Big 12 Power Rankings: A New No. 1 — No. 25 BYU-CU, No. 24 TCU-ASU Headline Week 5

It was as another great weekend for the Big 12 as the conference went 4-1 in non-conference games, including 2-0 against ACC teams.

For the season, the Big 12 is now 6-1 against the ACC and now has the second highest winning percentage against P4 opponents this year.

The SEC leads the way at 10-3, while the Big 12 is right behind at 8-6. The Big Ten is third at 5-6, while the ACC is last among P4 conferences at 5-12. The Big 12’s 8 wins vs. P4 opponents, ties the 2002 season for the most non-conference wins against P4 competition.

Power 4 Conference Records

• SEC: 10-3

• Big 12: 8-6

• Big 10: 5-6

• ACC: 5-12

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With regards to the AP Top 25 poll, the Big 12 got some more respect as the league now has four ranked teams this week, compared to just three the past two weeks. Texas Tech moved up five spots to No. 12, while Iowa State -- which had a bye -- dropped two spots to land at No. 14.

Meanwhile, Utah, which was ranked 16th last week, dropped out entirely after getting blown out at home (34-10) against the Red Raiders. BYU which is undefeated and has been stuck at No. 26 since the preseason, finally moved into the Top 25 as the Cougars land at No. 25. TCU also jumped into the rankings at No. 24 after taking down SMU (35-24) at home. Meanwhile Utah (No. 29), Arizona State (No. 30), and UCF (No. 35) are receiving votes. With just a couple upsets, the Big 12 could have six teams in the Top 25 next week.

Let's hope for more chaos this weekend.

Important Note: Rankings are based on what teams have done on the field so far this season — not a prediction of where they'll finish. While current performance carries the most weight, last year’s performance is also factored in through the first half of the season.

No. 1 Texas Tech (4-0, 1-0)

Wins: Arkansas-Pine Bluff (67-7), Kent State (62-14), Oregon State (45-14), No. 16 Utah (34-10)
Losses: None

Texas Tech's soft non-conference schedule has held them back in the power rankings, but a win on the road over then-No. 16 Utah gives them the top spot this week. Not only did the Red Raiders win on the road, they did so with their backup quarterback (Will Hammond) after Behren Morton went down with an injury. Hammond made the most of his opportunity by completing 13-of-16 passes for 169 yards and two touchdowns.

Next up: Bye Week

No. 2 TCU (3-0, 0-0)

Wins: North Carolina (48-14), Abilene Christian (42-21), SMU (35-24)
Losses: None

TCU stays at No. 2 this week. While the blowout opening season win over North Carolina doesn't look as good as it originally did, the Horned Frogs made up for it with a double-digit win over SMU. In the big showdown, Josh Hoover -- who continues to pick up where he left off last year -- threw 5 touchdown passes in the win.

Next up for TCU is a trip to Tempe, Arizona as the Horned Frogs will face their toughest test yet against the Sun Devils.

Next up: @ Arizona State

No. 3 Iowa State (4-0, 1-0)

Wins: No. 17 Kansas State (24-21), South Dakota (55-7), Iowa (16-13), Arkansas State (24-16)
Losses: None

Iowa State no longer holds the top spot after its Top 25 win over Kansas State looks worse and worse with each passing week. The Wildcats are currently the second worst team in the Big 12 as of now, so the only thing the Cyclones can hang their hat on is a 16-13 win over rival Iowa which hasn't played anyone. So the jury is still out on Iowa State.

The Cyclones will get a chance to improve their resume as they host unbeaten Arizona at Jack Trice Stadium.

Next up: vs. Arizona

No. 4 BYU (3-0, 0-0)

Wins: Portland State (69-0), Stanford (27-3), East Carolina (34-13)
Losses: None

Nobody knew what to expect as the Cougars travelled to the east coast to take on a red-hot East Carolina team. Combined with true freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier making his first career road start, oddsmakers predicted a close one with BYU winning by just a touchdown. Instead, BYU cruised to a 34-13 victory, and it's dominating defense continues to shine with a pick-6, as well as holding the Pirates to season lows in a number of offensive categories.

Next up is a road trip to Boulder to take on Colorado to open Big 12 play. This will arguably be the toughest test yet for the Cougars. Oddsmakers expect a close one, but I think BYU easily covers again.

Next up: @ Colorado

No. 5 Arizona State (3-1, 1-0)

Wins: Northern Arizona (38-19), Texas State (34-15), Baylor (27-24)
Losses: Mississippi State (20-24)

Arizona State continues to play well as they go on the road to take down Baylor 27-24 on the last second field goal from Jesus Gomez. Impressively, the Sun Devil defense held Baylor‘s high octane offense to just 357 yards. The schedule doesn’t get any easier as Arizona State hosts No. 24 TCU Saturday night in prime time showdown on FOX.

Next up: vs. No. 24 TCU

No. 6 Houston (3-0, 1-0)

Wins: Stephen F. Austin (27-0), Rice (35-9), Colorado (36-20)
Losses: None

Undefeated Houston continues to move up as the Cougars had a bye week after taking down Colorado two weeks ago. Houston returns to nonconference play as they go on the road to face winless Oregon State. The Cougars are favored by two touchdowns and they should do just that.

Next up: @ Oregon State

No. 7 Kansas (3-1, 1-0)

Wins: Fresno State (31-7), Wagner (46-7), West Virginia (41-10)
Losses: Missouri (31-42)

Watch out. Kansas looks like a Big 12 contender this year as the Jayhawks blew out West Virginia at home. Their only loss this year is to the top 20 Missouri team on the road in a game they should have won. This week the Jayhawks will face Cincinnati Saturday morning and oddsmakers think it’ll be a close one with Kansas favored by only 4.5 points. I expect Kansas to win by more than a touchdown.

Next up: vs. Cincinnati

No. 8 UCF (3-0, 0-0)

Wins: Jacksonville State (17-10), North Carolina A&T (68-7), North Carolina (34-9)
Losses: None

UCF started the season slow, but they are clicking on all cylinders now. After blowing out North Carolina, the Knights will now travel to Manhattan, Kansas to take on Kansas State. Despite being undefeated and Kansas State being 1-3 on the season, the Knights aren't even favored as oddsmakers have the Wildcats favored by 5.5 points. UCF will look to make a statement and prove all the doubters wrong on Saturday.

Next up: @ Kansas State

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No. 9 Arizona (3-0, 0-0)

Wins: Hawaii (40-6), Weber State (48-3), Kansas State (23-17)
Losses: None

Arizona enjoyed a bye week after taking down Kansas State at home two weeks ago. They'll look to keep it going this week as they travel to Ames, Iowa to take on No. 14 Iowa State in what will big their toughest test yet. We'll know a lot about them after this game.

Next up: @ No. 14 Iowa State

No. 10 Baylor (2-2, 0-1)

Wins: No. 17 SMU (48-45 2OT), Samford (42-7)
Losses: Auburn (24-38), Arizona State (24-27)

Baylor dropped seven spots -- the most this week -- as the Bears fell to 2-2 on the season after another home loss. Baylor has had one of the toughest schedules to date, but they get a break the next two weeks with Oklahoma State and Kansas State on the schedule.

Next up: @ Oklahoma State 

No. 11 Utah (3-1, 0-1)

Wins: UCLA (43-10), Cal Poly (63-9), Wyoming (31-6)
Losses: No. 17 Texas Tech (10-34)

I don't expect Utah to stay down here long, but I don't think they are contenders either based on their poor performance against Texas Tech at home. The Utes will look to bounce back as they travel to Morgantown to take on what appears to be a really bad West Virginia team.

Next up: @ West Virginia

No. 12 Colorado (2-2, 0-1)

Wins: Delaware (31-7), Wyoming (37-20)
Losses: Georgia Tech (20-27), Houston (20-36)

So far Colorado looks like a middle of the road team, similar to Utah. The buffs are still trying to find their quarterback, but it appears to be Kaidon Salter who played well against Wyoming as he threw for three touchdowns and more than 300 yards. However, the senior transfer has also been benched twice this year so Colorado needs to figure it out fast with Big 12 play starting. They gave No. 25 BYU in a rematch of the Alamo Bowl which the Cougars won 36-14.

Next up: vs. No. 25 BYU

No. 13 Cincinnati (2-1)

Wins: Bowling Green (34-20), Northwestern State (70-0)
Losses: Nebraska (17-20)

Cincinnati is coming off of by week and will face their toughest competition yet as the Bearcats travel to Lawrence, Kansas to take on the Jayhawks. it’s hard to say if Cincinnati is any good based on their soft non-conference schedule. The only decent team they played they ended up losing. Saturday will show where this team stands.

Next up: @ Kansas

No. 14 West Virginia (2-2, 0-1)

Wins: Robert Morris (45-3), Pittsburgh (31-24, OT)
Losses: Ohio (10-17), Kansas (10-41)

After a win over Pittsburgh and in the backyard brawl, it looked as though West Virginia got its mojo back. Instead, the mountaineers got blown out on the road to Kansas. We’ll see how they do against Utah at home to see where this team stands. A win could keep their bowl hopes alive, while a loss could dash those hopes.

Next up: @ Kansas

No. 15 Kansas State (1-3, 0-1)

Wins: North Dakota (38-35)
Losses: No. 22 Iowa State (21-24), Army (21-24), Arizona (17-23)

Kansas State is coming off a bye week and looks to bounce back against UCF at home. Surprisingly, the Wildcats are favored by 5.5 points, so oddsmakers still believe in them. A loss here would be devastating if they want any chance of making a bowl game this year though.

Next up: vs. UCF

No. 16 Oklahoma State (1-2, 0-0)

Wins: UT Martin (27-7)
Losses: No. 6 Oregon (3-69), Tulsa (12-19)

I don't think Oklahoma State will move from this spot the rest of the season after the Cowboys just fired head coach Mike Gundy after starting the season 1-2 and getting blown out in the process. Gundy was the second-longest-tenured FBS head coach and was in his 21st season leading the Cowboys. Oh how fast they have fallen as Oklahoma State was a Top 10 teams just a couple years ago.

Next up: vs. Baylor

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