AP PHOTO – Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht, left, looks to pass the ball over Houston defensive back Bryan Massey (22) during the first half of a Big 12 Conference football game Sept. 28 in Houston.
STILLWATER, Okla. — Texas Tech leads several holdover programs standing tall in the new-look Big 12.
The conference has added eight schools the past two years, and several are affecting the race to reach the title game. But longtime members Tech, Iowa State and West Virginia are carrying the banner for the old guard, joining newcomers Colorado and BYU as unbeaten teams in conference play.
Texas Tech defeated Arizona 28-22 last Saturday to improve to 3-0 in the league. The Red Raiders’ conference wins have been by a combined 17 points, but those victories have them alone at the top of the standings. They have a week off before they host Baylor.
“We got to the bye, we put ourselves in a good position,” Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire said. “We’ve got to get healthy. We’ve got to fix some things, you know, and then we’ve got to go 1-0. … You can’t get ahead of your head of yourself. You’ve got to be in the moment.”
In 1996, four Texas schools from the old Southwest Conference and the Big 8 members merged to form the Big 12. Iowa State from the Big 8 and Texas Tech from the Southwest joined the Big 12 in its inaugural year. West Virginia joined the league in 2012.
None of the three have claimed a Big 12 title, but their chances of finally breaking through increased significantly when Texas and Oklahoma left for the Southeastern Conference in July. No. 1 Texas and No. 18 Oklahoma meet in Dallas on Saturday in a game that usually had Big 12 title implications.
Now, Iowa State at West Virginia has title implications, with both off to 2-0 starts in the league. Iowa State — at No. 11, the highest-ranked team in the Big 12 this season — rolled past Baylor 43-21 last Saturday while West Virginia knocked off Oklahoma State 38-14.
Iowa State’s offense has leaned on quarterback Rocco Becht. He’s passed for 1,173 yards and nine touchdowns this season.
Cyclones coach Matt Campbell said Becht is making smart decisions.
“It’s great to have great targets to throw to, but I think the ability to have the poise in the moment and be able to read the entire field … the thing that’s been fun about those — it’s not the first read, it’s the second, third or fourth read in the progression,” Campbell said. “It tells you his moxie and his growth.”
Iowa State leads the Big 12 in total defense, allowing just 271.6 yards per game.
West Virginia is fueled by a ground game that ranks third in the conference with 223 yards per game. Quarterback Garrett Greene and running backs C.J. Donaldson and Jahiem White have been a dangerous triple threat. The Mountaineers ran for 389 yards and had the ball for nearly 44 minutes on Saturday.
Oklahoma State entered the season as one of the favorites in the conference. The Cowboys have been tough to beat at home under coach Mike Gundy the past two decades, so the win was important to the Mountaineers.
“Against a team like this — even though the season may not be going for them like they would like it to, for us to come out like that for a full 60 minutes and play the way we did — that adds a lot of confidence, especially going to next week’s game with a really good team,” West Virginia linebacker Josiah Trotter said.
All three of Texas Tech’s Big 12 wins have come against newer conference members — Arizona State, Cincinnati and, most recently, Arizona on the road last Saturday.
Tahj Brooks leads the conference with 679 yards rushing, good for 135.8 yards per game. He ran for 128 yards and three touchdowns against Arizona. The Red Raiders are third in the league with 460.5 total yards per game.
The number that matters most to McGuire is the record.
“There have been dogfights,” the Texas Tech coach said. “I think that’s how the Big 12 is going to be every single week. And then we’ll be right there as far as, like — I mean, we’re OK playing these one-score games, and we’re going to play for four quarters.”
