While several teams can get into a postseason tournament to compete for a conference title in basketball, baseball, and softball, only two teams will get the chance to play for the Big 12 Football Championship in December.
Heading into Week 11, we will assess what we’ve seen through the first ten weeks of the 2024 season and start to separate the contenders from the pretenders in the Big 12 race and, ultimately, the College Football Playoff.
Unlike Power Rankings, which are more prone to changing on a weekly basis, my intent with this weekly feature is to determine who the best five teams in the league are, regardless of their most recent result. Here are the top five teams in the Big 12 and a few squads on the bubble looking in.
1. BYU (8-0) – Last Week: 1
Kalani Sitake and the BYU Cougars were on a bye last week, and in hindsight, they’re probably feeling fortunate that they missed out on the chaos that swept across the Big 12 in Week 10. After Iowa State dropped its first game of the season, the Cougars are the only remaining undefeated team in the league. They’ll head to Utah (4-4) on Saturday and will look to move to 6-0 in Big 12 play.
2. Iowa State (7-1) – Last Week: 2
Week 10: Texas Tech 23, Iowa State 22
The Big 12 race got a lot more interesting with Iowa State’s last-minute loss to Texas Tech last weekend, and perhaps it’s time that we reassess where the Cyclones stand in the league hierarchy. However, I still believe that, as of Week 11, the Cyclones are the second-best team in the Big 12. We saw Iowa State stumble out of the bye week and it cost them a game. However, we know that there’s not a perfect team in this league, or any other league for that matter. ISU still has one of the best defenses in the Big 12, Rocco Becht at quarterback, and a strong supporting cast of skill players around him, and that will probably be enough to win the rest of the games on their schedule.
3. Kansas State (7-2) – Last Week: 3
Week 10: Houston 24, Kansas State 19
Had Kansas State been able to take care of business against Houston last weekend, the Wildcats would likely be No. 2 in this ranking. That’s not what happened, though. Instead, K-State played with fire for the third time in four games, and this time they got burnt. Avery Johnson threw two costly interceptions in this game — which has happened in both of K-State’s losses — and it was too much for them to overcome on the road. They’ll have this week to figure things out, but the remaining slate of Arizona State, Cincinnati, and Iowa State looks pretty tough right now.
4. Colorado (6-2) – Last Week: 4
Like BYU, Colorado is probably breathing a sigh of relief that they got to skip out on Week 10. However, the Buffs are a team that seems to be reaching their peak at the right time, and it might just give them a real shot at making it to Arlington. Colorado is tied for second in the Big 12 standings with a 4-1 record in league play, and this week’s game against Texas Tech is the toughest of their remaining contests. If they can go into Lubbock and take down the Red Raiders, there’s very real possibility that Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes are sitting at 10-2 at the end of the regular season.
5. Texas Tech (6-3) – Last Week: Bubble
Week 10: Texas Tech 23, Iowa State 22
Welcome back to the conversation, Texas Tech. Losing back-to-back games against Baylor and TCU but then turning things around against No. 11 Iowa State — on the road — probably isn’t what the Red Raiders had in mind, but it’ll have to work. Now, Tahj Brooks and the TTU offense will need to keep things rolling on the ground with Colorado coming to town. If Tech can pick up a win this weekend and heading into their bye week at 5-2 in Big 12 play, they’ll be — at worst — third in the conference standings. That’s a much better situation than they might’ve thought possible this time last week.
On The Bubble
Arizona State (6-2): Arizona State is bowl-eligible after smacking around Oklahoma State in Stillwater. They’ll now host UCF with a chance to get to 7-2, but they’ll probably have to do it without their best player, as Cam Skattebo isn’t likely to be available.
Cincinnati (5-3): Cincinnati needs to pick up a win this week against West Virginia to keep pace in the Big 12, but it would also put them in a very good spot. With road trips to Iowa State and Kansas State still on the docket, the Bearcats could realistically play themselves into the Big 12 title game, still.
Baylor (5-4): I’m almost tempted to act like this isn’t here, just to ease the minds of Baylor football fans. However, I can’t ignore the fact that Baylor has now won three straight games and looked more than capable on the offensive side of the ball.
