Poll: Big 12 coaches predict Kansas State and Iowa State will meet in league title game
FRISCO, Texas – Kansas State and Iowa State will open the season in Dublin, Ireland on Aug. 23. And if the Big 12 coaches are correct, the Wildcats and Cyclones will also play for the Big 12 title on Dec. 6 in Arlington, Texas.
In a poll conducted by On3 of the 16 league coaches, Kansas State and Iowa State received the most votes to reach the Big 12 championship game.
Since the Big 12 discontinued the preseason media poll, On3 asked each coach to predict who would play in the league’s title game. The coaches were granted anonymity and could not vote for their own team.
Kansas State led the way with eight votes, followed by Iowa State with seven, Arizona State had six and Texas Tech received five. TCU (three votes), Baylor (two votes) and Utah (one vote) were the other schools getting votes. Seven of the league’s 16 teams received votes.
Led by quarterback Avery Johnson, Kansas State also received the most votes as the league champion. Six coaches picked the Wildcats to win the Big 12. Defending champion Arizona State, featuring quarterback Sam Leavitt, was picked to win the league by four coaches. Other schools receiving votes to win the league were Texas Tech (three votes), TCU (two) and Baylor (one).
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Iowa State, led by quarterback Rocco Becht, was not selected to win the league by any coaches, but received the most votes (seven) to finish as runners-up.
Last year, Arizona State was picked in the preseason media poll to finish 16th, but the Sun Devils won the Big 12 championship. BYU, picked to finish 13th, also greatly exceeded expectations, finishing tied for second in the league.
Because some believed the Big 12 was down since the predicted worst team won the league, the Big 12’s athletic directors and coaches voted to discontinue the preseason media poll this year.
“I think it disadvantaged Arizona State last year,” Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark said. “It’s the right thing for the Big 12 (to get rid of the preseason poll) and we’re glad we did it.”
| Team | Total Votes | Champion | Runner-up |
| Kansas State | 8 | 6 | 2 |
| Iowa State | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Arizona State | 6 | 4 | 2 |
| Texas Tech | 5 | 3 | 2 |
| TCU | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Baylor | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Utah | 1 | 0 | 1 |