The Big 12 calendar is getting tight, and with four weeks left in the regular season, the pressure is starting to show up in a very specific way: not just on résumés, but on the sideline every Saturday. Week 10 brings a fresh round of coaches with plenty riding on the next snap, and for some of them, the stakes are about much more than one game.
Morgan Scalley is first on the list, and the spotlight in Salt Lake City is blinding right now. Utah has rolled through every opponent so far, and the Utes already have one ranked win on the board.
They’re also sitting at No. 3 in the College Football Playoff rankings, which tells you just how far this season has already gone. But BYU is a different kind of test.
Saturday’s rivalry game carries real weight. BYU comes in at No. 9 with one loss, and while the Cougars probably need the result more, Utah has no interest in giving up any ground in the Big 12 race.
A win would all but lock the Utes into the Big 12 Championship game. Scalley has handled every challenge so far in his first year, but this one is different.
He has been around this rivalry as a coordinator. He has not been the head coach in it.
That matters. He doesn’t need this game to save his job; he needs to show he can steer Utah through the biggest stage it has seen yet this season.
Texas Tech is in a different spot, but Joey McGuire still has plenty to manage. His job isn’t the issue.
The Red Raiders’ season is. That’s why he turned to Thomas Castellanos at quarterback last week, and even with that move, Tech had to grind to a 34-26 win over Arizona.
This doesn’t look like last year’s Texas Tech team, but the Red Raiders are still alive in the Big 12 race. The catch is that they don’t fully control their own path.
To get to Arlington, Tech needs to win out and also needs Utah to beat BYU on Saturday. That’s the cleanest route, even if it’s not the only one.
With four games left, there’s no room to waste one.
The timing doesn’t help. West Virginia’s offense can put serious stress on a defense, and the Red Raiders got stuck with an 8:30 CT kickoff - really? - while Utah and BYU are playing at 11 a.m.
CT - again, really? McGuire will know exactly where Tech stands by kickoff, and he has to make sure his team is ready for a game that could swing the whole picture.
Then there’s Baylor, where interim head coach Joe Klanderman has already checked off one important box. He won his first game with the Bears, and he did it convincingly at UCF. Now comes the harder part: backing it up.
Whether Klanderman is a real candidate for the full-time job is still an open question. But if he wants to make that case, he has a chance no one else does.
He can prove it with the players already in the room. That’s why his seat is hot in a different way - because he has a window, and he doesn’t want to let it close.
Baylor’s next game against Iowa State is a big one for the postseason picture. A win would give the Bears their sixth victory and make them bowl eligible.
After that comes a brutal stretch with BYU, Texas Tech and Houston. If Baylor wants to get to a bowl, this is the week it has to handle.
That’s what keeps Klanderman’s seat warm heading into Week 10.
In Other News...
Joe Klanderman Just Raised The Stakes For Baylors Finish
Joe Klanderman has given Baylor a much steadier hand than anyone could have expected in the immediate aftermath of Dave Arandas firing. As the interim head coach, he has guided the Bears to two straight wins, and suddenly a season that looked like it might spiral has settled into something far more interesting. At 6-3 overall and 4-2 in Big 12 play, Baylor is still mathematically alive in the conference race, which is no small thing at this stage of the year.
The challenge now is the closing stretch, because the Bears still have three difficult games left and no one around the program can afford to look past what comes next. Klandermans quick start has also started to change the conversation around the job itself, with speculation beginning to build about whether he could become a real candidate for the permanent opening. For a team that was just trying to stabilize, the stakes around the finish have suddenly gotten a lot higher. [Read more 🡒]
Baylors Transfer Rebuild Is Raising One Big Question Late In Season
Baylor leaned hard into the transfer portal this offseason, bringing in 30 newcomers to patch holes and raise the floor around quarterback DJ Lagway. The idea was clear enough: add experience, add depth and make the roster more competitive right away. Midway through the season, that approach has produced some real dividends, especially with receiver Freeman emerging as the most reliable offensive option, cornerback Jordan making plays on the back end and defensive contributor Ponder helping the pass rush.
Still, the season keeps circling back to the same question because of Lagway. His year has been uneven, shaped by injury and performance swings, even if the recent trend has pointed in a better direction. For a rebuild built so heavily on transfers, Baylors late-season ceiling may depend on whether its quarterback can turn that improvement into something more stable when it matters most. [Read more 🡒]
Baylors Offense Looked Dangerous But One Concern Still Lingers
Homecoming brought plenty for Baylor fans to like in a 42-31 win over Iowa State, especially the way the offense kept finding answers from different spots on the field. DJ Lagway was a central figure in the attack, helping the Bears move the ball both through the air and on the ground, while the rest of the offense showed the kind of varied production that can make this group difficult to defend when it is clicking.
Still, the final score also left one area worth watching as the season moves on. Baylors defense generated pressure with three sacks and nine tackles for loss, and special teams did its part with clean extra points and solid punting, but Iowa State was able to lean on its rushing game enough to keep the Bears from fully putting the matchup away sooner. [Read more 🡒]