2021 Big 12 Power Rankings - Week 10

Well, apparently, we’re not supposed to have fun around here anymore with our power rankings. So this week, we present you with the Zero Fun Edition of the power rankings.
Warning: Don’t scroll past the break, it’s just nonsense and ads anyway. You’ve been warned.

1. OU - They’re undefeated through their bye week. Can they stay that way?
2. OSU - They have one loss, and still appear to be the only contender to OU.
3. BU - They fell in a tough game to TCU, but are still the third best team in the conference.
4. ISU - ISU did what they were supposed to against a bad UT team.
5. K-State - K-State should have won by 35, but a 35-10 victory is still a win over KU, the 13th in a row.
6. WVU - The Mountaineers were held to just a field goal at home against a good OSU team.
7. TCU - Well then, that was surprising. Maybe the Frogs have some new life in the post-Patterson Era.
8. UT - LOLUT
9. TTU - The Red Raiders were off this weekend. If they upset ISU this week they’ll reach bowl eligibility.
10. KU - KU is bad, and Lance Leipold has a long rebuild ahead of him.

Okay, have the Zero Fun Police left? Good. Here are the actual power rankings for this week!

1. Cincinnati Bearcats

The Bearcats wont win any style points with a 28-20 win over Tulsa, but they remain undefeated on the season, and still have the best win (at Notre Dame) over any one else on this list. Though other teams near the top of the rankings have struggled with Tulsa (see Ohio State), so it’s not like it’s a terrible result. Cincinnati has a road trip to Tampa to face South Florida this weekend, and the Bulls can be a tough out.

2. Oklahoma Sooners

The Sooners were off this week, so didn’t have a chance to move up or down this week. But the emergence of Caleb Williams has certainly made OU much more of a contender than they were with Spencer Rattler. Up next for the Sooners is a trip to Waco to face a Bears squad coming off a surprising loss to TCU this past weekend.

3. Oklahoma State Cowboys

The Cowboys are finally all alone in third place, thanks to Baylor’s surprise loss. It also helps that the Pokes didn’t stumble in Morgantown like many have, and put up a convincing 24-3 win over the Mountaineers. Despite TCU’s victory this weekend, OSU still has a relatively easy path to Bedlam, and that starts this week with the Horned Frogs visit to Stillwater.

4. Houston Cougars

Houston remained undefeated in conference play, but it wasn’t easy against a USF team that seems to play much better at home. But the Cougars are 8-1, and hold that impressive (on paper) win over SMU in their hand. Next up for Houston is a trip way up north to Philadelphia to take on the Temple Owls, who seem to be falling apart at the seams right now. At this point, the Cougars have a pretty clear path to a matchup with Cincinnati in the AAC championship game.

5. Baylor Bears

Well, that was interesting. The Bears stumbled on the road to an emotionally energized Horned Frogs team, and are now holding just outside the the top two in the Big 12 standings. They still have a chance at the Big 12 title game, but they will have quite the path to get there, and that starts this week with a visit from OU.

6. BYU Cougars

The Cougars, as expected, smacked around Idaho State in Provo to the tune of a 59-14 victory. At 8-2, with only games against Georgia Southern and USC left (LOL), it’s highly unlikely BYU plays themselves into a higher-end bowl game, but the BYU name still brings respect (and it’s why they were a top target for the Big 12), so they may just sneak into a good bowl game. I laughed earlier because Georgia Southern is the expected future coaching home of Clay Helton, the guy who was fried from USC earlier this year. College football, man.

7. Iowa State Cyclones

The Cyclones did exactly what we expected them to do against a struggling Longhorns squad in Ames. Well, in the second half anyway. As has been usual this season, UT was actually up 7-3 at halftime, but the Cyclones turned on the jets after the break with a 21-point 3rd quarter to put the game on ice. Next up for the Clones is a trip down to Lubbock to face a Red Raiders squad who will be looking for the upset to gain bowl eligibility.

8. Kansas State Wildcats

The Wildcats extended their series-leading win streak to 13 against KU on Saturday, and the game wasn’t nearly as close as the 35-10 final would have you believe. The Wildcats racked up over 500 yards of offense, and outside of one TD drive, bottled up the Jayhawks’ offense all morning and afternoon. It was expected, but still nice to see. With the win, the Wildcats secured bowl eligibility for the second* time in Chris Klieman’s three seasons in Manhattan, making him just the second coach to lead the Wildcats to more than one bowl game appearance. Next up is a visit from the Mountaineers this Saturday, and the Wildcats will be looking to end a five-game skid against WVU.

9. UCF Knights

After a 14-10 win over Tulane this past weekend, the Knights are bowl eligible, and are still on track to get to at least eight wins with three games remaining. Next up is a trip to Dallas to take on SMU, and a win there would likely solidify a third-place finish in the AAC with just games against UConn (LOL) and South Florida, both at home, remaining.

10. Coastal Carolina Chanticleers

Coastal drops this week because of a less-than-impressive 28-8 win over Georgia Southern this past weekend. Southern has been without a head coach much of the season, and are just 2-7 this year. Even on the road, it’s a game the Chanticleers should have won by more. But to be fair, they were missing their stellar sophomore QB, who is out indefinitely with an “upper body injury”. Their last real test is this weekend with Georgia State in town. Thanks to their loss to App State a few weeks ago, they need to win out, and hope that the Mountaineers stumble, to return to the Sun Belt championship game.

11. West Virginia Mountaineers

The Mountaineers only lost 24-3 to the visiting Cowboys, but it was the first time all season that WVU has failed to score a touchdown. They are part of a bevy of Big 12 teams still seeking bowl eligibility, but at 4-5, and only three games left, they’ll have to avoid slipping up any more. This week they’ve got a trip to K-State, where they’ve got to feel like they’ll have a good chance at the 5th win. But if not, they’ve still got UT in Morgantown and a trip to Lawrence left on the schedule, so they’ve got a really good shot at getting to six wins somehow.

12. TCU Horned Frogs

Well, Horned Frogs, that was interesting. Enough to move back up among the other non-bowl-eligible teams despite still being 4-5. They’ll need to pull off a couple more surprises to avoid slipping back down, but it’s possible. Chandler Morris looks like a future star in the Big 12, it will be interesting to see if he decides to stick around with the new coach in Ft. Worth. Next up for the Frogs is a trip to Stillwater for a primetime tilt this weekend.

13. Texas Longhorns

LOLUT. Four straight games now with a halftime lead, and four straight losses. The Longhorns have won two games in conference play, and both of those teams have now fired their head coach (for losing to K-State, not to UT). Steve Sarkisian’s first season in Austin has not been good. The Horns will get a chance at ending their win streak this weekend with a visit from the Jayhawks, but let’s not forget that Texas lost to Kansas in football in 2016.

14. Texas Tech Red Raiders

Well, the Red Raiders have, strangely, a new coach already, but he can’t actually coach a game yet, and Sonny Cumbie will continue to lead the team through the remainder of the season. Tech is coming off their bye week, and are sitting at 5-4, so they have an outside chance at becoming bowl eligible. But they would need to upset one of their last three opponents, and that starts this weekend with a visit from Iowa State.

15. Kansas Jayhawks

First of all, thank goodness Gavin Potter picked KU instead of K-State. It’s so much easier to despise a punk like that when he’s not on your team. Also, KU is a bad football team that is going to take a while to rebuild. And it’s going to take a Bill Snyder-esque level of coaching to pull the Jayhawks out of their current quagmire. What a mess. Next up is a trip down to Austin to face the Longhorns. Could this be a game the Jayhawks actually win??