Welcome to Fact or Fiction Friday. Each Friday, I allow our Facebook and message board fans to ask the most intriguing questions in the Big 12, and I will tell you whether they come true or are set to fail.
Now, let’s crack open this week’s list and see what we have in store ahead of Week 12.
Neal Brown Gets Another Extension if West Virginia Wins a Bowl Game
Fiction: Is there any West Virginia fan out there who would favor this? If so, you would likely be the only Mountaineer fan on the planet who thinks this is a good idea. Neal Brown’s contract runs through 2027, and he is set to make around $13 million if he lasts through then. Has he proven enough this season to earn extra time and money in Morgantown? He is 35-33 overall and has a Big 12 record of 23-26. The only reason he went 9-4 last season was due to a favorable schedule. He didn’t get one this year and is sitting at 5-4 this season with three games left. I don’t care if he wins out and gets a bowl win because unless his team is competing for a Big 12 title, he shouldn’t get a raise. At no point during his tenure in Morgantown did he have a team that was a true Big 12 title contender, and he has been there for six seasons now.
BYU Will Finish 12-0 Going Into the Big 12 Title Game
Fact: The Cougars have a tough one this weekend against Kansas, but the good news is that they are playing at home in front of the rowdiest crowd in the entire Big 12. If they can get past Kansas this weekend, their final two games are against Arizona State and Houston. I know those teams are much better than people thought coming into the season, but so is BYU. The Cougars are the most complete team in the entire conference. They find ways to win games using all three phases, and they are damn good at it. There’s a reason why they are undefeated, and no other team in the Big 12 has less than two losses.
Mike Gundy Will Make Staff Changes This Offseason
Fact: He’d better if he wants to stick around. The 2024 season has been a complete disaster in Stillwater. The quarterback situation with Alan Bowman has been bad; the offensive line is a mess, and because of that, they can’t utilize Ollie Gordon II, arguably the best running back in college football.
As bad as the offense is, the defense may be even worse. They have the worst run defense in the country, and they tackle about as well as a junior high football team. This program desperately needs some new voices and ideas, and it starts by getting rid of Bryan Nardo and Kasey Dunn.
It also doesn’t help that Mike can’t go more than a few weeks without saying something stupid — like how poor his fans are and how much of a failure they are because they are voicing their opinions on his underachieving football team.
Colorado Is the Best Team in the Big 12 Right Now
Fiction: Until BYU gets knocked off their pedestal, they are the best team in the Big 12. Don’t get me wrong, I like this Colorado team. Shedeur Sanders is the best quarterback in the Big 12, and Travis Hunter looks like the best player in college football. And their defense has certainly made some improvement over the last few weeks. The one issue I see with this team is on the offensive line. They struggle to protect their star quarterback and they can’t run the football which makes them one dimensional. BYU doesn’t have that problem because like I mentioned earlier, they are the most complete team in the Big 12. They are good in all three phases of the game.
The Big 12 Will Send Three Teams to the College Football Playoff
Fiction: Whatever you are smoking, please send some my way. Look, I am as big of a Big 12 guy as anyone out there, but I don’t think this is possible. I saw some scenarios out there, but doesn’t anyone think that the playoff committee, which barely respects an undefeated BYU team, is going to let two more Big 12 teams in with two losses each?
There is a chance the conference could get two teams in. BYU would have to go 12-0 and lose in the Big 12 title game. Why? Because it doesn’t matter what the record of the winner is as long as they win on December 7th. But if you lose in the Big 12 title game then you better have one hell of a resume and the Cougars are the only team left in the conference that has a perfect resume up to this point. But three teams? I have a better chance of winning the lottery.
