Just How Far Did The Frogs Fall In Week 8's Big 12 Football Power Rankings?

The second half of the season is here. Welcome back to our weekly Big 12 Football Power Rankings, where our voters rank the 16 teams in the Big 12 to determine that week's rankings. More specifically, as the season progresses, we will be watching the TCU Horned Frogs (4-2, 1-2 Big 12) progress (or regress) each week.

In our inaugural rankings in Week Five, the Frogs debuted at No. 3. In Week Six, after the heartbreaking loss to Arizona State, TCU dropped two spots. After defeating Colorado, the Frogs held steady at the No. 5 spot. Now, this week, after the devastating loss at Kansas State, the Horned Frogs dropped four places to the middle-of-the-pack No. 9 spot.

In fact, dropping four spots was the largest drop of any team in this week's Power Rankings. The most significant movement, though, was Houston, which moved up five spots.

Texas Tech unanimously remains at the top spot this week, with the two schools from Utah securing the next two spots. Cincinnati moved up one spot. Arizona State rounds out the Top Five. Once again, Oklahoma State unanimously remains at No. 16, last place.

How Power Rankings Are Determined

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

24 Total Participants
TCU Horned Frogs On SI editorial staff (12)
Not all are TCU homers; our diverse writing staff is based across the country and covers the ACC, Big Ten, and SEC, in addition to the Big 12.
One to two fans from most of the Big 12 current schools (12)

Each week, each participant provides their rankings 1-16. Those rankings are compiled, and the average rank is then listed below.

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

2025 Big 12 Power Rankings – Week 8

Here are our Week 8 Big 12 Football Power Rankings, as voted on by our group of sports journalists plus fans representing most of the league's 16 teams. What did this week tell us? It told us that, as of right now, Tech is on the path to a berth in the Championship Game, but the race is on between a handful of other teams for the second spot. There's still a lot of football left to play, so who knows what will happen.

Week 8 Power Rankings Highlights

Texas Tech once again holds the top spot in our Big 12 Football Power Rankings.
No other team received first-place votes.
Oklahoma State is at No. 16, or last place, for the fourth-straight week. The placement was unanimous.
Houston had the largest week-over-week jump, moving up five spots. Utah was next, moving up four places.
TCU experienced the most significant week-over-week drop, falling four spots.
Six teams had six or more spots between their highest and lowest ranking; Kansas had the most, with a 9-point spread.
Other teams with at least six spots between the highest and lowest rankings are Arizona (8), Baylor (6), Houston (6), Kansas State (8), and TCU (7).
Texas Tech and Oklahoma State had no fluctuation between their highest and lowest rankings, as each was unanimously selected for the first and last spots, respectively.

Oct 11, 2025; Manhattan, Kansas, USA; TCU Horned Frogs quarterback Josh Hoover (10) passes the ball during the second quarter against the Kansas State Wildcats at Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Sewell-Imagn Images | Scott Sewell-Imagn Images

16. Oklahoma State (1-5, 0-3)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 16
Highest Ranking: #16
Lowest Ranking: #16
Last Week: Lost to Houston 17-39
This Week: vs. Cincinnati

15. West Virginia (2-4, 0-3)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 15
Highest Ranking: #14
Lowest Ranking: #15
Last Week: Bye Week
This Week: at UCF

14. UCF (3-3, 0-3)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 13
Highest Ranking: #12
Lowest Ranking: #15
Last Week: Lost at Cincinnati 11-20
This Week: vs. West Virginia

13. Colorado (3-4, 1-3)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 14
Highest Ranking: #10
Lowest Ranking: #14
Last Week: Beat Iowa State 24-17
This Week: Bye Week

12. Kansas State (3-4, 2-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 12
Highest Ranking: #7
Lowest Ranking: #15
Last Week: Beat TCU 41-28
This Week: Bye Week

11. Kansas (4-3, 2-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 8 (tie)
Highest Ranking: #5
Lowest Ranking: #14
Last Week: Lost at Texas Tech 17-42
This Week: Bye Week

10. Arizona (4-2, 1-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 10
Highest Ranking: #5
Lowest Ranking: #13
Last Week: Lost to BYU 27-33
This Week: at Houston

9. TCU (4-2, 1-2)

Oct 11, 2025; Manhattan, Kansas, USA; TCU Horned Frogs quarterback Josh Hoover (10) takes a handoff to running back Jeremy Payne (26) during the fourth quarter at Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Sewell-Imagn Images | Scott Sewell-Imagn Images

Last Week's Power Ranking: 5
Highest Ranking: #5
Lowest Ranking: #12
Last Week: Lost to Kansas State 28-41
This Week: vs. Baylor

8. Iowa State (5-2, 2-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 6
Highest Ranking: #6
Lowest Ranking: #11
Last Week: Lost at Colorado 17-24
This Week: Bye Week

7. Baylor (4-2, 2-1)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 8 (tie)
Highest Ranking: #6
Lowest Ranking: #12
Last Week: Bye Week
This Week: at TCU

6. Houston (5-1, 2-1)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 11
Highest Ranking: #5
Lowest Ranking: #11
Last Week: Beat Oklahoma State 39017
This Week: vs. Arizona

5. Arizona State (4-2, 2-1)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 2
Highest Ranking: #4
Lowest Ranking: #9
Last Week: Lost at Utah 10-42
This Week: vs. Texas Tech

4. #24 Cincinnati (5-1, 3-0)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 4
Highest Ranking: #3
Lowest Ranking: #5
Last Week: Beat UCF 20-11
This Week: at Oklahoma State

3. #23 Utah (5-1, 2-1)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 7
Highest Ranking: #2
Lowest Ranking: #4
Last Week: Beat Arizona State 42-10
This Week: at BYU

2. #15 BYU (6-0, 3-0)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 3
Highest Ranking: #2
Lowest Ranking: #3
Last Week: Beat Arizona 33-27
This Week: vs. Utah

1. #7 Texas Tech (6-0, 3-0)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 1
Highest Ranking: #1
Lowest Ranking: #1
Last Week: Beat Kansas 42-17
This Week: at Arizona State

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

What's Next

TCU hosts Baylor in the annual Bluebonnet Battle on Saturday, October 18, at 11 am CT. The game will be played at Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas, and can be seen on ESPN2.