TCU Maintains Spot in Top Five in Week 7 Big 12 Football Power Rankings

We have reached the halfway point of the season. 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 (3-2, 1-1 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. Now, this week, after defeating Colorado, the Frogs held steady at the No. 5 spot.

Texas Tech unanimously remains at the top spot this week, but the rest of the Top Five had some changes. Iowa State dropped from No. 2 to No. 6, allowing Arizona State and BYU to each move up a spot to Nos. 2 and 3, respectively. Cincinnati, after beating Iowa State, jumped into the top five at No. 4. For the third consecutive week, 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 7

Here are our Week 7 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 7 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 third-straight week. The placement was unanimous.
Cincinnati had the largest week-over-week jump, moving up five spots. Last week, Cincinnati had the same honor, moving up three spots. That's an 8-point jump in the right direction in just two weeks.
Houston and Iowa State had the largest week-over-week drops, each moving down four spots.
Eight teams (50%) had six or more spots between their highest and lowest ranking; Houston and Utah had the most, with a 9-point spread for each.
Other teams with at least six spots between the highest and lowest rankings are Arizona (6), Baylor (6), BYU (7), Iowa State (6), Kansas (7), and Kansas State (6).
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.

TCU quarterback Josh Hoover changes the play during the game with Colorado. | Brian McLean - On Assignment Photo/KillerFrogs.com for TCU On SI

16. Oklahoma State (1-4, 0-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 16
Highest Ranking: #16
Lowest Ranking: #16
Last Week: Lost at Arizona 13-41
This Week: vs. Houston

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

Last Week's Power Ranking: 15
Highest Ranking: #10
Lowest Ranking: #15
Last Week: Lost at BYU 24-38
This Week: Bye Week

14. Colorado (2-4, 0-3)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 14
Highest Ranking: #12
Lowest Ranking: #15
Last Week: Lost at TCU 21-35
This Week: vs. Iowa State

13. UCF (3-2, 0-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 12
Highest Ranking: #12
Lowest Ranking: #15
Last Week: Lost to Kansas 20-27
This Week: at Cincinnati

12. Kansas State (2-4, 1-2)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 13
Highest Ranking: #9
Lowest Ranking: #15
Last Week: Lost at Baylor 34-35
This Week: vs. TCU

11. Houston (4-1, 1-1)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 7
Highest Ranking: #5
Lowest Ranking: #14
Last Week: Lost to Texas Tech 11-35
This Week: at Oklahoma State

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

Last Week's Power Ranking: 11
Highest Ranking: #5
Lowest Ranking: #11
Last Week: Beat Oklahoma State 41-13
This Week: vs. BYU

8 (tie). Baylor (4-2, 2-1)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 8
Highest Ranking: #5
Lowest Ranking: #11
Last Week: Beat Kansas State 35-34
This Week: Bye Week

8 (tie). Kansas (4-2, 2-1)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 10
Highest Ranking: #5
Lowest Ranking: #12
Last Week: Beat UCF 27-20
This Week: at Texas Tech

7. Utah (4-1, 1-1)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 6
Highest Ranking: #2
Lowest Ranking: #11
Last Week: Bye Week
This Week: vs. Arizona State

6. #22 Iowa State (5-1, 2-1)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 2
Highest Ranking: #2
Lowest Ranking: #8
Last Week: Lost at Cincinnati 30-38
This Week: at Colorado

5. TCU (4-1, 1-1)

Oct 4, 2025; Fort Worth, Texas, USA; TCU Horned Frogs tight end Lafayette Kaiuway (12) catches a touchdown against the Colorado Buffaloes during the second half at Amon G. Carter Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images | Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images

Last Week's Power Ranking: 5
Highest Ranking: #3
Lowest Ranking: #7
Last Week: Beat Colorado 35-21
This Week: at Kansas State

4. Cincinnati (4-1, 2-0)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 9
Highest Ranking: #3
Lowest Ranking: #8
Last Week: Beat Iowa State 38-30
This Week: vs. UCF

3. #18 BYU (5-0, 2-0)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 4
Highest Ranking: #2
Lowest Ranking: #9
Last Week: Beat West Virginia 38-24
This Week: at Arizona

2. #21 Arizona State (4-1, 2-0)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 3
Highest Ranking: #2
Lowest Ranking: #7
Last Week: Bye Week
This Week: at Utah

1. #9 Texas Tech (5-0, 2-0)

Last Week's Power Ranking: 1
Highest Ranking: #1
Lowest Ranking: #1
Last Week: Beat Houston 35-11
This Week: vs. Kansas

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

What's Next

TCU plays at Kansas State on Saturday, October 11, at 2:30 pm CT. The game will be played at the Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas, and can be seen on FOX.