It was a mostly disastrous weekend for the Big 12. Coming off the high of Week 7, when three Big 12 teams landed in the Top 10, it all came crashing down with two major losses in Week 8. Let’s dive into some overreactions.
The Big 12 Is Unserious
This may be a harsh overreaction, but when you finally garner some national respect and then go out and wet the bed, this is what you get.
The No. 2 team in the nation, BYU, went on the road to UCF and lost in double overtime. UCF outplayed the Cougars for much of the day. Last week, I mentioned that BYU should be on letdown alert, but I guess the Cougars forgot to read my article.
BYU got bounced, and now its margin for error in the College Football Playoff race has become incredibly small.
Texas Tech went on the road and got absolutely manhandled by Cincinnati. It was never really a game. The Red Raiders were outmatched and outclassed from kickoff until the clock hit 00:00.
Tech was the preseason favorite to win the Big 12, and now, like BYU, the Red Raiders have put themselves in a position where another loss could be devastating to their Big 12 Championship and College Football Playoff hopes.
Some will say the losses by BYU and Texas Tech just show how great the depth in the Big 12 really is this season.
Let’s get real.
No one outside of Big 12 country is thinking that. They see two of the league’s top teams go down to teams like Cincinnati and UCF, and it’s not a good look.
Just one week after we were discussing the possibility of the Big 12 getting two — or potentially even three — teams into the College Football Playoff, those hopes took a massive hit.
Losing to Kansas Gets You Fired
Did Baylor just overreact to a loss to Kansas and fire its head coach?
Dave Aranda is out at Baylor after a 25-24 loss to the Jayhawks on Saturday. If Baylor’s last-second field goal hadn’t been blocked by Kansas and instead went through the uprights for a Bears win, would Aranda still have been relieved of his duties?
Who knows.
However, it isn’t beyond comprehension to think that losing to a Kansas team that was considered one of the worst teams in the Big 12 — including by me in last week’s overreactions — helped seal Aranda’s fate.
Sometimes one loss is simply the final straw.
For Aranda, losing to Kansas may have been it.
More: Six Baylor Coaching Candidates — And the One I Think Gets the Job
Utah Is the Big 12’s Last Hope
Utah is now the Big 12’s last hope to have an undefeated team and potentially a Top 4 team in America by the time the College Football Playoff rolls around.
The Utes picked up a big home win over a Top 20 Houston team and remain alone atop the Big 12 standings.
Behind Utah, you’ve got BYU, Arizona, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State all sitting with one conference loss.
I would say Houston was eliminated from the Big 12 race with its loss to Utah, but who knows this season?
It’s going to be absolute madness down the home stretch in the Big 12 Conference.
Looking Ahead to Week 9
No. 22 Arizona at No. 13 Texas Tech Is an Elimination Game
Arizona has been one of the hottest teams in the Big 12, and the Wildcats face a major test on Saturday in Lubbock.
The Red Raiders are coming off a terrible loss to Cincinnati, while Arizona is coming off another dominant win. The Wildcats crushed Iowa State 39-3 after previously rolling past West Virginia 52-31 and Cincinnati 34-7.
Arizona’s offense has been electric, and if Texas Tech’s defense shows the same cracks it did last week at Cincinnati, the Wildcats could very well pull off the upset.
The Red Raiders will surely be playing with some extra urgency after their first loss, knowing their backs are against the wall.
This is the game of the week in the Big 12.
Can BYU Bounce Back?
BYU hosts Arizona State and shouldn’t have much trouble with the Sun Devils at home.
But at this point, anything is on the table.
Arizona State is coming off a big win over Kansas State and wants to keep that momentum going. BYU can’t feel sorry for itself and needs to get back to work if it wants to stay near the top of the Big 12 race.
The Cougars remain one of the highest-ranked teams in the conference, but another loss would put their Big 12 Championship and College Football Playoff hopes in serious jeopardy.
Can Cincinnati Do It in Back-to-Back Weeks?
Cincinnati is coming off an absolutely dominant performance against a Top 10 Texas Tech team.
Can the Bearcats do it at home in back-to-back weeks?
Cincinnati hosts No. 6 Utah, the last remaining undefeated team in the Big 12.
A win for the Utes would keep them in control of the conference race, while another loss for Cincinnati would put the Bearcats’ already slim Big 12 Championship Game hopes on life support.
This may be one of the sneaky national games of the week that not enough people are talking about.
The Big 12 underwent a massive shakeup in Week 8.
There’s no reason to believe the madness won’t continue into Week 9.
