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| POWER RANKINGS |
#1. Baylor Bears (6-0, 2-0)
Last Week - Defeated KSU 35-25
Baylor takes over the top spot for the first time this season despite escaping Manhattan with a narrow (by the Bears standards) victory over KSU. The Wildcats had a 25-21 lead going in to the 4th quarter but Baylor scored 14 in the 4th to pull out the 35-25 win. I expected the Bears to be tested, just not at K-State. It looks more and more like Baylor's year. It also appears that Baylor is the only thing that will keep them from going undefeated.
Up next: Iowa State
#2. Texas Tech Red Raiders (6-0, 3-0)
Last Week - Defeated Iowa State 42-35
Tech remains unbeaten and impressive. Tech beat Iowa State this week in a game that was tied 21-21 at the half and saw both teams score 14 in the 4th quarter. The difference in the game was Tech winning the 3rd quarter 7-0. While the Red Raiders struggled against Iowa State at home, they found a way to win. With each win Tech gains confidence. It wasn't an easy win but it was a win. Good teams find a way to win. The Red Raiders are a good team.
Up next: At West Virginia
#3. Oklahoma Sooners (5-1, 2-1)
Last Week - Lost to Texas 36-20
Oklahoma threw out a clunker in Dallas at the Cotton Bowl. Going in to the game the Texas fans were selling their tickets because even they thought they were going to lose. The Sooners failed in every aspect of their game and Texas didn't. The Red River Rivalry is a game where the determining factor is often emotion. You can toss the win-loss records. This year The Longhorns were full of emotion from the kick off. The only emotion the Sooners felt was the stinging sorrow of losing to their rivals.
Up next: At Kansas
#4. Oklahoma State Cowboys (4-1, 1-1)
Last Week - Bye
The best news for the Pokes coming out of the bye week is that OU lost. I'm positive the Cowboy faithful were starting to wonder if things were reverting to the past, good Sooners bad Cowboys. The bad news for OSU is they play an improving TCU team Saturday. The Cowboys no longer look invincible at home. A loss this Saturday and the Pokes season will get a lot longer.
Up next: Texas Christian
#5. TCU Horned Frogs (3-3, 1-2)
Last Week - Defeated Kansas 27-17
TCU beat Kansas Saturday in a game that was tied 10-10 at the half and saw the Horned Frogs give away five turnovers. TCU put the game away, as always, with a strong second half. The Horned Frogs are improving and I believe they will continue to improve. The worst part of their schedule is done. The game at OSU is winnable with the Horned Frogs defense. From that point they can win every game left in their schedule. I wouldn't be surprised to see TCU finish with no more losses than they have right now.
Up next: At Oklahoma State
#6. Texas Longhorns (4-2, 3-0)
Last Week - Defeated Oklahoma 36-20
I didn't move the Longhorns up this week, despite beating the Sooners, because they had to win the game. The win does not make the Longhorns a better team. I think they are the same Texas team everyone thought they were before last week. Average. Remember, in 1996 John Blake finished the season with a 3-8 record at OU. One of the three wins was against Texas. The Longhorns finished 8-5 that season and won the Big 12 Championship. Mack Brown has his sights set on a Big 12 Championship this year. I think OU has a better chance of accomplishing that feat. Texas, will enjoy the bye week. Reality will strike again in two weeks.
Up next: Bye week
#7. West Virginia Mountaineers (3-3, 1-2)
Last Week - Bye
This spot is a toss up between the Mountaineers and the Wildcats. Baylor thumped WVU and struggled against the Wildcats. However, KSU still has not won a Big 12 game. The Mountaineers have been up and down this season and have yet to establish an identity. We will see if the bye week helped them get any closer. We may not know if WVU is better than KSU until the season is over. Either way, I don't see KSU or WVU getting any higher than #7 as the season progresses.
Up next: Texas Tech
#8. Kansas State Wildcats (2-4, 0-3)
Last Week - Lost to Baylor 35-25
Kansas State managed to do something no one else had accomplished this year. Keep Baylor under 70. However, it wasn't enough to win. The Wildcats may finish the season with only 2 Big 12 wins if they can beat Iowa State. That's a big if. The Wildcats play well enough but they are inconsistent and can't seem to close game strong. Bill Snyder's magic may be running out. He finished his first reign on top, he might finish this current one in the basement.
Up next: Bye week
#9. Iowa State Cyclones (1-4, 0-2)
Last Week - Lost to Texas Tech 42-35
The Cyclones are not a bad team. They hung tough with The Red Raiders on Saturday and should have beat Texas two weeks ago. That aside, they are still winless in the Big 12. They will beat some Big 12 opponents and I predict will finish the season much higher than #9. Paul Rhodes is a quality coach and would win a lot more games in a bigger program. He manages to get a great deal out of one and two star recruits. Rhodes will succeed, he just may have to leave Ames to do it.
Up next: At Baylor
#10. Kansas Jayhawks (2-3, 0-2)
Last Week - Lost to TCU 27-17
The Jayhawks are bad and should manage to go winless in the Big 12. The Jayhawks seem to play really hard in the first quarter but once they get behind, or get closer to the second half they seem to wilt. They don't put up much of a fight in the second half and are usually done by the start of the 4th quarter. Perhaps they are thinking about the Jayhawk basketball opener or the after game party. Either way, the Kansas fans will continue to treat home games as a large cocktail party while patiently awaiting the start of the basketball season.
Up next: Oklahoma
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