Big 12 power rankings: How Week 2 shook things up

During Week 1 of the college football season, the Big 12 went 14-2 collectively.
While that sounds impressive, the majority of those victories came against FCS opponents.
Week 2 for the Big 12 delivered a bit more chaos.
Oklahoma State and Kansas State had to rally to avoid upsets, Colorado fell flat against Nebraska and Utah dominated Baylor in what went in the record books as a nonconference matchup, until an injury put a damper on the win.
Oh, and Iowa State pulled off the best win of the early season for the conference.
How did that shake up the outlook of the conference?
Here’s our look at how the new-look Big 12 stacks up on the field through the second week of the 2024 season:
Utah was cruising to an easy victory when quarterback Cam Rising was lost to a hand injury late in the second quarter. The Utes’ defense shined all day as the Bears never seriously threatened, and coach Kyle Whittingham said postgame that Rising’s injury isn’t too serious, though he didn’t answer Monday whether he’d be ready for next week’s game at Utah State.
Speaking of the Aggies, the Utes will face their in-state rivals for the first time since 2015 in the team’s final nonconference game of the year.
The big question hovering in the background is when Rising will be back, and if it will be in time for the start of conference play — the Utes play at Oklahoma State on Sept. 21. If not, it’ll be Isaac Wilson time, and leaning even more on that stout defense.
Kansas State met a stiff challenge on the road at Tulane — the Green Wave led by 10 at halftime and took a seven-point lead early in the fourth quarter — but to the Wildcats’ credit, they found a way to fight back and earn an impressive win.
While it won’t count in the conference standings, this week’s game should tell us a lot about Kansas State and Arizona, and just how much of a contender both teams will be in the race for the Big 12 title. Thankfully, the game gets its own spotlight on Friday night.
Oklahoma State rallied from a 21-7 halftime deficit to beat Arkansas in double overtime in a thrilling back-and-forth contest. The fact the Cowboys were able to answer the challenge and rally, while leaning on stalwarts like running back Ollie Gordon II, should benefit Oklahoma State when conference play hits.
The Cowboys are hitting the road this week for their only nonconference game away from Stillwater, and Oklahoma State should be a heavy favorite. It’ll be the final tuneup before the Cowboys host league-favorite Utah the next week to start Big 12 play.
The Cyclones had the biggest win for the conference in Week 2, knocking off rival and then-ranked Iowa on the road. Iowa State trailed 13-0 at halftime but outscored the Hawkeyes 14-6 in the third quarter to get back into it, then Kyle Konrardy hit a 53-yard field goal with six seconds left to lift Iowa State to the win.
It’s too bad Iowa State has a bye this week — the Cyclones have momentum after the comeback win, and one national writer, CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm, even placed Iowa State in his College Football Playoff projections after the victory. Still, it gives them a chance to reset before they hit Big 12 play at the end of the month.
Much like when most of its Big 12 counterparts played an FCS team in Week 1, there’s not a whole lot to take away from the Wildcats’ win over Northern Arizona. Arizona was supposed to win, and it took care of business to stay unbeaten and in the top-25 rankings.
This week’s game, though, should be a lot more entertaining and important. Can Arizona, even if it doesn’t count in the league standings, make a statement against one of the other top contenders? It’ll be a solid road test for visiting Arizona.
There was some buzz going into last week that Sam Houston could give UCF a game, but the Knights put that talk to bed with their top-five rushing attack. RJ Harvey had four rushing touchdowns and UCF kept its record unblemished heading into its first conference game.
Now the fun begins. The Knights kick off league play with a road game at TCU, their first conference matchup with TCU since joining the Big 12 last year. The winner gets bragging rights and an early lead in the conference race.
Kenny Dillingham is making a believer out of this reporter with how the Sun Devils have opened the 2024 season after a forgettable 2023. While Mississippi State isn’t projected to be a top-tier SEC team this year, the fact Arizona State built a 30-3 lead — then held off a Bulldogs rally with a dominant rushing attack — is impressive for a program that hit on hard times not that long ago. Also, shoutout to Cam Skattebo and his career-high 262 rushing yards.
Arizona State has a short week to prepare for its first trip outside of Arizona, against a Texas State squad that is 2-0 and projected to win the Sun Belt West Division.
TCU manhandled an overwhelmed FCS opponent in Week 2 — OK, let’s get talking about Week 3.
The Horned Frogs, coming off a losing season, have looked solid enough through two games, but the question is how much they’ve improved — and the competition hasn’t helped us figure that out. The Big 12-opening matchup with UCF should go a long way toward that and help reveal which one could be a dark-horse conference contender.
Kansas entered the fourth quarter of its matchup against Illinois with the lead, but the Jayhawks were outscored 10-0 in the final period and were undone by four turnovers, including three interceptions from Jadon Daniels. It’s a blow to the national profile of one of the perceived best teams in the Big 12.
Could this next week be a trap game? The Mountain West’s UNLV Rebels are 2-0 and have already beaten the Big 12′s Houston convincingly in Week 1. The Jayhawks are a tougher team than Houston, though.
It wasn’t a pretty game from an offensive standpoint, but the Cougars snapped a five-game road losing streak by rallying past SMU. BYU’s defense was brilliant, keeping the Mustangs out of the end zone and forcing a pair of turnovers in the red zone.
The win builds some momentum going into the Cougars’ final nonconference game and gives them a chance to be undefeated once Big 12 play starts in two weeks.
Up next is a familiar rival: former conference counterpart Wyoming. The Cougars and Cowboys are both banged up at running back — how will that impact the game?
After Albany briefly made the game interesting by scoring a pair of quick touchdowns late in the second quarter, West Virginia scored the final 28 points to secure a dominant victory last week over a ranked FCS opponent. It was a nice rebound victory after the Mountaineers lost a lopsided game to Penn State in their opener.
Now West Virginia will hit the road to play at Pittsburgh. Last year, the Mountaineers beat the Panthers, a key win that helped West Virginia get off to a strong start in 2023.
The Bears’ offense looked totally out of sorts in the loss to Utah — the Utes’ defense does that to a lot of people — and transfer quarterback Dequan Finn was misfiring on passes much of the day. It was a less-than-encouraging output for a team whose coach is on the hot seat.
A game against the Mountain West’s Air Force gives Baylor a chance to get things right a little bit before the schedule turns over into the conference slate. The Bears need some positive momentum.
The Red Raiders were no match for Washington State in their first road game of the season. Texas Tech fell behind 34-10 and allowed Cougars quarterback John Mateer to run for 197 yards and one touchdown. That’s not a good sign for conference play — the Big 12 has some of the nation’s best running backs.
Even if Texas Tech does get a win this week against the Mean Green, the Red Raiders are going to go into league action with plenty of question marks surrounding the program. A loss to North Texas, meanwhile, would be a huge red flag.
How do the Bearcats climb a spot in the power rankings? It’s simple — just like Texas Tech, their embarrassing effort was eclipsed by someone else’s (see Colorado at No. 16). Still, Cincinnati let what looked like a solid win slip out of their hands, as Pittsburgh scored the game’s final 22 points after the Bearcats went up 27-6 with just under five minutes left in the third quarter. Ouch.
Can the Bearcats rebound in their final game outside of league play and head into Big 12 action with a winning record? Miami (Ohio) is coming off a bye.
Of all the teams near the bottom of the power rankings, it was the Cougars who gave the best effort last weekend. Houston hung tough with ranked Oklahoma and gave itself a chance to spring the upset, but the Cougars couldn’t quite make it happen.
Rice knocked off Houston in its first year in the Big 12 last year. Can the Owls spoil their entrance into the power conference level for a second straight season?
Someone has to bring up the rear, and for now, that’s Colorado. The Buffaloes, like last year, are struggling in the trenches on both sides of the ball, and as a result, it’s negating the talent at the skill positions. Last Saturday, the Cornhuskers had their way with Colorado, never trailing as they built a 28-0 halftime lead.
Colorado’s game against rival Colorado State presents the Buffaloes with probably its best chance at a victory over the next month and a half. Plus, this year, the Rams don’t have Dallin Holker, the tight end who had a breakout party against Colorado last season.