Killer Frogs

Kansas Surges to No. 1 in This Week's Big 12 Baseball Momentum Rankings

These weekly rankings reset every weekend, and Week 2 delivered one of the season's first major shake-ups.
Ryann Zeller|
Brian McLean, On Assignment Photo/KillerFrogs

Welcome to the Week 2 edition of the KillerFrogs.com Momentum Rankings for Big 12 Baseball. These rankings measure which Big 12 teams are playing the best right now. Series results, run differential, clean defense, and run prevention drive movement in this weekly momentum model with emphasis placed on recent execution rather than cumulative record.

The Road to Omaha is long, and a ton of teams are very thankful for that because last week's rankings flipped completely upside down! Kansas surged, Texas Tech climbed, and early leaders recalibrated.

Series wins matter. Ranked wins matter more. Road performance, run differential, and clean defense all factor into the week's order.

Surprise of the Week

The biggest surprise this week is that the rankings pretty much flipped except for Arizona. They continue to bring up the rear.

Tier 1 - Fast Lane

1. Kansas (12pts) - Last Week: No. 8

(5-2) W3: Last week, the Jayhawks had a solid outing, coming in at a respectable No. 8 in last week's rankings. This week, they catapulted to the top by sweeping McNeese. They didn't trail once this past weekend. They didn't get out of the weekend error-free, but it didn't seem to affect the outcome. Things might have been different against a ranked opponent. They travel for a 4-game road trip to play the Minnesota Golden Gophers next weekend for their home opener. Week 3 will offer a stronger test.

2. Texas Tech (11.5 pts) - Last Week: No. 11 - BIGGEST MOVER

(5-3) W5: Up 9 spots from last week. Texas Tech had a rough start, getting swept right out of the gate. They appear to have righted the ship, at least for the moment. The Raiders swept Albany in four games, racking up 49 runs on the weekend with 2 errors. The Raiders remain at home in Lubbock through mid-March, which should help them stay in the Top Tier.

3. Arizona State (10 pts) - Last Week: No. 6T

(7-0) W7: As the old saying goes, slow and steady wins the race. These Sun Devils are steadily climbing the ladder to the top. They also played four games against St. John's over the weekend, winning all of them and scoring 27 runs in game 4. Now they haven't been road-tested or played a ranked opponent, so let's see how they fare after facing the now-No. 13 Oklahoma Sooners in Norman next.

Tier 2 - In the Mix

T-4. Oklahoma State (4 pts) - Last Week: No. 13

(4-3) W3 - The Cowboys are trending in the right direction. They had a rough start, similar to Texas Tech's, as both teams were at the Shriners College Showdown at Globe Life Park in Arlington, which featured several nationally ranked teams. Now, this weekend, they finally get to play at home against Gardner-Webb. A strong showing at home could keep them in the upper tier.

T-4 #24 West Virginia (4 pts) - Last Week No. 5

(5-1) L1: West Virginia bumps up a spot in the NCAA baseball rankings to No. 24 this week and remains tied in the KillerFrogs.com Momentum Rankings. They are back on the road again, playing Kennesaw State in Georgia. While not putting up a lot on offense, they have been disciplined on defense. If they want to contend in the Big 12, they'll need their bats to heat up. They have a few weeks to work that out.

6. Kansas State (3.5 pts) - Last Week: 6 - SLEEPER WATCH

(6-1) W2: Last week at No. 6 and again at No. 6. That's classic K-State. Just watch, they'll surprise us all and be vying for the Big 12 title, as they do in football. They always fly under the radar, which isn't a bad thing. They dropped their first game against No. 9 Auburn and won the next two against Nebraska and Michigan. And in our model, a loss to a ranked team carries less penalty than a loss to an unranked opponent. They stay on the road and head to play the Ragin' Cajuns Tuesday and Wednesday, and finally get their home-opener against Columbia this weekend. The Wildcats survived a tough outing in Allington, Texas, but as long as they keep their heads on straight, they, too, will enter Big 12 play in mid-March at the top, neck and neck with several other Big 12 teams.

7. Utah (3 pts) - Last Week: 10

(4-2) W2: Utah has been camped out in sunny California since the start of the season. Not a bad gig. They would likely have swept had they not beaten themselves in Game 1 against San Diego. They play another series in California this weekend against UC Santa Barbara.

Tier 3 - Recalibrate Territory

8. BYU (-4 pts) - Last Week: No. 12

(4-3) W2: BYU finished 1-1 (one game was cancelled) after playing in the Tony Gwynn Legacy Tournament. The Cougars were blanked in game 1 (0-3), but their offense came alive in game 2, winning 9-7. They are about to play five road games in six days. No rest for the weary. However, they too, are taking up residence in sunny California. It could be worse.

9. Cincinnati (-11.5 pts) - Last Week: No. 9

(5-3) W2 Cincinnati split their four-game series against UAB, winning games 3 and 4. Each team scored 31 runs on the weekend. It was an even matchup overall, but UAB hit 11 home runs over the weekend. Fix that, and it's a completely different weekend.

Tier 4 - Construction Zone

10. Houston (-12.5 pts) - Last Week: No. 1

(5-2) L2: No. 1 down to No. 12 - what happened? Houston lost their opening home series. UT Rio Grande Valley (3-4, W2) is no slouch. Their schedule is front-loaded, with games against Big 12 schools. Houston allowed eight unanswered runs in Game 2, as UTRGV came back to win 10-6. UTRGV has now taken three of the last five games against Houston. On the bright side, it's just two losses. A bounce-back week should stabilize things.

11. UCF (-14.5 pts) - Last Week: No. 3(T)

(4-3) L2 UCF went 1-2 in a three-game tournament, beating Notre Dame in 10 innings and losing to Indiana and No. 2 LSU (0-11). Another team lower in these rankings can tell a similar story. Two of the three losses are to No. 2 LSU and No. 17 Miami, so maybe it's not as bad as it looks.

12. Baylor (-16 pts) - Last Week: No. 3(T)

(4-3) L3 It was a rough weekend for the Bears, getting swept. At least they played power-five teams and two of the three currently ranked: Oregon State (No. 19) and Southern Mississippi (No. 12). Their schedule is not getting any easier, as they have No. 25 Ole Miss and No. 3 Texas this week.

13. No 18 TCU (-20.5) - Last Week: No. 2 - BIGGEST DROP

(3-5) L1 does not reflect midweek games: TCU was run-ruled in Game 3 of week 1 against then-unranked OU. Things didn't improve against No. 1 UCLA. The talent remains. The depth is there. The Frogs just need to get back home and experience a little Lupton Magic to get back on track. They will get that opportunity this weekend against New Haven.

14. Arizona (-26 pts) - Last Week: 14

(1-7) L1: The Wildcats dropped from -10.5 points in Week 1 to -26 points in Week 2. The Wildcats play Oregon, Vanderbilt, and UC Irvine this weekend in the Las Vegas Classic.

Road to Omaha

Week 2 didn't just reshuffle the top; it rewired the conference. Kansas surged into the No.1 spot, Texas Tech climbed into contention, and early favorite Houston slid to the back of the pack. Meanwhile, TCU finds itself recalibrating after a rough stretch that sent the Horned Frogs tumbling down the order. Two weeks in, the Big 12 already looks deeper and more volatile than expected.

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Ryann Zeller
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