Big 12 Football Power Rankings Week 4: TCU Shaky, But Still on Top

Big 12 play officially opens up this weekend, with a handful of Big 12 teams either on a bye week or finishing out their non-conference schedules.

Another week down, and another mixed bag across the board in the conference. While there were a few lackluster and/or boring performances, games like Tulsa at Oklahoma and Texas Tech at Arkansas provided plenty of action, surprising results, and lots to talk about. Other teams like Oklahoma State and Texas managed to make some strides in some problem areas, with very different final outcomes. With that said, let’s take a look at how the Big 12 football power rankings fall after a very interesting week.

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1. TCU (3-0)

SMU gave quite the test to TCU, just like they did to Baylor. The Horned Frogs had trouble later into the game than the Bears however, allowing the Mustangs to stay within five points with half of the fourth quarter remaining. Fortunately for Gary Patterson and company, TCU was able to pull away with two touchdowns in the final seven minutes.

The overall performance did little to ease concerns about the defense, a unit that has now lost seven players for a variety of reasons, including beating someone up for a case of Keystone Light. The Horned Frogs gave up 508 yards to SMU…making the upcoming matchup against Texas Tech very worrisome.

2. Baylor (2-0)

Baylor had a mildly successful week off, if you don’t count them dismissing their starting tight end or having an assistant draw criticism for hanging out on Tulsa’s sideline during the OU game. But whatever, at least they didn’t lose, which isn’t likely to change this Saturday at home against Rice.

3. Oklahoma (3-0)

Sep 19, 2015; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) runs for a touchdown against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane during the first quarter at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

OU fans are probably a little conflicted after the Sooner’s 52-38 win at home over Tulsa. Obviously, Baker Mayfield’s play was off the charts, as he amassed 572 yards of total offense while looking like a Doug Flutie/Johnny Manziel hybrid. But…that defense. Yes, Tulsa is one of those fast-paced offenses that is literally the same as Baylor’s, (since head coach Phil Montgomery was the Bears’ play-caller before coming to Tulsa,) but if the Sooners gave up 603 yards to the Golden Hurricane’s offense, what will they give up against Baylor? Or anyone else with a similar offense? Mike Stoops has his hands full right now, but at least he has a week off to figure some things out.

4. Texas Tech (3-0)

Texas Tech’s 35-24 victory on the road over Arkansas should scare everyone a little. Yes, it’s highly likely that Arkansas sucks, but still. The Red Raiders’ defense seems to be getting better every week, and finished very strong in Fayetteville last Saturday, allowing just three points after halftime. Patrick Mahomes seems to be the real deal behind center, and is quite effective running the ball as well. Maybe Kingsbury knows what he’s doing after all — and who didn’t enjoy his words after the game about Brett Bielema? TCU this Saturday provides him with the chance to show whether this team is for real or not.

5. Oklahoma State (3-0)

The Cowboys finally put a full game together in the 69-14 thrashing of UTSA last Saturday. Mason Rudolph looks good, the defense looks great, the offensive line looks better, Ben Grogan made all of his kicks. Things are coming together at the right time for a still-untested OSU team. Playing a Texas team in Austin with an emerging star at quarterback will show what this team can actually do. Something tells me that this Oklahoma State defense won’t be allowing three touchdowns in a quarter…or maybe even the game for that matter. Don’t expect another shootout.

6. West Virginia (2-0)

The Mountaineers had the week off, and slip to No. 6 only because of OSU and Tech’s performances. The Fighting Holgorsens host a decent Maryland team this week, who should provide us a much better performance to gauge this team off of before WVU travels to Norman to face the Sooners on Oct. 3.

7. Kansas State (3-0)

The Wildcats needed three overtimes to dispose of Louisiana Tech at home last weekend. The Wildcats’ defense still looked rather strong despite allowing 451 yards, most of which were through the air. KSU quarterback Joe Hubener still looks serviceable, but will need his defense to hold strong when the offense sputters out, which they will do a lot as the season progresses. One positive thing that came from the win was that running back Justin Silmon became the first Kansas State running back to rush for over 100 yards since…2013.(!) I don’t think anyone knows what to really think about this team.

8. Texas (1-2)

Sep 19, 2015; Austin, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Jerrod Heard (13) carries the ball against the California Golden Bears during the fourth quarter at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Cal beat Texas 45-44. Mandatory Credit: Brendan Maloney-USA TODAY Sports

People need to settle down about Jerrod Heard. I’m not downplaying his talent, but people are acting like Texas is suddenly some kind of threat. Nearly all of his stats have come against two teams who have defenses that exist solely to slow the opposing team down and pass the time until their high-powered offenses can come back out. I’m not saying he won’t be a star by season’s end and on into next season, but this team will be losing a lot of games over the next month, starting on Saturday. There’s no way the Longhorns’ offense roams as free as it did against Cal when they face OSU.

9. Iowa State (1-2)

The Cyclones basically outplayed a good Toledo team on the road in a 30-23 overtime loss, but couldn’t catch a break or make plays when they needed to in the extended time of play. Sam Richardson continued his solid and veteran play at quarterback, and ISU actually managed to get the Big 12’s worst running game going, finishing with 207 yards. Regardless, their bowl hopes are probably screwed. Paul Rhoads’ team gets the next week off to prepare for an easy home game against Kansas.

10. Kansas (0-3)

The Jayhawks managed to not lose last weekend, but that’s only because they didn’t play. The 2015 Kansas Winless World Tour picks back up this Saturday with a trip to Rutgers. This season is obviously the epitome of a rebuilding year, but at least it gives head coach David Beaty 12

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