Big 12 Power Rankings After Week Seven
Week seven of the college football season is in the books. The Big 12 proved to be the most volatile of the Power Five leagues once again in week seven. Out of five conference games played, the favored teams lost four out of five games. Today, we unveil our third iteration of the Big 12 power rankings. These will be updated as the season progresses.
14. Cincinnati
Cincinnati lost by 20 at home to Iowa State. The Bearcats' deficiencies on offense are keeping them out of games. The loss to to Miami Ohio was a really bad one and while the Bearcats have been competitive in a few league games, they haven't been able to get over the hump.
13. UCF
It was a rough couple of weeks for UCF before the bye week. Two games ago, UCF gave up a 28-point lead to Baylor at home. The Knights looked to bounce back a week later on the road at Kansas. Instead, the Jayhawks dominated from start to finish in a lopsided 51-22 game. The Knights rack up a lot of yards on offense, but they've struggled to capitalize and score a proportionate amount of points. The Knights take on Oklahoma next, so it might be a few weeks before they win a conference game.
12. Baylor
Outside of the second half against UCF, Baylor has looked miserable against FBS competition this season. This week, Baylor was dominated on its home turf by Texas Tech. Now the Bears are 2-4 this season. It's now or never for the Bears if they want to turn around their season. They take on Cincinnati, Iowa State, and
11. Houston
Houston was at the bottom of our power rankings last week. Few things had gone right for Houston this season before the Cougars upset West Virginia in the Dana Holgorsen game. An incredible Hail Mary bailed out a bad defensive effort in the final seconds to get Houston's first win in conference play. Houston will need to figure out some solutions on defense to climb the power rankings.
10. BYU
Credit: BYU Photo
BYU dropped from fifth to tenth in our power rankings after a blowout loss to TCU. This season, BYU has won games by making opportunistic plays and being efficient in the red zone. That didn't happen last weekend and BYU's weaknesses caught up with them. It's not time to hit the panic button yet. If the Cougars bounce back with a win over Texas Tech this weekend, BYU will be in a great position going into the game against Texas. With a loss to Texas Tech, BYU would be in danger of going winless October.
9. Texas Tech
Texas Tech dropped a tough game to Kansas State last weekend. The injury issues at quarterback went from bad to worse when starter Behren Morton left the game with a shoulder injury. Tech still has the athletes on defense and at the skill positions to give BYU troubles this weekend. BYU-Texas Tech will be a swing game for both teams.
8. TCU
TCU looked like a completely different team with quarterback Josh Hoover under center. If the Horned Frogs can sustain the success on offense that they showed against BYU, they can beat any team in the conference.
6. West Virginia
West Virginia was looking like the team of destiny in the Big 12 when they scored a go-ahead touchdown with 20 seconds left against Houston. Houston, however, needed only two plays to respond with a Hail Mary touchdown to steal a win. Even after the loss, the Mountaineers are in the top half of the conference standings.
5. Kansas
Kansas suffered a tough loss on the road at Oklahoma State last weekend. If Jalon Daniels can get healthy and stay healthy, Kansas will have have an opportunity to beat everyone they play.
3. Kansas State
The defending Big 12 champs looked out of sorts at times against Oklahoma State. Still, Kansas State is one of seven teams in the conference with a winning record.
3. Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State has rebounded after hitting a low point in a blowout loss to South Alabama. The Pokes looked like the Oklahoma State of old in a win over Kansas this weekend.
Oklahoma State is 2-1 in conference play.
7. Iowa State
Iowa State has slowly moved up the power rankings. The Cyclones have back to back wins over Oklahoma State and Cincinnati and they are 3-1 in conference play. They have a bye this weekend.
2. Texas
Texas lost an instant classic to Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry before a bye weekend in week seven. Even with the loss, the Longhorns have looked like one of the two best teams in the conference. The Longhorns had the best win in the nonconference with their road win at Alabama.
1. Oklahoma
Oklahoma looked like a College Football Playoff contender against Texas. The Sooners have always been great on offense. This season, the Sooners look equally dominant on the defensive side of the ball. If the defense can sustain that level of performance, the Sooners will be tough to beat.
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