Capital One Bowl Week also encompassed a variety of conference and non-conference basketball games, which I have summarized after the jump.
Alabama, Charleston Southern, North Florida and Virginia Tech all did their part to keep our RPI high, but George Washington, Loyola Chicago, Southern Illinois, UMES, UTEP and West Virginia ... well, not so much.
Probably the worst damage was done, though, by playing Howard and its horrendous 268 RPI. How on Earth did that abhorrent team actually win four games?
In conference play, everyone won except Oklahoma, which blew a perfectly winnable game at a depleted Cincinnati, and Oklahoma State, which has lost two players in three weeks and is a raging dumpster fire of a program.
But don't be fooled: Baylor probably should have lost to Mississippi State, Iowa State damn near lost to a 1-11 Miss Valley State team, Missouri probably should have lost to Old Dominion, Texas A&M proved nothing against Arkansas Tech and Texas Tech struggled to put away Southeastern Louisiana.
But hey, at least Texas managed to beat Rice, huh? Way to not Aggie that one up, Longhorns.
Associated Press Ranking = 26
ESPN/USA Today Ranking = 25
Overall Record = 11-1
Big 12 Record = 0-0
Top 50 Record = 3-1
RPI = 31
SOS = 113
Signature Wins (RPI 1-30) = Alabama, Long Beach State
Quality Wins (RPI 31-100) = Virginia Tech
Bad Losses (RPI 101 or greater) = none
- Charleston Southern (9-4, 3-0 Big South) | RPI = 112: Wins over Erskine (96-69) and Liberty (81-76)
- Loyola Chicago (5-9, 0-4 Horizon) | RPI = 266: Losses to Wright State (48-64) and Detroit (54-65)
- UMES (3-10, 0-1 MEAC) | RPI = 297: Loss at No. 23 Virginia (42-69)
- George Washington (5-8) | RPI = 203: Loss to UAB (49-56) and win over Delaware State (77-59)
- Virginia Tech (11-3) | RPI = 37: Win at Oklahoma State (67-61)
- West Virginia (10-4, 1-1 Big East) | RPI = 27: Win over Villanova (83-69) and loss at Seton Hall (48-67)
- North Florida (7-7, 1-0 A-Sun) | RPI = 131: Win over Palm Beach Atlantic (85-78)
- Alabama (10-3) | RPI = 26: Win over Jacksonville (72-55)
- Southern Illinois (3-9, 0-1 MVC) | RPI = 317: Loss at Evansville (60-78)
- UTEP (7-7) | RPI = 194: Loss to Colorado State (53-56) and win over UAPB (79-58) in the Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational
- Long Beach State (7-6) | RPI = 14
- Howard (4-11, 1-1 MEAC) | RPI = 268: Losses at No. 17 Kansas (34-89) and No. 25 Kansas State (46-82)
- No. 17 Kansas (10-3) | RPI = 52: Wins over Howard (89-34) and North Dakota (84-58)
- No. 8 Missouri (13-0) | RPI = 40: Win at Old Dominion (75-68)
- No. 6 Baylor (13-0) | RPI = 5: Win over No. 15 Mississippi State (54-52)
- Oklahoma (10-2) | RPI = 57: Loss at Cincinnati (55-56) and win over Northwestern State (83-63)
- Texas (10-3) | RPI = 72: Win over Rice (73-59)
- Oklahoma State (7-6) | RPI = 92: Win over SMU (68-58 in double overtime) and loss to Virginia Tech (61-67)
- Texas Tech (7-5) | RPI = 187: Wins over Cal State Bakersfield (74-58) and Southeastern Louisiana (62-54)
- Iowa State (10-3) | RPI = 77: Win over Mississippi Valley State (67-65)
- Texas A&M (9-3) | RPI = 242: Win over Arkansas Tech (76-58)