The Big 12’s preseason poll saw Utah and Kansas State take the top spots, and now six weeks into the season, neither hold the top two positions in the conference.
BYU and Iowa State stand as the only undefeated Big 12 teams, both at 2-0 in-conference and 5-0 overall. They are second and third respectively in the conference, behind 5-1 Texas Tech, who has one additional Big 12 win. Colorado and West Virginia stand at the top of the standings as well, at 2-0 in-conference.
The preseason top dogs do remain ranked in the AP Top 25 poll, though the conference’s leaders sit above them. Iowa State holds down the conference’s top poll spot, tied at No. 11 with independent team Notre Dame. BYU is behind at No. 14, followed by No. 16 Utah and No. 18 Kansas State.
No ranked Big 12 program plays another in the Week 7 schedule, which kicks off Friday as Utah plays at Arizona State. Undefeated conference teams will clash instead, with WVU hosting Iowa State, leaving a maximum of four undefeated teams after this weekend. Colorado will also have a challenge, hosting Kansas State.
The current state of the Big 12 is different from where many expected it to be entering the year, but the brawl at the top of the standings is nothing new for the conference. No team finished 2023 undefeated in conference play, with former member Oklahoma staying alive longest before falling to 7-1 against Kansas.
Neither BYU or Iowa State stayed undefeated past four weeks last year but now stand tall as the leaders of the conference. The Big 12 preseason poll had Iowa State ranked sixth and BYU at 13th.
Texas Tech’s continued success remains a surprise as well, as the Red Raiders stood at ninth in the preseason poll and saw expectations drop after a Week 2 loss to Washington State.
Since then, the Red Raiders have looked good, opening conference play with a win over Arizona State and winning in Tucson this weekend over Arizona. Both teams had received AP Top 25 votes ahead of the loss.
Toward the bottom of the standings, surprises continue. Arguably the biggest disappointment in college football is that Kansas is without a conference win, at 1-5 overall and 0-3 in the Big 12 after losses to West Virginia, TCU, and Arizona State. Kansas ranked fourth in the Big 12’s preseason poll and No. 22 in the AP’s top 25 before Week 1.
Joining the Jayhawks at 0-3 are the Oklahoma State Cowboys, who made the Big 12 Championship last season thanks to explosive running back Ollie Gordon II. With Gordon and the entire OSU offense underperforming, the Cowboys have fallen to Utah, Kansas State, and now West Virginia as they fall further below their projected third-place finish from the preseason.
Fans, experts, and probably even coaches and players in the Big 12 have been way off the mark this season, but that does not keep anyone from watching. If not anything else, the Big 12 is surprising to say the least.
