Big 12 power rankings: Should Iowa State be afraid of resurgent Oklahoma (or the other way around)?

The Big 12 could see a change at the top with Oklahoma off and Iowa State taking home a big win.

Iowa State faced another test on a short week when they faced Texas the day after Thanksgiving. It was a close, defensive-minded matchup that went their way. Meanwhile, Oklahoma’s game against West Virginia was postponed due to COVID complications. It was the last real test for Oklahoma before a possible bid in the Big 12 Championship Game.

Every other game went on as scheduled. There were some surprises, as Kansas State continues to fall apart with a loss to previously one-win Baylor. Kansas is still awful. Oklahoma State has more questions than answers at this point in the season. The Big 12 is so intriguing right now as the season comes down to the wire. With the WVU-Oklahoma game happening on Dec. 12, this will push the Championship Game to Dec. 19. It won’t put much time between the end of the season and bowl games for whoever makes them.

Some teams have one more game left in the season, but nothing is even remotely determined. If WVU wins its last two games, and Oklahoma State loses one of its last two, then that leaves four teams with three losses and tie breakers coming into play. It would get complicated, which seems to be the only way the Big 12 can do things. Get ready for the chaos.

Big 12 power rankings entering Week 14

Kansas is terrible. They at least scored some points against TCU, but they allowed 50+ points for the fourth-straight game. Kansas had some hope when Les Miles brought a championship pedigree to Lawrence. It has been just a lot of bad play from the start, and there’s no hope in sight.

Baylor got a big win this week against Kansas State, but they are still just ahead of the basement in the Big 12 power rankings. The Bears finally got a star performance from quarterback Charlie Brewer, who was the only hope to get some rub after Matt Rhule left for the NFL. He threw for 349 yards, passed for two touchdowns, and added two touchdowns on the ground. Brewer got the ball with 2:32 left in the game and led a field goal drive to win the game. Dave Aranda clearly has some growing pains to work through, but a win like this is huge to build confidence for the future.

Kansas State has fallen so far this season that the win against Oklahoma seems like a dream at this point. They lost again, this time to one of the worst teams in the Big 12. They can’t be ranked ahead of two teams that came out with wins this week as they look like five-straight losses to end the season could be a guarantee. The Wildcats were basically winning the entire game, but it doesn’t matter who’s winning for 59:59. It only matters who wins in the end. It’s a season to forget that started with so much promise.

Texas Tech may have lost the game against Oklahoma State, but they get points for trying. The Cowboys needed a lot of fluke plays to score its 50 points, which included a kick return and interception for a touchdown. Now, the Red Raiders allowed those, so they aren’t off the hook for it, but it shows the Cowboys needed every kind of score to come out with the win. The Red Raiders are getting the most out of their talent. Matt Wells just has to recruit better to put a better team out there starting next season.

TCU evens its record with an easy win against Kansas. The Horned Frogs started the season terribly, but give them credit for bouncing back with wins in three out of four games. They head to Oklahoma State next week where they can finish the season over .500 and ruin the season for the Cowboys. It will come down to defense, which was always going to be the unit that carried TCU.

West Virginia was licking its chops to welcome the Sooners to Milan Puskar Stadium. They’ve been great at home, and this was their chance to beat Oklahoma for the first time since joining the Big 12. COVID had other plans, and now that game will be played two weeks from Saturday.

The entire tenure of Tom Herman felt like it was on the line against Iowa State, and Texas came up short. They allowed a touchdown to Breece Hall, the nation’s leading rusher, with less than 90 seconds left in the game. The worst part about it? Texas tried a 58-yard field as time expired that sailed just wide. Right before it, Sam Ehlinger took a sack. Who knows what happens if that’s a 54-yard field goal, but it’s an issue where Texas continues to come up small when they need to come up big.

It’s really a three-team race for the Big 12. Some wacky things need to happen for either Oklahoma or Oklahoma State to not be the team that faces Iowa State on December 19th. OSU did not look great against Texas Tech, but they had a lot of big plays on all units including special teams. Chuba Hubbard’s injury is a huge storyline going into the last two games of the season. Dezmond Jackson did run for 235 yards and three touchdowns, so he wasn’t missed against Texas Tech. They still need Oklahoma to fall to make it into the Big 12 Championship Game. They will be WVU fans in two weeks.

Oklahoma falls out of the top spot after their game against the Mountaineers was postponed. The Sooners had a chance to almost guarantee a spot in the Big 12 Championship Game with a hapless Baylor team coming up next week. Now, it should all come down to the added WVU game on Dec. 12. Iowa State holds the head-to-head tiebreaker, and since Oklahoma didn’t have a chance to outdo the Cyclones this week, they fall one spot.

Remember when Iowa State lost its first game of the season to Louisiana? Iowa State is now in a very good position with only one Big 12 loss and WVU next week. The Mountaineers are great at home, but they are atrocious on the road so it should be a win for the Cyclones. Breece Hall has been the best running back in the country, and he scored with less than two minutes left to beat Texas. He’s been key for the comeback of Iowa State and Brock Purdy is still feared under center. It’s going to be a very good rematch if Oklahoma makes it to the Big 12 Championship Game. Whoever makes it, someone is looking to bounce back from a loss.

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