Jackson Payne Deseret News (Provo, UT) About: Jackson Payne has been writing about sports for the Deseret News since 2023. He originally hails from Northern Virginia and is a graduate of BYU’s Sports Media program, where he received numerous awards for his work as a student journalist. Jackson enjoys hanging out with his wife, consuming comedy and listening to music from before he was born.
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Feb 23, 2026 Week 16 Rankings for Jackson Payne1 Duke (56) 25-2 Actual: 1Highest: 1 - 56 Voters Lowest: 2 - 5 Voters 1520
2 Arizona (5) 25-2 Actual: 2Highest: 1 - 5 Voters Lowest: 3 - 30 Voters 1439
3 Michigan 25-2 Actual: 3Highest: 2 - 30 Voters Lowest: 3 - 31 Voters 1433
4 UConn 25-3 Actual: 6Highest: 4 - 15 Voters Lowest: 11 - Victor Flores 1211
5 Florida 21-6 Actual: 7Highest: 4 - 6 Voters Lowest: 15 - Brenden Martin 1112
6 Iowa State 23-4 Actual: 4Highest: 4 - 23 Voters Lowest: 9 - Dave Borges 1272
7 Purdue 22-5 Actual: 8Highest: 5 - 4 Voters Lowest: 18 - Brice Cherry 1062
8 Houston 23-4 Actual: 5Highest: 4 - 14 Voters Lowest: 9 - 3 Voters 1251
9 Gonzaga 27-2 Actual: 9Highest: 4 - 2 Voters Lowest: 16 - 2 Voters 1039
10 Virginia 24-3 Actual: 11Highest: 5 - Bob Ballou Lowest: 21 - Andy Greder 884
11 Michigan State 22-5 Actual: 13Highest: 8 - 2 Voters Lowest: 16 - 2 Voters 856
12 Illinois 22-6 Actual: 10Highest: 4 - Seth Davis Lowest: 17 - 3 Voters 895
13 Nebraska 23-4 Actual: 12Highest: 8 - Brenna Greene Lowest: 16 - David Jablonski 858
14 St. John's 22-5 Actual: 15Highest: 8 - Seth Davis Lowest: 18 - 2 Voters 763
15 Texas Tech 20-7 Actual: 16Highest: 13 - 2 Voters Lowest: 20 - 4 Voters 592
16 North Carolina 21-6 Actual: 18Highest: 14 - 2 Voters Lowest: NR - 6 Voters 388
17 Kansas 20-7 Actual: 14Highest: 9 - 4 Voters Lowest: 18 - 2 Voters 774
18 Miami (OH) 27-0 Actual: 21Highest: 8 - Brice Cherry Lowest: NR - 7 Voters 335
19 Saint Louis 25-2 Actual: 23Highest: 12 - David Jablonski Lowest: NR - Mark Zeigler 242
20 BYU 20-7 Actual: 19Highest: 15 - Eric Crawford Lowest: NR - 3 Voters 361
21 Alabama 20-7 Actual: 17Highest: 14 - Parth Upadhyaya Lowest: NR - 2 Voters 402
22 Arkansas 20-7 Actual: 20Highest: 15 - 2 Voters Lowest: NR - 3 Voters 356
23 Louisville 20-7 Actual: 24Highest: 15 - Andy Greder Lowest: NR - 11 Voters 186
24 Saint Mary's 25-4 Actual: 27Highest: 21 - Percy Allen Lowest: NR - 41 Voters 30
25 Vanderbilt 21-6 Actual: 25Highest: 15 - Victor Flores Lowest: NR - 19 Voters 171
Ranked Teams Not on Ballot: 22-Tennessee
