The Big 12 gave us an exciting week of football this past weekend with some disappointments but some huge victories as well. Let’s get a few overreactions in before we look ahead to Week 3 of the season.
Oklahoma State is a National Title Contender
Oklahoma State going from the worst team in the Big 12 to a national title contender may be the craziest overreaction we will ever see. Yes, the Cowboys looked horrible in Week 1, but most reasonable people understood that was not going to be how Oklahoma State looked all season. The high-flying offense Eric Morris and company had at North Texas was bound to come together, but many folks didn’t think they had a chance to beat Oregon.
Then look what happened: Oklahoma State stunned the No. 6 Ducks, a national title contender, in the Cowboys first home game of the season. The 39-31 win was a stunner, but the final score was a lot closer than the game actually looked. Oklahoma State dominated this game from start to finish. Oklahoma State is firmly out of the cellar of the Big 12 power rankings, and now they can set their eyes on loftier goals like winning the Big 12 and putting themselves in position to make a College Football Playoff run.
Kansas State Has the Best Defense in the Big 12
Last week, the overreaction was Kansas State having the best offense in the Big 12. However, it was noted that it could possibly be true and maybe not an overreaction at all. This past weekend the Wildcats put up 34 points on a generally very stout Washington State defense. Maybe even more impressive, the Wildcats held the Cougars to seven points on offense. Through two games, Kansas State has allowed 10 total points.
Is this Kansas State defense legit or is it the opponents they have played early in the season? Time will tell, but early results show that Kansas State could have the best offense and defense in the Big 12. If your team has the best offense and defense in the league, that should put the Wildcats in a good position to be a conference title contender this season.
Iowa State is Better Than People Think
This doesn’t seem like an odd overreaction, especially after the Cyclones nearly beat the Hawkeyes in the Cy-Hawk rivalry game last weekend. However, as I noted last week, you throw out the records and expectations when it comes to a rivalry game. Yes, Iowa State lost on a last-second field goal to a Top 25 Iowa team, but it felt like that was something that could have always happened, no matter how good or bad this team is perceived to be.
The Cyclones should bowl over Bowling Green, a team that is 0-2 with a loss to Tarleton State and a blowout loss this past weekend at Nebraska. Wins in the Big 12 will be hard to come by for Iowa State, so I’m not buying this overreaction that the Cyclones are better than what many people anticipated.
Now let’s take a look ahead to a few of the top stories going into Week 3.
No. 22 Houston at No. 13 Texas Tech
This could be a new rivalry game in the making, especially if both of these teams are perennial Top 25 teams year in and year out in the Big 12. This season, it is a huge early-season matchup with major conference implications on the line. We will get a great idea of where both of these stands after this game wraps up late Friday night ahead of the Saturday slate of conference games.
Arizona State vs Kansas in London
Another conference clash. This one is overseas and the first college football game ever played at Wembley Stadium in London, England! Arizona State and Kansas both lost to SEC opponents last weekend. The Sun Devils lost at Texas A&M and Kansas lost their rivalry game at home to Missouri.
This is a chance for both teams to get back on track. Only one of these teams will be able to start Big 12 play 1-0. This should be a pretty entertaining matchup as well, and I could see this being a high-scoring affair. This game kicks off at 11:00 AM on FS1.
West Virginia at No. 25 Virginia
The Duke’s Mayo Classic is going to be an interesting matchup this year. Both teams are 2-0 heading into the game, and Virginia has looked dominant in both of their matchups. The Mountaineers looked dominant in the first half of their first game against Coastal, but let them back into the game late. They did dominate UT Martin last weekend as a tune-up for this upcoming clash.
Virginia was a 10.5-point favorite when the books opened but is now just 8.5 point favorites halfway through the week. If West Virginia can pull off the upset on the road in a rivalry game, look for West Virginia to jump into the Top 25 next week.
We have another good week of Big 12 football games ahead to enjoy. It all starts Friday night with Houston at Texas Tech and ultimately will wrap up with Northern Illinois taking on Arizona for some Big 12 after dark.
