Big 12 Power Rankings: Upsets, Thrillers, And A Big Shakeup (Week 7)

Big 12 play is here — so long non-conference schedules — and this past week was another action-packed thriller with some down-to-the wire games, some upsets, and some blowouts.

Baylor finally won it's first home game of the season -- who had that on their bingo card? -- as the Bears rallied for a thrilling 35-34 win over Kansas State. Meanwhile, Kansas held on for a 27-20 thrilling win over UCF on the road, and Cincinnati got the biggest upset of the week as the Bearcats took down then-No. 14 Iowa State 38-30.

Texas Tech continues to look like the team to beat in their dominating 35-11 victory over Houston, while BYU stayed unbeaten with a 38-24 win over West Virginia. Both of these teams will face off in a few weeks. If they both keep winning, it will likely setup a Top 10 showdown in Lubbock.

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With regards to the AP Top 25 poll and for the third week in a row, the Big 12 has four ranked teams. Texas Tech moved up two spots to No. 9 while BYU tied for the biggest move of the week as the Cougars jumped up five spots to No. 18. Arizona State jumped up four spots to No. 21, while Iowa State fell eight spots for it's 8-point loss on the road to a Cincinnati team that should be ranked, but is just barely on the outside looking in at No. 26. Meanwhile, Utah checks in at No. 29 and TCU at No. 34.

With some upsets last week in other P4 conferences (Florida over then-No. 9 Texas, and UCLA over then-No. 7 Penn State), the Big 12 improved its chances of landing multiple teams in the College Football Playoff, but those undefeated and one-loss teams will need to continue winning out to make that happen.

As always, let's hope for more upsets and 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 (5-0, 2-0)

Wins: Arkansas-Pine Bluff (67-7), Kent State (62-14), Oregon State (45-14), No. 16 Utah (34-10), Houston (35-11)
Losses: None

Texas Tech had no trouble taking down previously undefeated Houston, however, it remains to be seen just how good or bad this Houston team is after they nearly lost to winless Oregon State the week before.

Still, the Red Raiders are playing dominant football are clearly look like the favorites for the time being. They'll take their undefeated record up against Kansas this week which has been up and down all year. The Jayhawks are very talented, but they haven't been able to put it all together and narrowly escaped in a win over UCF.

Next up: vs. Kansas

No. 2 BYU (5-0, 2-0)

Wins: Portland State (69-0), Stanford (27-3), East Carolina (34-13), Colorado (24-21), West Virginia (38-24)
Losses: None

For the second game in a row, BYU didn't cover the spread as a garbage time touchdown with a minute left in the game made the game closer than it was. Despite the easy win, the Cougars didn't play very well which shows just how dominant this team can be if they put it all together.

The soft part of their schedule continues with a road game at Arizona. After that, the Cougars will have arguably the toughest stretch in Big 12 play with games against Texas Tech, Utah, Cincinnati, Iowa State and TCU.

Next up: @ Arizona

No. 3 Arizona State (4-1, 2-0)

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

Arizona State is coming off a bye week and it couldn't have come at a better time as they got an extra week to prepare for a showdown against Utah at Rice-Eccles Stadium. A loss could be costly for the Sun Devils which look to get back to the Big 12 title game. They don't play BYU or Cincinnati this year, and well all know how the Big 12 tiebreakers go.

Next up: @ Utah

No. 4 Cincinnati (4-1, 2-0)

Wins: Bowling Green (34-20), Northwestern State (70-0), Kansas (37-34), No. 14 Iowa State (38-30)
Losses: Nebraska (17-20)

Cincinnati made another big statement with its win over then-No. 14 Iowa State at home. Granted, the Cyclones were missing so many starters who were out with injuries, but nonetheless, the Bearcats looked good and were the biggest mover in the power rankings this week.

They'll look to keep things rolling with a showdown at home against UCF.

Next up: vs. UCF

No. 5 Iowa State (5-1, 2-1)

Wins: No. 17 Kansas State (24-21), South Dakota (55-7), Iowa (16-13), Arkansas State (24-16), Arizona (39-14)
Losses: Cincinnati (30-38)

Iowa State dropped the second most in the power rankings this week as the Cyclones lost to Cincinnati on the road, and in a game that wasn't as close as the score indicated. Yes, Iowa State was missing a bunch of guys due to injuries, but the fact that the Cyclones haven't looked like a Top 25 for most of this year is worrisome.

Oddsmakers had Cincinnati as the favorite in that game and this week against Colorado, Iowa State is only a 2.5 point favorite. For a Top 25 team going up against a struggling Buffs team that is 0-3 in Big 12 play, that's not a good sign.

Next up: @ Colorado

No. 6 TCU (4-1, 1-1)

Wins: North Carolina (48-14), Abilene Christian (42-21), SMU (35-24), Colorado (35-21)
Losses: Arizona State (24-27)

TCU bounced back from it's loss to Arizona State two weeks ago with a dominant win over Colorado at home last week. If it wasn't for a slight hiccup at Arizona State -- in which they led most of the way -- the Horned Frogs could be undefeated and would be battling for the top spot.

Up next for TCU is a road game against Kansas State, in which the Wildcats nearly took down Baylor on the road. Oddsmakers have TCU as just a 1.5 favorite.t

Next up: @ Kansas State

No. 7 Utah (4-1, 1-1)

Wins: UCLA (43-10), Cal Poly (63-9), Wyoming (31-6), West Virginia (48-14)
Losses: No. 17 Texas Tech (10-34)

Like Arizona State, Utah also had a bye week this past week as they gear up to not only to face the 21st-ranked Sun Devils at home on Saturday, but the following week is the Holy War as they travel 45 minutes south to Provo to take on No. 18 BYU. The Utes need to win both of those games if they want to have a chance at the Big 12 title game.

Next up: vs. Arizona State

No. 8 Baylor (4-2, 2-1)

Wins: No. 17 SMU (48-45 2OT), Samford (42-7), Oklahoma State (45-27), Kansas State (35-34)
Losses: Auburn (24-38), Arizona State (24-27)

After six weeks, Baylor finally won a game at home... but they didn't make it easy. The Bears needed a last-second field goal to take down Kansas State. The win keeps the Bears' Big 12 title hopes alive. Up next is a bye week as they look to recover before heading out for two road games at TCU and Cincinnati.

Next up: Bye Week

No. 9 Kansas (4-2, 2-1)

Wins: Fresno State (31-7), Wagner (46-7), West Virginia (41-10), UCF (27-20)
Losses: Missouri (31-42), Cincinnati (34-37)

Despite getting down 14-0 on the road, the Jayhawks just kept chipping away until they took the lead for good in the second half en route to a 27-20 victory. Next up for the Jayhawks will be arguably their toughest test of the season as they travel to Lubbock to take on No. 9 Texas Tech. A win would be huge as the rest of the schedule looks pretty favorable.

Next up: @ Texas Tech

No. 10 Houston (4-1, 1-1)

Wins: Stephen F. Austin (27-0), Rice (35-9), Colorado (36-20), Oregon State (27-24)
Losses: Texas Tech (11-35)

Houston's 4-0 record looked inflated, and was inflated as they didn't even give the Red Raiders a game. Instead the Cougars fell in a blowout, showing that this team, doesn't appear to be much different than last year. Houston will look to get back on track as they travel to Stillwater to take on Oklahoma State.

Next up: @ Oklahoma State

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No. 11 Arizona (4-1, 1-1)

Wins: Hawaii (40-6), Weber State (48-3), Kansas State (23-17). Oklahoma State (41-13)
Losses: No. 14 Iowa State (14-39) 

Like Houston, Arizona has also had a really easy schedule so far and the one good team they faced, they lost in a blowout which doesn't inspire confidence. As I mentioned last week, the Wildcats don't appear to be any better than last years team that finished 4-8, including losing seven of their last eight games.

They'll get a chance to prove they are different this weekend when they host BYU in Tucson. Last year, Arizona was 3-1 and walked out of LaVell Edwards Stadium with a 41-19 blowout loss. We'll see if they have a better showing this time around.

Next up: vs. BYU

No. 12 UCF (3-2, 0-2)

Wins: Jacksonville State (17-10), North Carolina A&T (68-7), North Carolina (34-9)
Losses: Kansas State (20-34), Kansas (20-27)

UCF lost a heartbreaker at home in a 27-20 defeat to Kansas. The Knights have now lost two games in a row and their non-conference schedule is getting worse by the minute with North Carolina being it's biggest win. The schedule doesn't get any easier as they go up against a Cincinnati team that just took down Iowa State.

Next up: @ Cincinnati

No. 13 Colorado (2-4, 0-3)

Wins: Delaware (31-7), Wyoming (37-20)
Losses: Georgia Tech (20-27), Houston (20-36), BYU (21-24), TCU (35-21)

Colorado keeps falling short, but at least they are keeping games unlike most of the bottom dwelling teams. It's also deceiving that the Buffs had played a tough Big 12 schedule so far in BYU and TCU, arguably two Top 5 teams conference teams and face Iowa State next. The fact that the Buffs are only 2.5 point underdogs to the Cyclones says a lot about this team. The back half of the schedule gets a little easier and I won't be surprised to see Colorado back in the middle of the pack by then.

Next up: vs. Iowa State

No. 14 Kansas State (2-4, 1-2)

Wins: North Dakota (38-35), UCF (34-20)
Losses: No. 22 Iowa State (21-24), Army (21-24), Arizona (17-23), Baylor (34-35)

Kansas State looks a lot better these last two weeks than they did at the start of the year. Part of that is the return of running back Dylan Edwards, as well as the coaches letting quarterback Avery Johnson run the ball more. The dual-threat quarterback put that on display and nearly knocked of Baylor in a 35-34 loss in Waco.

Next up: @ Baylor

No. 15 West Virginia (2-4, 0-3)

Wins: Robert Morris (45-3), Pittsburgh (31-24, OT)
Losses: Ohio (10-17), Kansas (10-41), Utah (14-48), BYU (38-24)

It's not looking good for the Mountaineers. After a 2-1 start with a win over rival Pitt, things looked good in Morgantown. However, a three-game skid and a bunch of injuries is starting to look turn things into a season to forgot for fans.  The bye this week comes at a perfect time.

Next up: Bye Week

No. 16 Oklahoma State (1-4, 0-2)

Wins: UT Martin (27-7)
Losses: No. 6 Oregon (3-69), Tulsa (12-19), Baylor (27-45), Arizona (13-41)

Like I've mentioned the last two weeks, I don't think Oklahoma State will move from this spot the rest of the season. They got blown out by Arizona which looks like a middle of the road Big 12 team last week. Up next is a home game against Houston with the Cougars rolling in as 15-point favorites.

Next up: vs. Houston

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