Big 12 Power Rankings: Week 4

It was already supposed to be a quiet weekend with just two games on the docket for the Big 12. But thanks to a mighty mess at Baylor, we just got one, and it wasn’t even really a good one.

So with that, there was extremely little movement in the power rankings this week, because, well, nobody did anything. But we’re not going to skip this week just because the Big 12 did.

1. Kansas State Wildcats

The Wildcats next two games are against the two teams that played this weekend. And as long as they don’t have a letdown against West Virginia like they did last year, it’s extremely likely that when K-State hosts Oklahoma State on Nov. 7th, the Wildcats will still be undefeated in conference play. Wild.

2. Oklahoma State Cowboys

Thanks to Baylor, the Cowboys didn’t get to play this weekend and re-assert themselves into the top of the power rankings. But hopefully they used the extra time off to prepare for Iowa State, because the Cyclones are not going to go down easy this year. The Pokes have the advantage this week since the game is in Stillwater, but this should be the most hyped game of the weekend (I would say “best”, but it’s 2020, so who knows, it could be a garbage game).

3. Iowa State Cyclones

The Cyclones drop a spot this week because their Sun Belt foe, the one that made them look silly, from the beginning of the season also lost this weekend. But Iowa State has looked decidedly different since the opener, and will be looking for the upset this weekend in Stillwater. Should the Clones win, they’ll be in the driver’s seat for the next couple weeks at least. Should they lose, they are basically stuck in third until at least Nov. 21st.

4. Coastal Carolina Chanticleers

Coastal Carolina beat Louisiana this past week in what could have easily been a preview of the Sun Belt conference championship game. The Chants are undefeated on the season, and now have wins over a Big 12 team and the other two Sun Belt teams that beat a Big 12 team. By the Transitive Property, they are now 3-0 versus the Big 12. They get Georgia Southern this weekend, which should still be more of a challenge than the KU game.

5. West Virginia Mountaineers

Technically, West Virginia won the football game this weekend. I mean, when the clock struck 00:00, the Mountaineers had more points on the scoreboard. But they appeared to be sleepwalking to open the game, letting KU get up to 10-0 in the first half before coming to life. And even the 38-17 belies just how not-good West Virginia looked against KU. Next up for the Eers is the longest road trip in the conference, as they head to Lubbock to take on the Red Raiders.

6. Louisiana Ragin Cajuns

Louisiana was finally knocked off it’s perch as The Best Sun Belt Team, but should still be considered the favored team in the West Division. They’ve got a Friday night tilt against UAB this week, for a very tough non-conference game. UAB also only has one loss, and that came at the hands of pre-Clemson-game Miami, so this should be a good one to watch (if you get CBSSN).

7. TCU Horned Frogs

This should be another fun game. TCU hopefully used their week off to get some guys healthy and work on their offense, because OU is headed to Ft. Worth. Gary Patterson’s defense should have more than enough info to stifle Spencer Rattler and OU’s offense, but the offense is still going to have to figure out how to consistently score points or it could be another loss for the Horned Frogs.

8. Oklahoma Sooners

OU finally got up off the floor after a nasty 4OT win over Texas two weeks ago. But there are still plenty of questions in Norman, and a lot of learning that still needs to happen for their young QB. I expect OU to come out with a different fire after the bye week, but it’s 2020, so anything is possible. Lincoln Riley might be wishing he’d have taken an NFL job this off-season.

9. Arkansas State Red Wolves

ASU has won two in a row after dispatching a good Georgia State team last weekend. It took a monster performance from Jonathan Adams (yeah, you remember him) and a record-setting performance overall by the Red Wolves offense to put way the Panthers away, but a win is a win. There’s no rest for the weary either as ASU heads to the other ASU in the Sun Belt, taking on Appalachian State in Boone, NC for a little Thursday night football on ESPN.

10. Texas Longhorns

Presuming this weekend’s game gets played, the Longhorns should be plenty prepared for a Baylor team that has played just two games so far this year. The Longhorns should be favored in this one, but probably the best outcome for this game is no COVID transmission from the Bears to the Longhorns.

11. Texas Tech Red Raiders

The Red Raiders have a decent chance of picking themselves up off the mat this weekend when the Mountaineers visit. They looked beatable against the Jayhawks, which is no small feat, and may be just the kind of opponent Tech needs to get it’s own season back on track. Because if they can’t do it this weekend, it’ll be a few more weeks before a “winnable” game shows up on the schedule.

12. Baylor Bears

The Bears keep losing to COVID, and is the only conference team that continues to be unable to play games because of it’s own problems with the virus. They should come out swinging against the Longhorns now that they’ve had two straight weeks off to prepare. But they’ll likely still be down a lot throughout the roster, so expect the Bears to not look very good this week.

13. Kansas Jayhawks

For about 15 minutes, KU showed a pulse. And it came with Les Miles stuck in Lawrence after contracting COVID a couple weeks ago. He was technically cleared, but made the wise choice to leave it to his staff this week. And maybe he should just do that for the rest of the season, because, overall, the Jayhawks appeared much better without their senile-appearing sexagenarian on the sidelines. KU heads to Manhattan this weekend for their annual beating the Sunflower Showdown, but don’t expect the Wildcats to be looking past this one as they go for the record of longest win streak in the series.