The Big 12 has crossed the season’s halfway mark, and the hierarchy is starting to come into focus. Three teams are still unbeaten in league play and overall, and all three are sitting in the Associated Press Top 10 this week.
Two more have taken their first Big 12 loss but are still very much in the mix. Everyone else is chasing.
That split showed up loud and clear in the latest round of results, with BYU, Houston and Texas Tech climbing while Baylor and Arizona State took hard hits.
BYU kept its perfect run alive with a 28-24 home win over Notre Dame on Saturday, and the finish was messy enough that people are still talking about it. But the Cougars did it without their top running back, LJ Martin, who was out injured for a second straight game.
The bigger takeaway was the way Preston Rex stepped in at running back. That matters because it eases the load on quarterback Bear Bachmeier in the run game, which is exactly the kind of development BYU needed.
The Cougars also showed some real toughness in the win. And if you’re looking for a team building a case for the College Football Playoff, BYU just added a pretty loud piece of evidence - whether it wins the Big 12 or not.
Houston’s rise came in a different style, but it was just as loud. Against Oklahoma State, Conner Weigman put on a show, throwing for 343 yards and five touchdowns in a 35-32 win.
Willie Fritz wants to run the football, sure, but he trusted his fifth-year quarterback to air it out, and Weigman delivered. It felt like a breakout moment for him, the kind of performance that lets the rest of the conference know what Houston has under center.
That momentum matters even more with Utah coming to town this week and College Gameday on site. Fritz gets a chance to put his program on a bigger stage, and after this win, it’s a deserved one.
Texas Tech may have made the loudest statement of all. Coming off the bye, the Red Raiders hung 53 points on Arizona State, and 43 of those came in the first half.
Will Hammond looked more settled, the offense looked sharper, and Tech did it without running back Cameron Dickey, who is dealing with a high ankle sprain. The defense has already been strong all season, and at times it’s been elite.
If the offense has turned a corner, that’s a nasty combination.
Not everyone came out of the weekend feeling better about where things stand.
Oklahoma State’s loss to Houston didn’t bury the Cowboys, but it did shine a harsh light on the defense. The secondary had its worst outing of the year, and Weigman picked them apart behind a unit that had no answer. Houston piled up more than 500 yards, and that’s the kind of game that leaves head coach Eric Morris with plenty to sort through.
Still, the offense did enough to keep hope alive. Drew Mestemaker and company scored 32 points and put up points on four of their final five possessions. That side of the ball should keep Oklahoma State in games the rest of the way.
Baylor, though, had a chance to make the kind of move that changes a season. Instead, the Bears followed a four-game winning streak and a bye week by scoring just six points against TCU in the Revivalry at home.
After nearly beating Auburn to open the year, Baylor had a clean path to 6-0 before the stretch run. With BYU, Texas Tech and Houston still ahead, the chance to be undefeated in Big 12 play in November was right there.
Now, it feels like a missed opportunity. The Bears let it slip, and that leaves Dave Aranda with a lot to think about.
Arizona State’s setback looked even uglier. The Sun Devils had to make a quarterback change in the second half, turning from Cutter Boley to Mikey Keene, and that move said plenty about where the offense is right now. It’s sputtering, the defense is giving up points, and the résumé doesn’t have much to point to beyond a win over Kansas in London.
At this point, Arizona State no longer looks like a true Big 12 contender. I was wrong about that team.
In Other News...
Colorado Is Still Turning Road Games Into Must-See Events
Colorados visit to Stillwater is still carrying the kind of buzz that tends to follow Deion Sanders team, even in a stretch where the results have gone against the Buffaloes. Oklahoma State is set for its 105th homecoming game, and the matchup has already been announced as a sellout, giving the weekend the feel of a bigger occasion than a typical late-season stop on the schedule.
The demand has shown up in the resale market, where this game is drawing the highest prices of Oklahoma States remaining home dates. Even with Colorados losing streak in the background, the Buffaloes continue to bring a national profile that makes road games feel like events, and this one has landed in that category before anyone has taken a snap. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State Heads To Colorado With One Warning Fans Cant Ignore
Eric Morris did not sound like a coach overlooking Colorado just because the Buffaloes are sitting on two wins. He called them the best two-win team in the country, pointing to how competitive they have been and the experience they bring into the matchup, a reminder that Oklahoma State is walking into a game with more danger than the record suggests.
The Cowboys, meanwhile, are still juggling personnel on the back end and in the return game. Senior safety Mose Phillips III is out again with a shoulder issue, and the special teams picture also shifted when Braylin Presley got his first chance handling kickoff returns after the top option was nicked up. Those little adjustments can matter on the road, especially against a Colorado team that has made a habit of staying in games. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State Just Got Hope In A Frontcourt Battle That Isn't Over
Parsa Fallahs path back to the floor has gotten a little clearer, even if it is far from settled. The Oklahoma State big man has been back around the program since August as he works his way back from a torn ACL, and a new injunction in the Glancey vs. NCAA case gives him another reason to keep pushing while he rehabs and waits on medical clearance.
The legal fight is still going, with the NCAA planning to appeal, so nothing about Fallahs status is fully locked in yet. For now, though, Steve Lutz is treating Fallah and another player on temporary injunctions like full members of the roster, which gives the Cowboys a bit of hope in the frontcourt while they wait to see whether the eligibility picture changes again. [Read more 🡒]