Conference play is underway in Big 12 country as all 14 teams took the field this past weekend. Even though it is early in the year, I thought it would be fun to start things off with a little power ranking each week.
Keep in mind, things can change quickly in the Big 12 from week to week, but here is my power ranking after the opening weekend in conference action.
#1 UCF Knights
The Knights once again take the top spot on the list after yet another great weekend on the diamond. UCF swept a talented Arizona team on the road, and two of their three wins came by 6 or more runs. This team now has series wins over Oklahoma State, TCU, and Arizona and leads the Big 12 with an impressive 8-1 record.
#2 West Virginia Mountaineers
Despite losing their series opener against Arizona State, the Mountaineers were able to secure back-to-back wins to take the series. With the win, West Virginia is now 7-2 in Big 12 play and has the best overall record in the conference as well.
#3 Kansas Jayhawks
After getting shut out in game one against Cincinnati, the Jayhawks quickly turned things around over the next two games. Kansas outscored Cincy 21 to 8 in the final 18 innings of the series and moved into third place with a 6-3 record in Big 12 play.
#4 Arizona State Sun Devils
I didn’t want to bump Arizona State down too much, but I did have to put them down at least one spot here in the rankings. After a promising start to their series against West Virginia, the Sun Devils ended up dropping the last two games.
#5 TCU Horned Frogs
Out of all the Big 12 teams, nobody impressed me more than TCU did last weekend when they completed a clean sweep over a red-hot Texas Tech team. They were simply able to outscore them despite giving up a ton of runs. It truly was a fireworks show in Fort Worth last weekend.
#6 Utah Utes
While TCU may have the best win, Utah may have the most surprising win out of anyone in the conference. The Utes went to the little apple and were able to take a series from a respectable Kansas State team. Once again, I came away impressed with their offense, which was able to put up a whopping 29 runs in two wins.
#7 Texas Tech Red Raiders
I knew the offense would show up in Fort Worth, but I wasn’t sure how the pitching would hold up. Turns out, it didn’t, as TCU beat Texas Tech at their own game by scoring a ton of runs, as they got swept.
#8 Kansas State Wildcats
Just when I thought things were going in the right direction for Kansas State, they go out and lose to Utah. What surprised me the most was how many runs they gave up in those final two games they lost.
#9 Cincinnati Bearcats
The series against Kansas went well in game one, but then things quickly turned around as Cincinnati’s pitching couldn’t hold up in the final two games. In fact, they gave up 21 runs in those last two games.
#10 Baylor Bears
While I am still bullish about Baylor, they were able to sweep Houston. Then again, I am expecting a lot of other teams to do the same when they play Houston.
#11 BYU Cougars
I was down on BYU after getting swept by West Virginia, but they responded nicely by securing a series win over Oklahoma State. It’s clear to me that they are a much better team at home than they are on the road.
#12 Oklahoma State Cowboys
Just when I started to buy into this team, they let me down. The Cowboys went to Provo and dropped a series to a BYU team that in my opinion, they were better than. At some point, this team is going to have to wake up.
#13 Arizona Wildcats
Speaking of waking up, when will this team wake up? I keep waiting for them to turn a corner, and it hasn’t happened yet. And now, after being swept by UCF, this team is in serious jeopardy of making the tournament.
#14 Houston Cougars
Not really much to say here. Houston fell to 1-8 in Big 12 play after being swept by a subpar Baylor team at home. Yikes.
