The Big 12 is gaining some momentum in the AP Poll rankings. Five Big 12 teams landed in the latest AP Top 25 released Sunday, the conference’s most ranked teams since October 2025. BYU leads the way at No. 10, followed closely by No. 12 Texas Tech and No. 13 Utah.
But the biggest Big 12 story in this week’s poll might be Oklahoma State.
The Cowboys made their season debut in the rankings at No. 19 after beating West Virginia 41-24 on Saturday night in Morgantown. Oklahoma State trailed 21-13 early in the second half before scoring 28 of the game’s final 31 points.
The victory also snapped the Cowboys’ 18-game Big 12 losing streak and improved Oklahoma State to 3-1.
Houston rounds out the Big 12’s ranked teams at No. 20 after the Cougars bounced back from their loss to Texas Tech with a 42-28 road victory over Georgia Southern.
BYU actually dropped one spot from No. 9 to No. 10 despite having a bye week. The Cougars remain the Big 12’s highest-ranked team.
Utah was rewarded for arguably the conference’s most impressive victory of Week 4. The Utes climbed two spots from No. 15 to No. 13 after going into Ames and beating Iowa State 31-17, improving to 4-0.
Texas Tech slipped one spot from No. 11 to No. 12 despite cruising past Sam Houston 49-14.
The Big 12’s five ranked teams trail only the SEC (10) and Big Ten (six), while the ACC has two ranked programs.
After spending much of the early season trying to establish its place nationally, the Big 12 now has five teams inside the Top 20 as conference play begins to heat up.
