Welcome to our newest feature, which we’re calling “What-If Wednesday.” In this column, I’ll propose a handful of questions that, at this point, have not come to fruition. But IF they do, what will come out of it? What’s the end game?
Join us for this one, and let’s have some fun and talk some Big 12 football.
What If… Ollie Gordon never gets going?
Then Oklahoma State football‘s dreams of making a College Football Playoff are done. This team won’t get there on the arm of Alan Bowman. Heck, Bowman may not even be the starting quarterback in the weeks ahead, as fans clamor for a change, or at least a look, at Zane Flores. Of course, plenty of the blame should lie at the feet of offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn, while the offensive line continues to struggle in run blocking.
But the Cowboys have issues on both sides of the ball right now. So if Ollie Gordon can’t get it going, then forget it, Oklahoma State is absolutely toast. They’re 3-2, but have upcoming games against West Virginia (at home) and BYU (on the road) that could go either way. OSU could find itself fighting for bowl contention by later this month.
What If… Colorado is actually a Big 12 Contender?
Then ESPN will magically remember the Big 12 exists, and probably come to Boulder for their only trip to a Big 12 stadium this season.
There is no other reason for ESPN to pay attention to the Big 12. We’re seeing their SEC obsession on full display right now, since they now own all of the ESPN rights. But if Deion Sanders has this team in the thick of the Big 12 title race in the weeks ahead, and CU keeps winning, the ESPN show will end up in Boulder.
Maybe look at November 16th vs. Utah? If both teams are in the Big 12 race then that’s the one to keep an eye on. It is also the weekend of Georgia at Tennessee, so they might not be able to help themselves by kissing the SEC’s butt, but hey, a Big 12 fan can dream, right?
What If… Arizona is the Team We Saw in Week 5?
Then the Wildcats are going to be Big 12 contenders. Arizona football was better than Utah football in the trenches. When is the last time someone could say that when playing Utah?
The Utes usually have the advantage in the trenches against their Pac-12, or now Big 12, opponents. But it was the Wildcats who were the more physical team on Saturday night in Salt Lake City. It was an incredible turnaround from a team that got smoked in the trenches against Kansas State two weeks prior.
I don’t know which one Arizona is more likely to look like the rest of the way, it’s probably somewhere in between, but if the Utah version of the Arizona Wildcats continue to show up week-after-week, the rest of the Big 12 should be on notice.
