The Utes, who finished 2017 fifth, were picked to finish fifth again in the poll that was released on Monday.
Oklahoma, winner of the last two national titles, is No. 1 again followed by Florida, LSU, Alabama and Utah. Southern Utah made the rankings at No. 24.
Utah will face seven preseason Top-20 teams in 2018, including a quad meet in Reno, Nev., on Jan. 14 that features Utah, No. 6 UCLA, No. 15 Washington and No. 18 Stanford.
Utah coach Megan Marsden said she felt like the Utes were a little underestimated and that the goal this year is to start out strong so theUtes are in the top three on a weekly basis.