It is truly incredible how fast the college football season comes and goes. Usually, we have a pretty good idea of who is positioning themselves for a conference championship. However, there are still possibilities where the team that checks in at seven in the week 12 Big 12 power rankings can play in Arlington, TX on December 2nd. Leave it to the Big 12 to get super weird before Texas and Oklahoma say goodbye.
Week 12 Big 12 Power Rankings
14. Houston
The Dana Holgorsen experience this year has been full of a few highs and lots of lows. The lowest came this past weekend losing to a Bearcat team that had previously lost seven straight games. It likely won’t get any better this week as they take on an Oklahoma State team that should be re-motivated after getting throttled by UCF. Will Holgorsen be the first Big 12 to get a pink slip this season?
13. Cincinnati
They finally did it! There are plenty of reasons why Cincinnati fans should feel down about their 2023 debut season in the Big 12. But after knocking off Houston on the road by a score of 24-14, for at least one week the Bearcat players and fans can enjoy the warm feeling of victory. It still doesn’t change the fact that Scott Satterfield will not be going bowling in year one. But it buries the dreaded winless conference play zombie for good.
12. Baylor
It has got really ugly in Waco. After a 59-29 defeat delivered by the mighty Kansas State Wildcats, Dave Aranda must know his seat is officially very warm. When the Bears were 2-4, Baylor athletic director Mack Rhoades publicly stated that him and Aranda had ‘several conversations,’ around needing to change the offense. The Bears are 1-3 since those remarks by Rhoades. Expect major changes in Waco, possibly including Aranda himself.
11. BYU
After starting 4-1, the Cougars are now 1-5 appears they will miss the bowl season. BYU was run out of its own stadium by Iowa State by a score of 45-13 and now have to host the Oklahoma Sooners before traveling to Stillwater next week to close out the regular season. It is slightly unusual to see a Kalani Sitake seemingly collapse down the stretch of a season. However, much like the other three newcomers to the conference, they are realizing the weekly grind of a power five schedule requires high-quality roster depth to handle the rigors of the season.
10. TCU
TCU came oh so close to truly turning the Big 12 on its head when they made a late-game upset big against the Longhorns. However, Sonny Dykes still finds his team not yet bowl eligible having lost five of their last six games. Winning the last two games against Baylor and Oklahoma is a tough ask for a team that has never found consistent offense all season. The biggest shame is the college football collective weaponizing this season to downgrade the accomplishments of last year’s playoff team.
9. UCF
Boy howdy did the Knights show up against Oklahoma State last week. Even with much of the game being played in a sudo-monsoon, the Knights routed what was the hottest team in the conference. Gus Malzahn has to be saying “FINALLY” as UCF has been close in so many different Big 12 games (see Baylor and Oklahoma games). They have won two straight games now and just need one more victory against either Texas Tech or Houston to go bowling.
8. West Virginia
No team has taken a bigger tumbling in the week 12 Big 12 power rankings than Neal Brown’s Mountaineer team. The tumbling is not just isolated to the most recent 59-20 loss at the hands of the Sooners. After starting out a surprising 4-1 (and coming fairly close to upsetting Penn State in week one), they are just 2-3 since then. Those wins have also come against two of the new Big 12 members. But the remaining schedule (Cincinnati and Baylor) offers two more chances to build on a successful season.
7. Texas Tech
We enter into the part of the week 12 Big 12 power rankings in which all of these teams are mathematically alive to play for a Big 12 conference title. Joey McGuire’s team got a hard-fought victory over Kansas in Lawerence to keep their post-season hopes alive. The Red Raiders have been snake-bitten with the health of the quarterback position since Big 12 play started. So while they will fall short of lofty preseason expectations, they are one more win away from claiming a bowl birth and saving the season.
6. Oklahoma State
The Pokes were bucked off their high horse very violently during the trip to the Bounce House last week. Running back Ollie Gordon II’s Heisman campaign ended with this game unfortunately. But that was not the biggest thing lost. They lost full control of their destiny to play in the Big 12 title game. While winning out against Houston and BYU is very plausible, finishing 10-2 won’t guarantee them a spot. Even though they have the head-to-head tiebreaker with Oklahoma and Kansas State, there is one surprise team that they do not.
5. Kansas
The Jayhawks finally had their good fortunes at the quarterback position run out. Lance Leipold has done a tremendous job getting the most out of Jason Bean as dynamic quarterback Jalon Daniels has been hurt most of this season. However, Bean went down in the second quarter against Texas Tech, and Kansas was forced to turn to true freshman Cole Ballard. He did fill in admirably, and the defense played one of its better games of the season. But they came just short against a surging Red Raider team.
4. Iowa State
Suprise, surprise, it is the Iowa State Cyclones that now actually control their fate. Go 2-0 and they will be playing in Arlington. Sure, having Matt Campbell’s team beat Texas this week and Kansas State next is a tall ask for anyone not named Georgia or Michigan this year. But that is the path. It is remarkable that the Cyclones are in this position given the gambling scandal prior to the season starting. No one could have seen this team in this position after losing to Ohio in week three, but credit to this staff for making it happen.
3. Oklahoma
Just when we thought the wheels were falling off in Norman, they promptly thump the Mountaineers at home. Because they have the tie-breaker over the Longhorns, Brent Venables’ squad is very much alive for a Big 12 title game appearance. BYU and TCU appear that they will provide little resistance on the path to securing a 10-2 season for the Sooners. But after this last week, the Big 12 has proven no team is safe. Given the inconsistencies of this Sooner team (even in victories), they still need to execute at a high level to avoid any traps.
2. Kansas State
The Wildcats actually need more help than the Sooners to have a shot at defending their Big 12 title. The schedule also does not do them any favors with the Sunflower Showdown this week and a visit from Iowa State to close out the regular season. Kansas State has shown the be the more consistent team all season, so that is why they get the nod in the week 12 Big 12 power rankings over the Sooners. It may not ultimately matter because of Oklahoma’s remaining schedule. But a 9-3 record would be the first time the Wildcats had won 9+ regular season games in consecutive seasons since 2011-2012.
1. Texas
Occupying the top spot in the week 12 Big 12 power rankings by the hairs on their chinny, chin, chin are the Texas Longhorns. Would it be any better if Texas was just starting slow in games and winning them late? Possibly. Either way, with another uninspiring win this week against TCU, it is seemingly more and more likely of “when” Texas loses instead of “if.” Losing their starting running back for the rest of the season certainly doesn’t help. Has Texas’ late season struggles finally culminated with the dagger loss in a night game at Ames this week? The Longhorns have lost their last two trips in Ames and that place has a history of night games in November taking down the top of the conference on a given year. Can Steve Sarkisian finish off the old Texas narrative that has haunted this program for the last 15 years?
