LAKE CITY — If all goes as expected, the University of Utah should receive its highest-ever College Football Playoff ranking when the first 2019 results are released Tuesday evening.

The Utes (8-1, 5-1), who are currently No. 8 in the Associated Press top-25 poll and No. 9 in the coaches poll, have never been higher than 10th in the CFP rankings. That came in 2015, in the midst of a run where they appeared in every CFP top 25 from 2014-16. After not making the grade in any of the six rankings in 2017, the Utes were in five of the six CFP rankings last season — debuting at No. 15, placing No. 17 three times and 19th once.

The CFP rankings, which were created in 2014, are released each Tuesday over the final six weeks of the season. They ultimately decide the four teams that will contend for the national championship and participants in the New Year’s Six bowl games.

This year’s committee is chaired by Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens. Others in the group include Iowa athletic director Gary Barta, former Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer, ex-Arizona Republic reporter Paola Boivin, Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione, former football coach Ken Hatfield, Robert Morris president Christopher Howard, former USC defensive back Ronnie Lott, Arkansas State athletic director Terry Mohajir, former Army chief of staff Ray Odierno, former football coach R.C. Slocum, Georgia Tech athletic director Todd Stansbury and Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin.

There’s plenty of intrigue as to how the Pac-12 will be viewed by the committee.

“Oregon and Utah survived road trips to USC and Washington, respectively, and the fact that they both did is crucial for the conference as a whole,” writes Andy Wittry of watchstadium.com. “Having the two schools meet in the Pac-12 Championship as 11-1 division winners would guarantee the conference a 12-1 conference champion that would deserve playoff consideration.”

ESPN’s Heather Dinich examined how the deep Pac-12 might be seen by the committee.

“Things couldn’t have gone better for the Pac-12 on Saturday, as Utah and Oregon both won what should be their most difficult remaining games of the regular season. Oregon’s win at USC also helped Utah because the Utes needed USC to lose to help their position in the Pac-12 South race,“ Dinich writes. “Oregon also benefited a bit from Auburn’s win against Ole Miss, as the Ducks’ narrow, season-opening loss to the Tigers certainly isn’t a deal-breaker. Oregon and Utah are favored by at least 80 percent in each of their three remaining games, according to ESPN’s FPI, and are on a collision course to meet in the conference title game.”

Dinich added that a one-loss champion from the Pac-12 would be considered for a CFP spot.

“Its resume will be compared to that of other Power Five conference winners, which is why it’s important to see if the committee ranks any other Pac-12 teams besides Oregon and Utah,” Dinich explained. “If not, it’s possible that the only ranked team each will face all season is the other.”

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College Football Playoff Rankings Show

Tuesday, 7 p.m. (MST)

TV: ESPN

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