Big 12 Football Power Rankings: Week 2

Last week, all 14 teams in the Big 12 played their first games of the 2023 season, all nonconference matchups. The league went 10-4, with losses coming from Baylor, TCU, Texas Tech, and West Virginia.

For a complete recap of the Week 1 games, click here.

Those first games created some shifting in this week’s Big 12 Football Power Rankings, with last year’s champion moving into the top spot. There is a big gap between the top three teams and the rest of the teams. After losing at home to Texas State, Baylor took the biggest fall, landing at No. 13. The shifting of teams has created two groups of gridlock – one between the Nos. 5-7 teams and an even tighter group between the Nos. 9-12 teams.

All teams are in action this week, with many facing nonconference Power 5 opponents. We should see some more shifting after these games. Conference games begin in Week 3, so we will see clearer paths of where the teams are headed this season.

How Power Rankings Are Determined

Once again, we have brought together a group from across the league to vote each week during the season on the Big 12 Power Rankings.

44 Total Participants
TCU FanNation (KillerFrogs) Editorial Staff (13)
Not all are TCU homers – fans of teams in the SEC and Big Ten are part of our editorial staff.
One to two fans from each of the other current schools in the Big 12 (23)
Currently, we don’t have any fans from Cincinnati. We certainly would like to find 1-2 Bearcats.
Two fans from each of the 2024 incoming “Four Corners” schools (8)
Each week, each participant provides their rankings 1-10. Those rankings are compiled, and the average rank is then listed below.

Here's where our panel of voters ranked the teams this week:

Big 12 Power Rankings – Week 2

14. West Virginia (0-1, 0-0)

(Last week #14)

Lost at #7 Penn State 38-15

The Mountaineers weren’t expected to win at Happy Valley. They get an FCS Duquesne this week.

13. Baylor (0-1, 0-0

(Last week #6)

Lost to Texas State 42-31

Ouch. We’ve said before that there’s nothing better in college sports than Baylor Tears. But this one hurt to watch. Are we in for a rough season, or was that game a one-off? Time will tell.

12. BYU (1-0, 0-0)

(Last week #10)

Beat Sam Houston State 14-0

Sure, they won. But Sam Houston State was playing in their first-ever game as an FBS team, and BYU only scored twice. BYU still has a lot to show us.

11. Iowa State (1-0, 0-0)

(Last week #11)

Beat Northern Iowa 30-9

Yes, they solidly beat a team they should have won. This week’s CyHawk game will be interesting to see how both teams adjust after the gambling scandal wrecked both state schools in Iowa.

10. Texas Tech (0-1, 0-0)

(Last week #5)

Lost at Wyoming 35-33 2OT

Sure, Wyoming has been a scrappy team in recent years, and it was a double-overtime loss, so the Red Raiders didn’t look that bad. But now they host No. 13 Oregon. Let’s hope they shake it off, or Tech could be looking at a 0-2 start.

9. Houston (1-0, 0-1)

(Last week #12)

Beat UTSA 17-13

The Coogs were a 1.5-point underdog going into the game and came away with the win. It was enough to bump them up three spots.

8. Cincinnati (1-0, 0-0)

(Last week #13)

Beat Eastern Kentucky 66-10

Another team beating a team they should have won. But did they possibly show us something that they could be better this year than initially anticipated? Possibly.

7. Oklahoma State (1-0, 0-0)

(Last week #7)

Beat Central Arkansas 27-13

The Pokes got an okay win over an FCS opponent. Not enough to move them up or down this week. They travel west for a late game against a soon-to-be conference foe, Arizona State.

6. Kansas (1-0, 0-0)

(Last week #9)

Beat Missouri State 48-17

Lance Leipold looks to get his team off to another hot start. Let’s see if they can keep it up when they host Illinois on Friday.

5. TCU (0-1, 0-0)

(Last week #3)

Lost to Colorado 45-42

Coach Prime and his Hype Show rolled into The Fort and got the win. Is Colorado this year’s Cinderella team? Perhaps. Do the Frogs have work to do? Most definitely. Buckle up. This year won’t be like last year for TCU.

4. UCF (1-0, 0-0)

(Last week #8)

Beat Kent State 56-6

The Knights got a solid win. It was enough to move them up four spots, though there’s a big gap in our poll between them and the top three teams.

3. #11 Texas (1-0, 0-0)

(Last week #1)

Beat Rice37-10

Did Texas struggle in the first half against the Owls? Perhaps. Or did they play a very vanilla game not to give anything away to Nick Saban before they travel to Tuscaloosa this week? Perhaps. Whatever it was, it was enough to move them down. Get the win over Bama, and they most certainly will be back on top.

2. #18 Oklahoma (1-0, 0-0)

(Last week #4)

Beat Arkansas State 73-0

It was the biggest shutout to start a season since 1915 for the Sooners. Even though it was a win over a G5 team, OU showed signs of improvement. The Sooners look to contend and not exit the conference quietly.

1. #15 Kansas State (1-0, 0-0)

(Last week #2)

Beat SE Missouri State 45-0

It was a dominating win for last year’s Big 12 champions. The Cats should have a great September and possibly hold this top spot to begin conference play, perhaps longer.

Other FanNation Power Rankings

How do other FanNations rank the Big 12? Check them out here:

Kansas – Blue Wings Rising

West Virginia – Mountaineers Now

Other Big 12 FanNation sites have not yet published a Power Rankings article. We will monitor their sites all season to see if others add them in later weeks.

Note: Power Rankings are determined by a group of fans representing most schools in the Big 12 Conference.

Want to join the discussion? Click here to become a member of the Killer Frogs message board community today!

Follow KillerFrogs on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest TCU news! Follow KillerFrogs on Facebook and Instagram as well. Download the KillerFrogs app on Google Play or in the Apple App Store.