Oklahoma Sooners Lead 5 Big 12 Teams in College Football America Top 30
The Oklahoma Sooners lead five Big 12 teams in the 2021 College Football America Yearbook’s Preseason Top 30, which was released earlier this week.
The Sooners, who won nine games last season, came in at No. 4 in the Yearbook’s preseason rankings. The Sooners defeated Iowa State in the Big 12 Championship game and went on to beat Florida in the Cotton Bowl, both of which were held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
The Sooners were voted No. 1 in the Big 12’s preseason poll, as voted on by the media. They are led by Heisman candidate and quarterback Spencer Rattler.
The Cyclones were the other Big 12 team in the Top 10, coming in at No. 9. Iowa State won nine games last season, including a regular-season win over the Sooners. After falling in the Big 12 Championship Game, the Cyclones defeated Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl. The Cyclones return a host of standouts, including quarterback Brock Purdy, running back Breece Hall, tight end Charlie Kolar, linebacker Mike Rose and safety Greg Eisworth II.
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Texas came in at No. 22 in the rankings. The Longhorns are going into 2021 with a new head coach in Steve Sarkisian. He takes over after Tom Herman was fired after winning seven games last season, but failing to win the Big 12 for the second straight season. Texas is led by running back Bijan Robinson and cornerback D’Shawn Jamison. The Longhorns’ biggest task heading into the season is settling on a starting quarterback between Casey Thompson and Hudson Card.
Oklahoma State is No. 24. Head coach Mike Gundy led the Cowboys to eight wins last season, including a bowl win over Miami (FL). Quarterback Spencer Sanders returns for OSU, along with defensive end Trace Ford and safety Kolby Harvell-Peel.
TCU is the final Big 12 team to make the Top 30, coming in at No. 30. The Horned Frogs, under long-time head coach Gary Patterson, won six games last season and qualified for a bowl game, which was canceled due to COVID-19. The Horned Frogs are led by quarterback Max Duggan, defensive end Ochaun Mathis and safety La’Kendrick Van Zandt.
The 2021 College Football America Yearbook features seven pages of Big 12 content, including an overall preview of the conference race, a spotlight piece on Darrell K. Royal-Memorial Stadium, the Big 12 Starting Lineup, all Big 12 schedules and a half-page devoted to each program.
You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
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