then most of the teams (including the P5 ones) on the schedule would have to really not very good for the year in order to only get a 20 to 25 ranking out of that schedule and ranking. If the teams on the schedule are decent, BYU likely ends up with a ranking somewhere in the 8 to 15 range. Which I agree with.
So it's more like there's a third option he'd take (if I may put words in his mouth) which would be to go 10-2 with a loss to Utah but having USC/Tenn/Washington/Boise be pretty decent/good teams, and therefore having BYU finish somewhere 8 to 15 in the rankings. Which, if BYU goes 10-2, is a lot more likely scenario, I'd say.