Winner: Iowa State Cyclones (No. 25 up to No. 14)
Earlier in the season when Iowa State beat Oklahoma on the road, everyone talked about how the Sooners were overrated to lose to such an average Iowa State team. Fast forward to Sunday afternoon’s Week 10 rankings release and you see that the Cyclones are serious contenders.
The Cyclones have won four straight games since a 17-7 loss at home to Texas which dropped them to 2-2 on the year. Now they’re 6-2 with victories over Oklahoma and TCU. That’s two top-10 wins on the season, which is a major reason as to why they jumped so far in the rankings. This team is legit.
Matt Campbell has done an excellent job with the Cyclones as Iowa State had been one of the worst programs in the Big 12 for decades. They have also beaten Texas Tech and Kansas by a combined score of 76-13. The Cyclones are tied atop the Big 12 standings with three other teams, including two that they’ve beaten this season.
You have to give a ton of credit to Campbell, but also guys like Joel Lanning, Kyle Kempt and Allen Lazard, along with that defense. This team keeps rising to the occasion when no one expects them to. Iowa State is your Big 12 leader, folks.