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BYU was the unanimous choice for No. 1 in this week’s Big 12 Power Ranking, while Colorado has vaulted to second place.
The Cougars received all 16 first-place votes from a panel of media that regularly covers the Big 12.
CU moved up from fourth to second, followed by Iowa State, Kansas State, Texas Tech and Baylor. The Red Raiders and Bears made the biggest jumps of the week, each climbing four spots to fifth and sixth, respectively.
TCU, which lost on a last-second field goal to Baylor, fell from fifth to 11th.
Previous ranking: 1
Points: 256 (16 first-place votes)
Record: 8-0 (5-0 Big 12)
Last week: Open date
This week: at Utah
Comment: With Iowa State and Kansas State losing, BYU’s path to Arlington opened up. The Cougars now have a one game lead atop the Big 12 standings heading into the second week of November.
Did you know? This is the first time since 2021 BYU will play its in-state rival, Utah. — Kevin Reynolds, The Salt Lake Tribune
Previous ranking: 4
Points: 234
Record: 6-2 (4-1 Big 12)
Last week: Open date
This week: at Texas Tech
Comment: The Buffs got a well-timed bye week, allowing several players to heal up before the stretch run. Quarterback Shedeur Sanders particularly needed it. He said after a win against Cincinnati on Oct. 26 he was “a little banged up” and was grateful for the timing of the week off.
Did you know? CU is 0-2 after bye weeks under coach Deion Sanders, but 6-4 overall in their last 10 post-bye games. All those wins came at home. The Buffs have lost nine consecutive times when returning from a bye with a road game, a streak they’ll look to break this week. The last post-bye road win came in 2004. — Brian Howell, Boulder Daily Camera
Previous ranking: 2
Points: 225
Record: 7-1 (4-1 Big 12)
Last week: lost to Texas Tech, 23-22
This week: at Kansas
Comment: Iowa State sophomore quarterback Rocco Becht has thrown at least one touchdown pass in a program-record-tying 12 consecutive games. Becht — who threw two touchdown passes and one interception in last week’s loss — shares that benchmark with former star Brock Purdy of the San Francisco 49ers.
Did you know? The Cyclones are tied for third nationally in interceptions with 14. Four Iowa State defensive backs have multiple picks this season, led by cornerback Jontez Williams, who has four. — Rob Gray, The Cedar Rapids Gazette
Previous ranking: 3
Points: 195
Record: 7-2 (4-2 Big 12)
Last week: lost to Houston, 24-19
This week: Open date
Comment: K-State was held to just 89 yards rushing by Houston on Saturday, its worst output of the season.
Did you know? The Wildcats, who controlled their destiny in the Big 12 race until Saturday’s loss to Houston, need some help if they want to play in the Big 12 title game in Arlington at the end of the season. They must win out and need a Colorado loss in the next four weeks to boost themselves back into second place. — Tim Everson, The Manhattan Mercury
Previous ranking: 9
Points: 182
Record: 6-3 (4-2 in Big 12)
Last week: beat No. 11 Iowa State, 23-22
This week: vs. No. 21 Colorado
Comment: The narrative of Texas Tech’s entire season shifted in 1:47 of game time. Behren Morton battled through a tough day to deliver a career-defining moment, appropriately capped by Tahj Brooks’ game-winning score. With bowl eligibility out of the way, Texas Tech can look ahead to another big moment with Colorado and Big Noon Kickoff coming to town.
Did you know? Tahj Brooks, who is averaging 130 yards per game, needs 121 yards to become Texas Tech’s all-time leading rusher. — Nathan Giese, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
Previous ranking: 10
Points: 169
Record: 5-4 (3-3 Big 12)
Last week: beat TCU, 37-34
This week: Open date
Comment: Baylor converted on 4th and long from near midfield with 16 seconds remaining, and Isaiah Hankins nailed a walk-off 33-yard field goal to give the Bears their first win over TCU in four seasons. It was an appropriate ending, considering the 2013 and 2014 Big 12 championship teams were honored at halftime, and Baylor beat TCU 61-58 in the same fashion 10 years ago. Dave Aranda’s seat has cooled as the Bears head into the bye week riding high.
Did you know? Bryson Washington set career highs with 196 yards and four touchdowns. He is the first Baylor player to rush for four touchdowns in a game since 2011 and is the first player to rush for four touchdowns in a Big 12 game this season. — Zach Smith, Waco Tribune-Herald
Previous ranking: 8
Points: 166
Record: 6-2 (3-2 Big 12)
Last week: beat Oklahoma State, 42-21
This week: vs. UCF
Comment: The Sun Devils got yet another strong effort from Cam Skattebo who totaled 153 rushing yards and 121 receiving yards. He now has 1,001 rushing yards on the season and has four games left (plus a bowl) to break Eno Benjamin’s single-season record of 1,625 yards in 2018.
Did you know? ASU is bowl-eligible for the first time since 2019. (They played in the 2021 Las Vegas Bowl but that appearance was vacated by the penalties from the NCAA investigation into recruiting violations). — Michelle Gardner, Arizona Republic
Previous ranking: 7
Points: 162
Record: 5-3 (3-2 Big 12)
Last week: Open date
This week: vs. West Virginia
Comment: The Bearcats come out of their second bye week still needing a win to reach bowl eligibility. They host West Virginia who makes their first Big 12 football trip to Cincinnati. When the teams were Big East rivals, the Mountaineers lost to Brian Kelly’s 2009 Bearcats at Nippert Stadium 24-21. Two years later, they played the Butch Jones Bearcats at then-Paul Brown Stadium and also lost 24-21. Saturday, the Bearcats will celebrate the 100thanniversary of on-campus Nippert Stadium.
Did you know? Saturday is Cincinnati’s fifth noon kickoff of the season. They have played just two night games, at Texas Tech and at Colorado, both losses. The Bearcats are 5-1 in day games, 4-1 at noon. The lone loss was the implosion vs. Pitt where a 27-6 late third-quarter lead was squandered. — Scott Springer, Cincinnati Enquirer
Previous ranking: T5
Points: 135
Record: 4-4 (3-2 Big 12)
Last week: Open date
This week: at Cincinnati
Comment: The Mountaineers come out of off week with uncertainty at quarterback as Garrett Greene is considered doubtful for Saturday’s game against Cincinnati, according to coach Neal Brown. Green is still dealing with an upper-body injury he suffered early in the season. Nicco Marchiol is expected to start.
Did you know? West Virginia is 118th nationally with six takeaways. four. — Joseph Duarte, Houston Chronicle
Previous ranking: 11
Points: 113
Record: 4-5 (3-3 Big 12)
Last week: beat No. 17 Kansas State, 24-19
This week: Open date
Comment: Houston enters the open week riding the momentum of the program’s first winning streak in nearly two years. It was another dramatic ending as the Cougars stormed back from a nine-point deficit – Zeon Chriss delivered the game-winner with a 41-yard touchdown with 2:31 left – to deliver the signature win under coach Willie Fritz. In consecutive weeks, Houston has beaten Utah and Kansas State, the top two teams in the Big 12 preseason poll.
Did you know? Chriss was 11-of-11 passing against Kansas State, becoming the first quarterback in school history to complete all passes in a game (minimum 10 attempts). four. —Joseph Duarte, Houston Chronicle
Previous ranking: T5
Points: 103
Record: 5-4 (3-3 Big 12)
Last week: lost to Baylor, 37-34
This week: vs. Oklahoma State
Comment: TCU’s defense allowed 290 yards and 24 points to Baylor on the Bears’ final four drives of the game, as they watched a 27-20 fourth quarter lead disappear. The Frogs spoiled a good offensive performance in the process, as TCU didn’t turn the ball over for the first time since week two. Now the Frogs will have to regroup ahead of a game against an Oklahoma State squad still looking for its first conference victory.
Did you know? TCU’s loss to Baylor on Saturday was their first in Waco since 2014. — Jamie Plunkett, Horned Frog Blitz
Previous ranking: 12
Points: 91
Record: 4-5 (2-4 Big 12)
Last week: beat Arizona, 56-12
This week: at Arizona State
Comment: Dylan Rizk became the fourth quarterback to start for UCF this season when he took the field against Arizona on Saturday. The redshirt freshman tossed three touchdowns as the Knights totaled more than 600 yards of offense against the Wildcats.
Did you know? UCF’s defense held Arizona to five rushing yards, the lowest total since it allowed four yards against Florida A&M on Aug. 29, 2019. — Matt Murschel, Orlando Sentinel
Previous ranking: 14
Points: 58
Record: 2-6 (1-4 Big 12)
Last week: Open date
This week: vs. No. 17 Iowa State
Comment: Over the course of the last three weeks, KU blew out Houston, lost to Kansas State and then saw Houston beat Kansas State. That’s characteristic of the unpredictability of this year’s Big 12. Now the Jayhawks will need to continue that trend and pull off a slew of surprising results of their own if they want to earn four straight wins and become the first team in program history to go to a third consecutive bowl game.
Did you know? In KU’s 2023 game against Iowa State, the Jayhawks were held to their lowest rushing total (74 yards) and yards-per-carry average (2.1) in the last 21 games. — Henry Greenstein, Lawrence Journal-World
Previous Ranking: 15
Points: 52
Record: 4-4 (1-4 Big 12)
Last week: Open date
This week: vs. No. 9 BYU
Comment: Utah will look to get back on track with a win against BYU this weekend in Salt Lake City. But, simply put, this Utah team has a lot of issues to fix. The Utes offense is the third worst in the conference. Kyle Whittingham benched true freshman quarterback Isaac Wilson in favor of redshirt sophomore quarterback Brandon Rose against Houston. They’re also not favored to win in any of their games for the rest of the season.
Did you know? Utah will face BYU for the first time since 2021. It has been the longest break in the rivalry outside of the 1940s, when the programs went four years without playing each other from 1942-46. — Jason Batacao, The Salt Lake Tribune
Previous ranking:
Points: 34
Record: 3-6 (1-5 Big 12)
Last week: lost to UCF, 56-12
This week: Open date
Comment: The Wildcats surrendered seven straight touchdowns to UCF in the blowout loss. UCF’s 56 points against Arizona are the most points surrendered by the Wildcats since the 70-7 loss to rival Arizona State in 2020. Arizona’s banged-up defense and poor offensive execution has the Wildcats sputtering.
Did you know? Arizona’s five-game losing streak is the longest since its 20-game skid between the 2019-21 seasons. — Justin Spears, Arizona Daily Star
Previous ranking: 16
Points: 20
Record: 3-6 (0-6 Big 12)
Last week: lost to Arizona State, 42-21
This week: at TCU
Comment: Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy described the passing game as “erratic” on Saturday night. He didn’t dismiss the idea that freshman quarterback Maealiuaki Smith might see more reps after leading a touchdown drive late during his collegiate debut.
Did you know? Oklahoma State receiver Brennan Presley is 15th or higher nationally in both receiving touchdowns (seven) and receptions per game (6.8). Only three players are ahead of him in both categories, including Colorado’s Travis Hunter. — Tyler Waldrep, Tulsa World
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