Big 12 Power Rankings

[Rickylovesweed 14,155]

3 minutes ago, Homercles said:

That’s…optimistic.  

It was in reference to TCU's current schedule played. 

[gmr548 16,512]

These are the teams TCU has beaten. 
Colorado (0-5 and fired their coach)
Tarleton State 
SMU (2-3)
Oklahoma (0-3 in Big 12 play)
Kansas (a good team but they were without their starting QB most of the game against TCU). 
Would we be 5-0 with this schedule even with Card at QB? 
 
 
 

I don’t think you can simply call @ Kansas a win with Card and move on given that Texas lost at Tech.

[Rickylovesweed 14,155]

2 minutes ago, gmr548 said:

I don’t think you can simply call @ Kansas a win with Card and move on given that Texas lost at Tech.

Maybe but that's  the only potential loss out of the 5. 

I'm still not exactly sold on Kansas even with their starter at QB. Their schedule has been nearly as bad as TCU. Their best win is against Duke? 

 

[gmr548 16,512]

The schedule thing is also a two way street. Anyone think TCU or OK State is less than 4-2 on Texas’s schedule? No, in fact they would likely be 5-1.

[Rickylovesweed 14,155]

1 minute ago, gmr548 said:

The schedule thing is also a two way street. Anyone think TCU or OK State is less than 4-2 on Texas’s schedule? No, in fact they would likely be 5-1.

Not with a backup quarterback. 

Tech gave Oklahoma State a scare, on the road, with Oklahoma State's starting QB. TCU or OK State  @ Tech with a back up QB is a coin flip at best. 

['stache 21,772]

5 minutes ago, gmr548 said:

The schedule thing is also a two way street. Anyone think TCU or OK State is less than 4-2 on Texas’s schedule? No, in fact they would likely be 5-1.

Agree, we already beat Tech, but we were at home. No telling how we would have fared against Bama. I would assume a loss, but something's up with them, even with Young at QB. Like Homerclese said, I don't think we can really know anything yet except that OU sucks, not just in general, but at football in particular.

Edited October 11, 2022 by 'stache

[Rickylovesweed 14,155]

7 minutes ago, 'stache said:

Agree, we already beat Tech, but we were at home. No telling how we would have fared against Bama. I would assume a loss, but something's up with them, even with Young at QB. Like Homerclese said, I don't think we can really know anything yet except that OU sucks, not just in general, but at football in particular.

I would not take Oklahoma State to beat Tech in Lubbock with a back up quarterback. It would be a coin flip at best. 

Tech just shredded Oklahoma State's defense so you would need to score points with a back up QB. 

Edited October 11, 2022 by Rickylovesweed

[Pato del Muerto 52,342]

1 hour ago, perfectchaos007 said:

Yep, Sark is 1-5 in road games so far. Lone road win was October 2nd, 2021 @ TCU. Next road game will be @ Okie Lite in a couple weeks. Big test 

Ewers is undefeated on the road so far in his college career as a starter.

also, he is winless. 
 

either way, I think our chances improve with him playing. 

[oSuJeff97 3,435]

24 minutes ago, Rickylovesweed said:

Not with a backup quarterback. 

Tech gave Oklahoma State a scare, on the road, with Oklahoma State's starting QB. TCU or OK State  @ Tech with a back up QB is a coin flip at best. 

Counterpoint: Behern Morton is significantly better than Donovan Smith. I'm not sure how the hell he wasn't starting already. I've watched Donovon Smith play for two years and he's pretty meh. This Morton kid is really, really good.  When I watched him throw a laser beam across the field from the right hash to the left boundary for a 12 yard gain on like his second throw, I figured we were in for a long day.

We would beat them in Lubbock with our backup (Gunnar Gundy!) with Smith starting for them... with Morton starting, probably not.

It really felt like deja vu watching him... we seem to have a history of coaches finally figuring out the young backup is the best QB and giving him his first start against us.... happened with Brock Purdy, Alan Bowman... and almost Mahomes (his first action was against us in a blowout and then he started the next week).

[Longhornlove 4,779]

13 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Ewers is undefeated on the road so far in his college career as a starter.

also, he is winless. 
 

either way, I think our chances improve with him playing. 

[TrashMaster G 17,388]

4 hours ago, Rickylovesweed said:

These are the teams TCU has beaten. 

Colorado (0-5 and fired their coach)

Tarleton State 

SMU (2-3)

Oklahoma (0-3 in Big 12 play)

Kansas (a good team but they were without their starting QB most of the game against TCU). 

Would we be 5-0 with this schedule even with Card at QB? 

It's not like Kansas had to rely on a peg-legged gimp at QB when their starter went down.  They turned to last year's starter.

[Rickylovesweed 14,155]

1 minute ago, TrashMaster G said:

It's not like Kansas had to rely on a peg-legged gimp at QB when their starter went down.  They turned to last year's starter.

Yeah but he was bad last year. Really bad. 

If Daniels is out long-term I don't think Kansas will win many more games with Bean at QB. 

 

[TrashMaster G 17,388]

Just now, Rickylovesweed said:

Yeah but he was bad last year. Really bad. 

If Daniels is out long-term I don't think Kansas will win many more games with Bean at QB. 

He was good enough to beat us.

I know... I know...

[Burt Macklin 18,998]

1 minute ago, TrashMaster G said:

He was good enough to beat us.

I know... I know...

No he wasn’t. Jalon Daniels started against us, not Bean. 

[TrashMaster G 17,388]

1 minute ago, Burt Macklin said:

No he wasn’t. Jalon Daniels started against us, not Bean. 

[Pato del Muerto 52,342]

He looked good against tcu though didn’t he?  Or was he shitty but with 3 tds, like Milroe?

Edited October 11, 2022 by Pato del Muerto

[Rickylovesweed 14,155]

1 minute ago, Pato del Muerto said:

He looked good against tcu though didn’t he?  Or was he shorty but with 3 tds, like Milroe?

The final drive was really bad. Missed 2 or 3 open receivers. 

Also, I don't think TCU's defense is particularly good. They've been winning games with offense against bad teams. 

[blacklab 11,850]

3 hours ago, Rickylovesweed said:

I'm not sure how good Baylor is. Baylor has lost to both teams who had a pulse and BYU also looks to be way overrated. 

Their 3 wins are Albany, Texas State and Iowa State. That's pretty bad. 

 

But Texas State beat App State that beat aggy

[Rhinotx 499]

2 hours ago, blacklab said:

But Texas State beat App State that beat aggy

Well everyone knows Texas State is SEC ready

[Zeus 5,950]

Texas

Everybody else

[cochamps 1,878]

3 hours ago, gmr548 said:

The schedule thing is also a two way street. Anyone think TCU or OK State is less than 4-2 on Texas’s schedule? No, in fact they would likely be 5-1.

We would be 5-1 with neutral officiating in the Bama game.  And there is the QB thing.

[Bigbend1812 12,887]

47 minutes ago, Zeus said:

Texas

Everybody else

 

 

[TrashMaster G 17,388]

21 hours ago, blacklab said:

But Texas State beat App State that beat aggy

Quoting for the lulz.

[gmr548 16,512]

I think we've seen enough to this point to separate the contenders from the also-rans, though there's not a lot of separation within those tiers and it's certainly not to say a lower tier team couldn't jump up and bite a contender (we should be familiar with that...). The top four will be squaring off against one another this coming week, so I imagine we'll have a pair of CCG front runners a week from today.

Week 8

The Best

1.) TCU (6-0, 3-0, -): I had them at number one last week, so knocking off the team that most would have considered the front runner for the conference certainly cements that spot for them. There were multiple points where I thought OSU was going to put the game out of reach, but TCU kept themselves within striking distance and eventually rode a wave of momentum to pull off the comeback. They have a huge challenge this week in following up that emotional win with a good K State team coming off a bye week. If they can pull off a win, they would be a clear favorite to get to Arlington and perhaps even enter the CFP picture.

2.) Oklahoma State (5-1, 2-1, -): As I mentioned above, there were several points at which the could have put that game at TCU away. They controlled a good portion of the game, but when you let a good opponent hang around in their own stadium it can often come back to bite you. We know a thing or two about that on this board. That said, they were still right there. How they rebound against Texas this week will make or break their season. They have to bounce back with resolve because Texas is absolutely capable of effectively ending their conference title hopes.

3.) Texas (5-2, 3-1, -): Yes, they won and OSU lost, but Texas cut it as close as possible and needed some luck against a worse opponent, at home; that said, it's obvious the offense didn't play its best game and they still did just enough to win. It's a cliche, but that is a hallmark of good teams. The offense left a lot of meat on the bone against the conference's best defense and will be difficult for the rest of the defenses on the schedule to contain. Despite the win, they showed many of the flaws that have been consistent themes under Sark and PK. Another one of those themes is being terrible on the road - Sark is 1-5 in road games at Texas and has a winning percentage of roughly 30% on his career. Three of Texas's last five are on the road, including the next two, both of which are against contenders. They've only played one true road game in their first seven and we saw how that played out. They are going to need to prove they can beat a good opponent(s) on the road, something they've not yet done under Sark, if they want to play relevant football games into November.

4.) Kansas State (5-1, 3-0, +1): I am sure they enjoyed watching OSU and TCU in an exhausting dogfight, and Texas struggle with ISU just like they did, while sitting at home on their bye. The next three weeks feature the teams immediately above them in descending order. They'll be coming off a bye against TCU and get OSU at home after consecutive games against TCU and Texas. Golden opportunity for them to put themselves in the driver's seat for a spot in Arlington, but I think the three above them do probably have a higher ceiling. 

The Rest

5.) Kansas (5-2, 2-2, -1): Debated putting these guys in the first tier, but I expect them to fade down the stretch anyway due to depth and schedule, and that's before touching the Jalon Daniels uncertainty. Still, they went to Norman and hung with an OU team that was no doubt pissed off and more talented with Gabriel coming back. Between that and hanging with TCU with their backup QB, they've clearly shown they're going to compete on a weekly basis. I could definitely see them playing spoiler for someone, especially if Daniels comes back. I just don't think they're going to seriously threaten for a spot in the CCG given their remaining schedule, which includes three of the four teams above them, and three of the last five on the road. 

6.) Texas Tech (3-3, 1-2, +1): Off this week, and the way they've competed against the upper half of the league has to have them feeling good about the second half of their season, starting with two straight home games against WVU and Baylor, and four of their last six at home.

7.) Oklahoma (4-3, 1-3, +3): I ranked them at the bottom of last week because fuck'em, and that's where they deserved to be with no QB, but I do not believe they're actually the worst team in the Big 12 with Gabriel in at QB. I imagine most coaches would trade rosters with them and their remaining schedule is mostly the bottom half of the conference. A rebound to something like 7-5 or 8-4 by virtue of outscoring people wouldn't surprise me. But they will have to outscore people, because that defense is absolutely putrid. Kansas was just the latest to light them up; four games into conference play and they've yet to hold an opponent below... 41.

8.) Baylor (3-3, 1-2, -2): I do think they pull out the WVU game if the starting QB doesn't get hurt, hence them not falling below WVU. Baylor's second half schedule includes four games against the current top 5 in the Big 12 standings. I don't think that WVU game was one they could afford to drop when it comes to their hopes of defending their championship. They get a bit of a pass with the QB issues, but at the day, they gave up 43 coming off a bye week. Their offense isn't necessarily built for shootouts, and several of the offenses on their schedule are just as capable as WVU, if not more.

9.) West Virginia (3-3, 1-2, -): I said last week that the Baylor game was a must win if they want to make a bowl, and they got it done. The same is true for this upcoming trip to Lubbock, with KSU, OSU, and TCU still on the schedule. I think this is still probably going to be the worst team in the Big 12 at the end of the year, but they did enough to stay out of the cellar for now.

10.) Iowa State (3-4, 0-4, -2): Only one team has yet to win a league game, so the choice here is pretty obvious. While Texas missed some opportunities, their defense generally acquitted itself well against probably the most talented offense in the league, but they were only able to muster 21 points on Texas's lax defense, and turnovers killed two scoring drives. I said in the game thread that it feels like they'll be that team that loses 7 comference games by a combined 18 points or something. I am sure they will get one or two somewhere, but they're liable to lose any time an opponent gets past 14.