Nothing says college football quite like a farm-based rivalry between two rural, Midwestern colleges played in Dublin, Ireland, to kick off the season. In a clash between two top-25 teams, No. 22 Iowa State outlasted No. 17 Kansas State in the game dubbed Farmageddon to pull off the rivalry win and officially start the 2025 campaign.
With the win, Rocco Becht and the Cyclones not only made a big opening statement in front of a national audience but also put the Big 12 on alert that they’re destined to avenge their blowout loss to Arizona State in the conference title game last season. Now that Week 0 is officially underway, let’s take a look at the Big 12 power rankings after the first conference game of the season.
Iowa State trending up in Big 12 power rankings after big Farmageddon win over Kansas State
TEAM | LAST YEAR'S RECORD |
|---|---|
1. No. 11 Arizona State Sun Devils | 11-3 (7-2) |
2. No. 22 Iowa State Cyclones | 11-3 (7-2) |
3. No. 23 Texas Tech Red Raiders | 8-5 (6-3) |
4. Baylor Bears | 8-5 (6-3) |
5. No. 17 Kansas State Wildcats | 9-4 (5-4) |
6. BYU Cougars | 11-2 (7-2) |
7. Utah Utes | 5-7 (2-7) |
8. TCU Horned Frogs | 9-4 (6-3) |
9. Arizona Wildcats | 4-8 (2-7) |
10. Colorado Buffaloes | 9-4 (7-2) |
11. West Virginia Mountaineers | 6-7 (5-4) |
12. UCF Knights | 4-8 (2-7) |
13. Houston Cougars | 4-8 (3-6) |
14. Oklahoma State Cowboys | 3-9 (0-9) |
15. Kansas Jayhawks | 5-7 (4-5) |
16. Cincinnati Bearcats | 5-7 (3-6) |
Though Iowa State isn’t my favorite to win the Big 12, they made a statement with their win over Kansas State on Saturday afternoon in Ireland. It was sloppy, but a Week 0 win, in the conference no less, still counts. They’re up to No. 2 in the power rankings ahead of Week 1. In my opinion, they're a top team, but not quite that team to beat in the conference.
It may be early in the season, but the Cyclones certainly looked like a team ready to avenge an embarrassing loss to end last season. It feels like the Big 12 is always up for grabs. Saturday showed us that Iowa State is still very much in the conversation.
Is Kansas State fraudulent, or should we still take them seriously as a Big 12 contender?
I think Kansas State is still a solid team. I think Avery Johnson is still a question mark for now, but the Wildcats are a legit team in the Big 12. They could be in the mix for a conference championship appearance, though again anything can happen in this league. This feels like a year in which there might be a repeat conference champion. Maybe Texas Tech or Baylor could crash the party, but Arizona State is the team to beat.
Kansas State last won a conference championship in 2022, but there’s been five different Big 12 conference winners since 2020. Oklahoma was the last repeat champion when they ran the conference from 2015-2020. The good thing is the Big 12 should have some exciting games this year.
The bad news is if this season is anything like last season, it means the Big 12 will probably be a one-bid league in the College Football Playoff. Nothing wrong with that, but it means getting into the CFP gets a little bit tougher.
What Iowa State’s win over Kansas State means for Big 12 conference, CFP journey
Iowa State’s win over Kansas State means the Cyclones are destined for another strong start to the season. Iowa State opened the 2024 campaign 7-0 before back-to-back losses pretty much killed their CFP hopes. Sure, they had the Big 12 title game, but they lost all their momentum. This game perfectly encapsulates what the Big 12 will be: chaotic.
But it will be so hard not to watch. And as exciting as Famageddon was, it’s just the beginning of the chaos that will ensue in the Big 12. With that chaos, though, it will be harder for the Big 12 to get multiple teams in the playoff. I’m not saying it’s impossible, but things could be trending toward what happened last year.
Assuming Arizona State takes some tough losses, that is. If Arizona State remains ranked highly throughout the season, then the league could get multiple teams in like the ACC did last year. Either way, this game is proof there’s not one runaway team in the conference and it’s a great way to kick off another riveting season.