Week 7 delivered one of the wildest Saturdays of the Big 12 football season, with BYU knocking off No. 2 Notre Dame, Texas Tech making a statement against Arizona State and Houston picking up another ranked win over Oklahoma State. Utah survived a scare at Colorado, Kansas State extended its incredible winning streak over Kansas, and West Virginia finally broke through for its first Big 12 victory. Meanwhile, Baylor and Arizona State turned in performances they would probably rather forget. With the Big 12 Championship and College Football Playoff races beginning to take shape, here is the Good, Bad and Ugly from Week 7 of the Big 12 football season.
The Good
BYU: Beats Notre Dame 28-24
What a night it was for BYU. College GameDay was there, the weather cooperated, the atmosphere was incredible and everything was perfectly set up. Then, the game ended up living up to the hype and then some.
Despite blowing a double-digit lead in the second half, the Cougars, led by Bear Bachmeier, responded late with an epic drive to recapture the lead before the defense came up with a late stop to win the game.
The grit of this football team is undeniable, and the fight they showed was tremendous. BYU finally got its big signature win against a top-five team in the country, and the Cougars did it as 10-point underdogs at home. They felt disrespected, and they showed the world they belong at the big-boy table, not just for themselves, but for the Big 12 as well.
What a game and what a win.
Texas Tech: Beats Arizona State 53-25
For the first time all season, Texas Tech didn’t get off to a slow start. Instead, the Red Raiders put their foot on the gas and looked like the team we all thought they could be.
Their run game was unstoppable as they racked up 260 yards on the ground, led by J’Koby Williams, while Will Hammond managed the game well. Even the defense got a touchdown in this one.
I know Arizona State has its own problems, but it was nice to see the Red Raiders not get in their own way for once.
Utah: Beats Colorado 27-24
On a day when upset after upset happened, I was worried about Utah.
After taking a 13-0 lead, Utah fell asleep for a bit and found itself trailing late in the third quarter. Thankfully for the Utes, they woke up and got going late.
Devon Dampier made some poor throws, and Wayshawn Parker wasn’t able to get into open space much, which hindered the offense. It just felt like this team couldn’t get out of its own way at times and kept Colorado hanging around.
But luckily for Utah, it walked out of Boulder with a win.
Houston: Beats Oklahoma State 35-32
Once again, Conner Weigman proved to the nation why he is one of the most underrated quarterbacks in college football.
Weigman threw five touchdown passes in Houston’s big win over a Top 25 Oklahoma State team. The Cougars had a double-digit lead before things turned into a shootout in the second half.
Yet, when Houston needed to kill the clock late, it was able to do exactly that.
Also, shoutout to the Houston fans for showing up this weekend.
West Virginia: Beats Cincinnati 45-42
It was your typical West Virginia game on the scoreboard. However, the offense did it in a different way this time.
Instead of relying on the running game, Michael Hawkins Jr. had a career day through the air with 464 yards and three touchdowns.
Sure, the defense gave up a ton of yards and points, as usual, but this one ended with a win. Good for Rich Rod and the Mountaineers.
If this team had a defense, it would be an elite team in the Big 12.
Kansas State: Beats Kansas 35-24
When you run for almost 360 yards, you expect to win the game, and that’s what happened.
Despite trying to give the game away early, the Wildcats got their act together and managed to climb out of the hole they dug themselves. Kansas State went on to outscore Kansas 28-7 over the final 45 minutes of the game.
With the win, Kansas State’s winning streak over Kansas is officially an adult now at 18.
TCU: Beats Baylor 17-6
I must admit, I didn’t see Jaden Craig outplaying DJ Lagway, but here we are.
Craig had a nice day, throwing for 294 yards and two scores, while the defense completely shut down Baylor’s offense on the ground.
It was a true rock fight, but that’s exactly what the Horned Frogs wanted. They controlled the game and picked up a nice win over their in-state rival.
The Bad
Colorado: Loses to Utah 27-24
For weeks, I have been all over Colorado’s butt because of its play. Well, that changed on Saturday night because the Buffaloes played some of their best football in weeks against Utah.
The defense looked better, and Isaac Wilson showed flashes at quarterback to get the offense moving.
Unfortunately, a pair of turnovers and 10 penalties did them in. Sure, the result wasn’t what Deion Sanders wanted, but this team finally showed some life.
Oklahoma State: Loses to Houston 35-32
It’s clear that Oklahoma State has problems on defense.
The Cowboys can put points on the board with Drew Mestemaker and Caleb Hawkins, but they also give up a lot of points. Oklahoma State did everything it could offensively to stay in the game, but unfortunately, the defense failed to get key stops and slow down Conner Weigman.
The two turnovers and nine penalties didn’t help, either.
Until the defense gets things under control, Oklahoma State will simply have to outscore everyone to win games, and nothing will come easy.
Cincinnati: Loses to West Virginia 45-42
The one thing you can’t do is blame the offense for this one.
When you put up 42 points and more than 600 yards of offense, you should win the game. But when your defense gives up nearly as much as you gained, there’s a problem.
The Bearcats couldn’t stop West Virginia’s passing attack, and it showed. It’s a shame that when JC French has his best performance, Cincinnati can’t walk out with a win.
Kansas: Loses to Kansas State 35-24
When Kansas went up by double digits, I thought the Jayhawks were going to be just fine.
But the final three quarters of that game were rough, as Kansas was outscored 28-7. Isaiah Marshall wasn’t great, but the real problem was the defense, which gave up 359 yards on the ground.
There is truly nothing about this team that I can hang my hat on because the Jayhawks are inconsistent on both sides of the ball.
And now Kansas has lost 18 in a row to Kansas State.
The Ugly
Arizona State: Loses to Texas Tech 53-25
It was clear Arizona State was outmatched in this one from the start after the pick-six.
The Sun Devils couldn’t stop Texas Tech’s running game, and the offense was lackluster as Cutter Boley eventually got benched for Mikey Keene.
I will say Keene moved the ball some, but I wonder how much of that was due to Texas Tech taking things down a notch because of the score.
This team has to look in the mirror and figure out what it wants to be because right now, Arizona State looks like a broken football team.
Baylor: Loses to TCU 17-6
This was about as ugly as ugly gets for Baylor.
The offense laid a complete egg as DJ Lagway had his worst game in a Baylor uniform. Even with the defense keeping the Bears in the game, the offense failed to do much of anything.
It’s crazy to think TCU didn’t score a single point in the fourth quarter and Baylor still lost by double digits.
Dave Aranda could be in big trouble if Baylor loses to Kansas next weekend.
