Will the experts be right? Here’s how they project Pac-12 football

Bookmark this, college football fans.

In six months time, these predictions could either prove right what you hoped your team would be or give you fodder to hold up and say “take that, haters!” to those who didn’t believe.

That’s right, it’s Pac-12 football projections time.

The new-look Pac-12 has launched with eight football members, playing a unique eight-game league schedule with a flex game at the end of the regular season.

Here is a look at how five prominent national outlets project the Pac-12 to finish in 2026:

Phil Steele

1. Boise State
2. Fresno State
3. (Tied for 2nd) San Diego State
4. Texas State
5. Washington State
6. Utah State
7. Colorado State
8. Oregon State

Athlon Sports

1. Boise State
2. San Diego State
3. Fresno State
4. Washington State
5. Utah State
6. Texas State
7. Colorado State
8. Oregon State

ESPN

From ESPN’s FPI projections:

1. Boise State
2. San Diego State
3. Fresno State
4. Washington State
5. Texas State
6. Utah State
7. Oregon State
8. Colorado State

Yahoo Sports

1. Boise State
2. San Diego State
3. Washington State
4. Fresno State
5. Oregon State
6. Utah State
7. Colorado State
8. Texas State

College Football News

1. Boise State
2. Fresno State
3. San Diego State
4. Washington State
5. Utah State
6. Colorado State
7. Texas State
8. Oregon State

Takeaways from Pac-12 standings projections

There are a few notable trends, consistencies and outliers.

Favorite: No uncertainty here. All previews have Boise State as the favorite to win the new-look Pac-12.

Widest range: Not surprisingly, Texas State is the biggest unknown. The Pac-12 legacy members have all played against the teams coming over from the Mountain West in recent years (and all those MW teams have, obviously, played each other). Texas State comes from the Sun Belt and it’s hard to project where the Bobcats fit. The range on their projections goes from No. 4 (via Phil Steele) all the way down to the basement at No. 8 (from Yahoo Sports) and every place in between.

Battle at the bottom: Most outlets have CSU and Oregon State battling at the bottom. Four of the five outlets have CSU at No. 7 or 8, with a high placement at No. 6 (College Football News). Three of the five have Oregon State picked No. 8, one at No. 7 but with a high outlier of No. 5 (via Yahoo Sports).

Sports reporter Kevin Lytle can be found on social media on X, Instagram and Threads @Kevin_Lytle and on Bluesky.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Will the experts be right? Here’s how they project Pac-12 football