College football personality Josh Pate dropped his way-too-early Top 25, and the Big 12 didn’t just sneak into the mix; they showed up with some real weight. Four teams made the cut, with Texas Tech, BYU, Houston, and Utah all landing in the top 20. And yeah, it’s January, and the games are still many months away, but this kind of early respect says a lot about where the league is headed.
PATE’S RANKINGS
At No. 12, Texas Tech is the highest-ranked Big 12 team on the list, and that checks out. Joey McGuire has this thing rolling, and people outside of Lubbock are finally starting to notice. The Red Raiders have been cleaning up in the portal, landed a top-three class, and return a ton of key pieces on both sides of the ball. If they can hold up in the trenches and replace some of the talent lost on the defensive line, they’re going to be a legit playoff threat.
BYU comes in at No. 14, and that really shouldn’t surprise anyone. Kalani Sitake has done an incredible job in Provo, and after turning down the Penn State job, he’s back for a while with plans to elevate the program to new heights. The Cougars were left out of the Playoff after a spectacular 2025 season, but with Bear Bachmeier under center, they could very well earn a bid in 2026.
Houston’s slotted at No. 18, which probably raises a few eyebrows considering how quickly this rebuild has gone, but don’t forget, Willie Fritz is an elite coach and program builder, and they don’t show any signs of slowing down. They crushed it in the portal and in high school recruiting, and they retained a ton of their stars from last year. Seeing them in the Top 20 is some major, major praise.
Then there’s Utah at No. 19. Kyle Whittingham is out the door for Michigan, but that shouldn’t raise any red flags yet. Morgan Scalley has been the man on campus since the Utes’ bowl game, and if he can continue to keep things trending in the right direction, the Utes could become a real National Power for the foreseeable future. Then again, this is all just projections, so who really knows?
Bottom line, the Big 12 is holding its own in the national conversation. Whether you love him or hate him, Josh Pate commands a massive audience, and when he speaks, the world of college football listens.
