BYU football is tied with USC as the No. 14 team in the nation according to an August 19 report. This represents the second-highest preseason ranking for the program, following a 1985 ranking of No. 10.
The ranking comes after BYU finished last season as the No. 11 team in the country, following a PopTarts bowl victory over Georgia Tech. The team enters the season with quarterback Bear Bachmeier and running back LJ Martin.
Bachmeier, a sophomore, previously led the team to its first conference championship game appearance since 1998 and set a record for single-season rushing touchdowns by a quarterback with 11. Martin, the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year last season, was named the Big 12 preseason Offensive Player of the Year for this upcoming season.
Other Big 12 teams included in the preseason poll are Texas Tech at No. 12 and the Houston Cougars at No. 23. The Utah Utes entered the season ranked No. 21 after finishing No. 14 in the final poll from the previous year. Arizona and TCU also received votes but were not featured on the list.
