Big 12 Power Rankings updated after Week 9 of college football

The Big 12 saw a big upset in Week 9 that shook up the On3 Power Rankings for the conference. That came when Oklahoma fell in Lawrence to the Kansas Jayhawks for the first time since 1997, which shook up the top of the rankings.

The On3 Big 12 Power Rankings didn’t have many games after the Oklahoma upset to shake things up, though, as the conference picture has become clear entering the month of November. These rankings, which are determined by a group of On3 staff members, are designed to show where each team stands at a given moment in time within the conference. Importantly, they’re not standings or a prediction of future results.

Going into the home stretch of the season, the race for the Big 12 Championship Game has a small group of clear contenders. However, among those contenders, it is an incredibly competitive field that’s going to be sorted out over the final four games of the season.

1. Texas Longhorns (7-1, 4-1) (+1)

The Texas Longhorns were without quarterback Quinn Ewers against BYU and will be without him for a little longer. In his place, Maalik Murphy got the start and while he wasn’t awful, Texas did have turnover issues in the win. Over time, Murphy will be able to get those issues under control and improve with more experience.

However, Texas needs to get a lot out of Murphy as soon as next week when the Longhorns are going to take on the Kansas State Wildcats. The defending Big 12 Champions only have one conference loss and would love to give Texas its second loss while taking charge of the race for the conference title game. So, the Longhorns need to be ready.

2. Kansas Jayhawks (6-2, 3-2) (+2)

Kansas earned one of the biggest wins in program history when the Jayhawks beat Oklahoma in Lawrence. That win had a massive ripple effect on the Big 12 and catapulted Kansas to second in the Big 12 Power Rankings. It also, importantly, kept the Jayhawks alive for the Big 12 Championship Game.

It’s not going to be easy and the Jayhawks don’t have any margin for error, but the team is also getting more and more confident in quarterback Jason Bean. He’s the backup quarterback and has been thrown into the fire thanks to an injury to Jalon Daniels. His back has remained injured and hasn’t been able to play since he went down before the Texas game. However, if he’s able to come back, the Jayhawks could explode into the final month of the season.

3. Oklahoma Sooners (7-1, 4-1) (-2)

The Oklahoma Sooners played with fire when they were a two-point conversion from going to overtime with UCF. The next week, on the road against Kansas, they played with fire again, and this time they got burnt, losing on the road. That, in turn, knocked Oklahoma down to just third in the Big 12 Power Rankings.

Of course, the season isn’t over for Oklahoma. As long as the Sooners don’t let Kansas beat them twice, they’re still in a good position to make a run at the conference championship game. At the same time, the loss gives Oklahoma less margin for error and probably knocked the Sooners out of contention for the College Football Playoff in the process.

4. Kansas State Wildcats (6-2, 4-1) (-1)

Kansas State dropped in the Big 12 Power Rankings. They did this despite getting a convincing win against the Houston Cougars, 41-0. However, that drop in the rankings is really reflective of how impressive Kansas’ win over Oklahoma was and how mediocre of a team Houston has been to this point in the season.

Despite only being fourth, Kansas State is still in a good position to make a run at the Big 12 Championship Game. That starts on Saturday when the Wildcats are taking on Texas. Winning that game is going to be crucial for both teams as they try and make a run at the championship game this season.

5. Oklahoma State Cowboys (6-2, 4-1) (+2)

At the start of the season, Oklahoma State looked like it might be one of the worst teams in the Big 12 this season. However, going into November, things are different. The Cowboys only have one conference loss and are right in the mix for the Big 12 this season.

A lot of Oklahoma State’s success comes down to finding a quarterback in Alan Bowman and an excellent running back in Ollie Gordon. In particular, Gordon has been doing things that Oklahoma State hasn’t seen at running back since Barry Sanders, rushing for 271 and 282 yards in his last two games. Now, he wants to do that again in Bedlam this Saturday.

6. Iowa State Cyclones (5-3, 4-1)

Another team that is, at this point in the season, a massive surprise is Iowa State. The Cyclones looked like it was going to be a long season during non-conference play, but once they hit Big 12 play, took off in a major way. That includes a three game losing streak going into a tough stretch to end the season.

At this point, with only one loss in conference play to Oklahoma, Iowa State is in a good position. Granted, very few people expect much from the Cyclones in the final stretch of the season, but with games against Kansas, BYU, Texas, and Kansas State to end the season, there is a chance that Iowa State creates plenty of chaos.

7. BYU Cougars (5-3, 2-3) (-2)

BYU has been inconsistent in Big 12 play, particularly against the teams who were already in the Big 12 conference. However, it’s also been clear that the Cougars are the best of the new teams in the conference to this point in their first season. A huge piece of that has come down to quarterback Kedon Slovis, who has been excellent for BYU this season.

Most recently, BYU was beaten up pretty good by Texas. Of course, that’s what most people expected to see happen. At the same time, a third conference loss all but eliminated BYU from a conference championship race. Still, with bowl eligibility on the line, BYU has plenty to play for.

8. TCU Horned Frogs (4-4, 2-3)

TCU is still sitting at eighth in the conference after its bye week. That was a break that the Horned Frogs desperately needed after getting beaten badly by Kansas State leading into the break and falling to just .500 on the season after the loss. That makes TCU just 5-6 since the end of the last regular season.

With four games left, TCU is going to want to at least get to six wins to be bowl eligible this season. The problem is that two of those four games are against excellent Oklahoma and Texas teams. So, there is going to be a lot of pressure on TCU to win its other games, against Texas Tech and Baylor respectively, to get to that point.

9. West Virginia Mountaineers (5-3, 3-2)

West Virginia is one win from bowl eligibility. This comes in a season that many expected to see the program move on from head coach Neal Brown. Certainly, things aren’t perfect for the Mountaineers, but things are definitely better and seeming to improve this season.

In Week 9, West Virginia went to Orlando to take on UCF. There, the Mountaineers forced turnovers to keep UCF’s offense from keeping up with their own offense. Importantly, West Virginia also took advantage of an overmatched UCF defense and was able to consistently score and put the game away.

10. Texas Tech Red Raiders (3-5, 2-3)

The season hasn’t gone how Texas Tech expected. For many people, the Red Raiders were a great under-the-radar pick to win the Big 12. Now, they’re basically out of the race and looking for answers as they desperately try to even make a bowl game. Head coach Joey McGuire needed the bye week to regroup for the end of the season.

If bowl eligibility is the goal at this point for Texas Tech, the Red Raiders need to win three out of four games. That’s going to be tough, with games against Texas and Kansas, as well as TCU and UCF moving forward in Big 12 play. Regardless, it’s hard not to be frustrated with where the season is at this point.

11. UCF Knights (3-5, 0-5)

The UCF Knights are still searching for their first win as a member of the Big 12. The hope is that the Knights can get that this week against Cincinnati. The Bearcats have had a very long season too and it seems like a very winnable game for both teams. Without that win, bowl eligibility would almost certainly be out of reach for the Knights.

Most recently, UCF dropped a home game to West Virginia where the defense was simply overmatched by a team with years of Power Five program building behind it. On top of that, a wide receiver falling down and kicking a ball mid-air to be intercepted was pretty symbolic of UCF’s time in the Big 12 to this point for the Knights. It’s been rough.

12. Houston Cougars (3-5, 1-4)

Houston found a Big 12 win on a Hail Mary against West Virginia, but the Cougars still come in at just 12th in the Power Rankings. A big part of that is the way Houston just lost to Kansas State, not even scoring a point while getting physically dominated throughout the game. It was tough to watch for head coach Dana Holgorsen.

A bowl game, as it does for everyone else in the Big 12, remains on the table for Houston. However, it’s going to be tough. However, at this point, the schedule is going to get a lot more manageable for the Cougars if they hope to make a bowl game, against Baylor, Cincinnati, Oklahoma State, and UCF.

13.  Baylor Bears (3-5, 2-3)

Baylor lost to Iowa State over the weekend as an inconsistent season of Big 12 games continued for the Bears. At this point, the frantic comeback win against UCF has gone a long way in helping the Bears record to look better than they’ve played this season, and that’s reflected in where they fit into the Power Rankings. For now, that’s second to last.

Baylor is playing Houston this week in what might be a must-win game for both teams. After all, neither one of them has much of a shot at a bowl without a win there in what has already been a massively disappointing season for both teams.

14. Cincinnati Bearcats (2-6, 0-5)

The Cincinnati Bearcats are one of two teams to not win a Big 12 game this season, but with a loss to rival Miami (OH), things feel worse for Cincinnati than they do for UCF. This comes in head coach Scott Satterfield‘s first season with the program after Luke Fickell left. In turn, this has led to a lot of concerns about whether Cincinnati made the right hire among fans.

Another loss would mean the Bearcats won’t be able to get to a bowl this season. A couple games against former AAC foes, UCF and Houston, should be winnable, but West Virginia and Kansas will be tougher. With no margin for error at this point, it’s hard to imagine Cincinnati finds a way to get to .500 in its first Big 12 season.

Week 10 in the Big 12 promises to be another exciting week. That starts with the game between Texas and Kansas State, which could be huge for the conference title race. However, there are excellent games beyond that, like Bedlam between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State that will impact the conference race and the On3 Big 12 Power Rankings.