87 Day Until Kansas Football: Way Too Early Predictions - Middle Conference Games
We have gotten halfway through the way too early predictions, even though it is still roughly three months before the season begins. And as we get further into the schedule, the uncertainty grows. So let's dive back in to some wildly irresponsible predictions that absolutely won't be used against me during the season.
Today we have three more conference games to look at, this time middle trio.
A reminder that for these predictions, we will be looking at ESPN's FPI Rankings. For reference, the Kansas Jayhawks rank 97th coming into this season, while they ended last season ranked 114th.
Make sure you catch up on the non-conference game predictions and the first three conference games as well.
at Oklahoma (8)
There is plenty of new things for Oklahoma this season. A new head coach in Brent Venables. A new quarterback in UCF transfer Dillon Gabriel. A brand new look on the defense. About the only thing that isn't new is that there are huge expectations for the Sooners again, as evidenced by their Top-10 ranking in the FPI and their second-best odds to win the Big 12 Championship this season.
But every school has to go through growing pains when they make a change, even the blue bloods. Don't get me wrong, I don't expect this to be a 5-7 team, but it will take some time for this team to gel. Unfortunately for the Jayhawks, they don't get to play the Sooners early in the season when that might still be happening.
Prediction: Oklahoma 45, Kansas 21
at Baylor (19)
It's a brutal stretch for the Jayhawks, as they travel down to Waco right after facing the Sooners. Baylor is coming off a Big 12 Championship, and while they have a new quarterback, it wasn't because they lost anything. Instead, Dave Aranda felt that Blake Shapen was a better option than Gerry Bohanon (who was an All-Big 12 selection last season).
All that is to say that you shouldn't expect Baylor to take a big step backwards, if they lose any ground at all. Short of injury issues, it's tough to see how Kansas pulls this one off.
Prediction: Baylor 49, Kansas 17
vs Oklahoma State (13)
This is another game where the Jayhawks got blasted last season, and I'm not sure that enough has changed to warrant thinking about this one any differently.
If you are looking for Kansas to be surprisingly competitive in one of these three games, this is probably the one to pick. Obviously being at home is a big contributor to that. However, it's probably fair to say that Spencer Sanders has the lowest upside of any of the three QBs, and hopefully the Jayhawks will have developed as a defense to be able to compete with anyone by this point.
All that being said, it's hard to imagine that Kansas pulls this one off.
Prediction: Oklahoma State 35, Kansas 20
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