Initial Thoughts of the Big 12 Preseason Poll
Thursday evening, the Big 12 Conference released the 2021 preseason standings voted on by the media and West Virginia was picked to finish 6th.
As to no surprise, the Oklahoma Sooners were picked to win the league once again and were then followed up by Iowa State, Texas, Oklahoma State, and TCU. Those picked below the Mountaineers are Kansas State, Baylor, Texas Tech, and Kansas.
Per usual, I always have a few bones to pick with the preseason standings, so I'll just go ahead and get the obvious out of the way.
Texas IS NOT BACK
How many more years do we have to go through folks thinking this is the year that Texas is back? They are constantly picked to finish high in the Big 12 standings and continue to come nowhere close to their preseason prediction. Sam Ehlinger is gone along with a few other key pieces, yet they're good enough to finish higher than they did with Ehlinger? Yeah, I don't think so. I'm not trying to discredit Steve Sarkisian by any means but this is his first year on the job and things aren't going to just completely change in one offseason. Haven't we learned from Tom Herman?
Is the Iowa State hype real?
Matt Campbell is a terrific coach and has done wonders with the Iowa State program. This is the first time in years where the bar is set high in Ames and it will be interesting to see how they handle having the target on their back. The Cyclones have a ton of returning veterans which makes them one of the most experienced teams in the league but once again, can they handle being the pressure? Until they prove it, I don't buy it. I would probably lean more toward Oklahoma State in that 2nd spot than Iowa State but the Cyclones are fully capable of reaching the Big 12 Championship game.
West Virginia is undervalued
How does a team that returns essentially seven starters from the best defense in Power Five football and also returns its starting quarterback and running back picked to finish 6th? Not to mention, the wide receiving corps finally has some experience to it and the offensive line is expected to be in much better shape. I get the schedule might be a bit challenging but they do get Texas, Oklahoma State, and Iowa State all at home. I don't know if I would have the confidence to put WVU 4th but I do believe they can finish within the top four if Jarret Doege takes the offense to the next level.
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