risers, fallers, and everything in

The football world spins much quicker than what we here on Earth are often accustomed to. In the space of one week, a football team that once seemed to be on a path to league dominance can suddenly seem rudderless and without direction. Another school that felt destined to be the among the worst of their peers has shown real promise to be a conference title contender.

As everyone poses for each week’s conference picture, each team is trying to jostle for position like rebounders fighting for a missed free throw, but this camera’s fast shutter speed doesn’t care about where you were, only where you are.

Power rankings can be cruel and unforgiving, and this is the case with this week’s edition. Week 4’s power rankings were owned by Kansas State and Oklahoma State, each boasting a championship squad that was itching to prove its worth. Unfortunately for these universities, the fresh faces from the Beehive State had an objection to their rule.

The Utah Utes walked into Stillwater, Oklahoma with a backup freshman quarterback in Isaac Wilson and controlled the game from the very beginning. Ollie Gordon II hasn’t looked like last year’s iteration and 7th-year QB Alan Bowman was benched at halftime. The Cowboys couldn’t handle the Utes’ suffocating defense and only brought the game within a score in the final minutes. This game was not as close as the score indicated.

BYU hosted Kansas State for an evening of football in Provo, Utah. This cordial invitation was not a good-natured gesture, however, as the Cougars stomped the Wildcats into the ground. Forcing 3 turnovers, scoring a 90+ yard punt return, and punching it into the endzone time and time again, BYU laid down the hammer and dominated K-State from the end of the second quarter onward, finishing 38-9 over the Wildcats.

Meanwhile, at the bottom, Kansas is back (but in the worst way possible), Houston is astonishingly horrible, and Colorado might have some juice after a Hail Mary led to their home victory over Baylor. Might.

Also, what’s the deal with Texas Tech? From nearly losing to Abilene Christian to taking down Arizona State, this group needs to be studied.

So, who’s the new king of the Big 12, who still has a shot at an at-large bid, and who may already need to shift their focus to next season? Here are this week’s Big 12 power rankings.