Arizona is in "Tier 14: Room for improvement (six teams)" as ESPN posted a "Ranking all 136 FBS teams in tiers" on Thursday morning. Arizona State is the highest-tiered team Arizona will play in 2025 and in the Big XII in "Tier 4: Last year's playoff surprises (four teams)."
ASU went from 3-9 in 2023 to 11-3, a Big XII title in its first season and a berth in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals. Arizona did the reverse in 2024. The Wildcats were 10-3 in 2023 and 4-8 in 2024.