Although most teams in the Big 12 faced non-power 5 schools in their season openers, the conference showed why it is one of the best and deepest in the country. The Big 12 conference went 14-2 over the weekend, with West Virginia University and University of Houston being the only two teams to lose. West Virginia lost to No. 8-ranked Penn State University and Houston fell to unranked University of Nevada, Las Vegas. With only two Big 12 teams losing, there is not much change in my Big 12 rankings headed into Week 2.
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Utah (Previous Ranking: 1)
The University of Utah dominated Southern Utah University in their season opener with a final score of 49-0. Cam Rising was great in his first game in over a year, throwing for 254 yards and 5 touchdowns. Utah will face off at home against Baylor this week, which will be the first Big 12 conference matchup of this year’s season.
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Kansas State (Previous Ranking: 2)
Kansas State University stays at No. 2 after beating the University of Tennessee at Martin 41-6. Kansas State’s defense held Tennessee-Martin to 98 passing yards, showing why they are one of the premier defenses in the Big 12. Kansas State heads to New Orleans this weekend to play Tulane University.
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Arizona (Previous Ranking: 3)
Tetairoa McMillan put on a record breaking performance against New Mexico with 10 catches for 304 yards and four touchdowns. Arizona’s defense struggled against a poor offense which is cause for concern if you are a Wildcat fan. Arizona plays Northern Arizona this Saturday.
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Oklahoma State (Previous Ranking: 4)
Oklahoma State University stays at No. 4 after a 24-point win against South Dakota State University. Ollie Gordon showed why he is the best running back in the Big 12, rushing for 104 yards and 2 touchdowns. Oklahoma State hosts Arkansas in week two.
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Iowa State (Previous Ranking: 7)
Iowa State University moves up to No.5 in this week’s ranking after a 21-3 win against the University of North Dakota. Although the offense struggled to move the ball at times, Iowa State’s experienced and talented defense held North Dakota to only 3 points. The Cyclones will have to rely on their defense heavily to win games in the Big 12. They head to Iowa to play No. 25 University of Iowa next Saturday.
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Colorado (Previous Ranking: 8)
University of Colorado Boulder’s stars Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter showed out in their week zero win, beating North Dakota State University 31-26. Along with playing great defense, Hunter had seven catches for 132 yards and 3 touchdowns. Can Travis Hunter perform on both sides of the ball all year and stay healthy? That remains a big question mark for the Buffaloes, who will play in Nebraska this Saturday.
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West Virginia (Previous Ranking: 5)
Although beating Penn State would have been an upset, West Virginia was projected to make it a closer game than it was. Quarterback Garret Greene underperformed against a tough Penn State defense, throwing for only 161 yards and no touchdowns. West Virginia will look to bounce back against Albany in week two.
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TCU (Previous Ranking: 6)
TCU struggled against an average Stanford University team in week one, only winning by a touchdown, which drops them down two spots in this week’s power rankings. They will play their home opener against Long Island University this Saturday.
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Kansas (Previous Ranking: 9)
As expected, University of Kansas blew out their week one opponent Lindenwood University 48-3. The Jayhawks will have more of a test this weekend when they play the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.
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UCF (Previous Ranking: 10)
Like Kansas, the University of Central Florida handled business against a weaker opponent in week one, beating the University of New Hampshire 57-3. UCF will have another easy matchup this weekend when they host Sam Houston State University.
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BYU (Previous Ranking: 12)
BYU started off the season strong beating Southern Illinois University 41-13. They will have a much tougher matchup this week as they are 10.5 point road underdogs against SMU.
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Baylor (Previous Ranking: 13)
Baylor University hosted Tarleton State University last Saturday and slaughtered them 45-3. Dave Arnada will have to get his team prepared for this week as they travel to Salt Lake City to play arguably the best Big 12 team, the University of Utah Utes.
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Texas Tech (Previous Ranking: 11)
Texas Tech survived a potential upset against Abilene Christian University in week one, beating Abilene Christian 52-51 in overtime. Tech’s poor performance is why the team dropped two spots on this week’s rankings. The Raiders are two point underdogs on the road against Washington State University this Saturday.
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Arizona State (Previous Ranking: 16)
Arizona State University was impressive in week one, beating the University of Wyoming 48-7. They have a good opportunity this weekend to climb higher on this list if they beat Mississippi State University.
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Cincinnati (Previous Ranking: 15)
The University of Cincinnati beat Towson University 38-20 in their home opener. They are two point favorites against the University of Pittsburgh this Saturday.
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Houston (Previous Ranking: 14)
Houston had a tough first game of the season, losing to UNLV, 27-7, with only 247 yards of offense. Houston will have a chance to bounce back this Saturday against No. 15 University of Oklahoma.
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