Where do BYU and Utah fall within the Big 12’s recruiting ranks?
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While BYU and Utah won’t meet on the gridiron until next fall, last week’s early signing day festivities essentially marked the rivals’ first showdown as Big 12 conference foes.
Recruiting battles between the two programs have always held plenty of intrigue, but with an impressive crop of in-state talent and the Cougars and Utes now sharing the same Power Four stage, this current 2024 class is as interesting as ever before.
Among the 16 schools making up the new Big 12, BYU’s 2024 class currently ranks ninth in 247Sports’ composite score, while Utah checks in at No. 13. This places the Cougars at No. 54 nationally and the Utes at No. 63.
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If you consider only high school recruits and if current rankings hold, this year’s group is BYU’s highest-rated group of commits since 2016 and enables the Cougars to finish ahead of Utah for the first time in 10 years.
When factoring in transfers, however, the Utes practically swap places with BYU, jumping to No. 54 in overall class rank while the Cougars fall to No. 62.
Within the Big 12, Utah’s overall class would weigh in at No. 10, with that of BYU placing No. 13.
The Utes have added four transfers thus far — including four-star tight end Carsen Ryan and former BYU pass rusher John Henry Daley — while the Cougars have welcomed a pair of Weber State defenders and are expected to announce a quarterback signing in the near future, as well.
While Utah captured most of the elite local talent — landing three of the state’s top five prospects and five of the top 10 — Kalani Sitake and his staff were tough in the trenches to get their guys, fending off the Utes and other big time programs (think USC and Oregon) to acquire more defensive depth built to withstand a grueling Big 12 schedule.
Given the state of Jay Hill’s unit this past year, these new BYU commits could make an immediate impact in 2024, with Utah’s injury-ravaged roster receiving needed reinforcements as well.
How has the rest of the Big 12 fared in this recruiting cycle?
With Texas and Oklahoma leaving for the SEC, the Big 12 has two new schools atop its recruiting ranks for the first time since such data began being tracked in 2010.
Texas Tech, TCU and UCF hold the conference’s top three high school classes with point totals over 200, with Kansas, West Virginia, Arizona, Cincinnati, Arizona State, BYU and Iowa State scoring between 190-199 points each.
While Colorado’s six high school commits place the program dead last in the league with just 132.63 points, coach Deion Sanders’ rabid portal presence has resulted in 18 transfer additions, good for the nation’s second-best transfer class and enough to catapult Colorado atop the Big 12’s overall class rankings.
