Big 12 race could be wide open if Iowa State upset sets couches ablaze in Morgantown

The Big 12 is going to play out how it is going to play out. At the start of the season, this was the one Power Four league where anything and everything was possible. While Kansas State finishing in the basement was as unlikely as Houston winning the league, anything and everything else in between is still on the table in some capacity. So what would happen if West Virginia beat Iowa State at home?

Entering Week 7, Iowa State is one of two undefeated teams in the Big 12, along with BYU. They are one of five teams who have not lost a conference game, joining Colorado, Texas Tech and West Virginia. Five teams have one loss in league play in Arizona, Arizona State, Cincinnati, Kansas State and UCF. A few are still technically alive with two Big 12 losses, and everyone else is totally out of it.

Iowa State will be giving West Virginia three points at Milan Puskar on Saturday afternoon. While a loss does not end their season, knock them out of the AP Top 25 or the College Football Playoff picture, it will, once again, take everything we thought we knew about the Big 12, flip it upside down, spin it like a top until its false head caves in into spectacular fashion. Again, I am not ruling this out.

So what do we actually even know right now about the Big 12? Iowa State is good, but are they great?

West Virginia upsetting Iowa State would spin the Big 12 on its head again

Right now, the only three teams I feel comfortable crossing off in the Big 12 this year when it comes to getting to Arlington are Baylor, Kansas and Oklahoma State. All of whom have three losses. While Baylor was not expected to do much, Kansas and Oklahoma State have been massive disappointments thus far. So what does any of this have to do with Iowa State or West Virginia?

Well, I think a game like this just shows the amount of parity in this league, one that has a power void at the top of it. This is because Oklahoma and Texas leaving for the SEC has made it so. The big question is what program will assert itself throughout the duration to be the biggest beast in the new Big 12. In a weird way, Iowa State has a shot to be that, as does West Virginia catching a few breaks.

Unquestionably, these are two of the programs that benefited considerably because of realignment in the Big 12. Traditional powers like Oklahoma and Texas leave, while newcomers such as Houston are still trying to figure it out. BYU seems to have figured it out, but again, do you really trust the Cougars? For as much as Iowa State should be able to win in Morgantown, that is not a guarantee.

Ultimately, a win over West Virginia gets Iowa State to 6-0 and probably inside the top 10 of the AP Top 25. It gets them one win closer to getting to Arlington. As for West Virginia, a home upset of the Cyclones gets them on the cusp of the AP Top 25. It also gives the Mountaineers a huge edge on their quest of getting to Arlington. Keep in mind that both of their losses were in non-conference play.

Iowa State has been the team to beat in the Big 12 for a week or so, but it all could change vs. WVU.