The 2024 college football season is underway and the Big 12 starts a new era with 16 teams in the conference. Week 8 saw all 16 teams in action playing Big 12 games for the first time ever in this new-look conference. And there were upsets and surprises across the board.
Here’s a reminder on how I’ve done this for year or for those of you who are new at Heartland College Sports: It’s about how your team looked and how it played, not always about if your team won or lost. And last week’s rankings have little impact on this week’s. That’s what makes this fun. These are also not predictions for the way the season will end, just a Power Rankings based on performances by a team to date.
1. Iowa State Cyclones (Last Week: 1)
Well, it was dicey for the teams atop the Power Rankings this week, but they held on, both, coincidentally, by the exact same score. Iowa State came from two scores down to beat UCF 38-35, as Rocco Becht executed an impressive two-minute drive to put Iowa State on top late in the fourth quarter in Ames to remain undefeated. The Hilton Magic slide across the parking lot to Jack Trice on Saturday. Iowa State’s No. 1 spot is well deserved.
2. BYU Cougars (Last Week: 2)
BYU maintains its No. 2 spot, also having to executive a late one-minute drive in the 4th quarter to beat Oklahoma State on Friday 38-35. The Cougars arguably played their poorest game of the season, but they sealed a victory to also improve to 7-0. Teams of destiny figure out how to win games like that, and that’s what BYU did.
3. Kansas State Wildcats (Last Week: 3)
I almost controversially moved Kansas State up to No. 2, but elected not to. BYU’s head-to-head win over K-State is impressive, but something tells me if they were to meet on a neutral field next week, K-State would open up as a slight favorite. That’s how good the Cats have looked as of late, and they showcased it again in Morgantown with a dominant victory.
4. Colorado Buffaloes (Last Week: 5)
Colorado moves up one slot after blasting Arizona on the road, as Travis Hunter had himself a quiet game, leaving with an injury, but the Buffaloes didn’t need him. Colorado continues to improve in the trenches, most notably on the offensive line, while the defensive line quietly leads the Big 12 in sacks. Give that unit some credit, because they’re helping this team contend in the Big 12.
Related: Big 12 Football Week 8: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
5. Cincinnati Bearcats (Last Week: 7)
Cincinnati keeps quietly climbing the Power Rankings after another solid win vs. Arizona State. They’re 5-2 and the two losses are by a combined four points (Pittsburgh, Texas Tech). It’s coming together nicely for the Bearcats, but they’ll have to do more to prove to doubters they’re legit Big 12 contenders this season.
6. Baylor Bears (Last Week: 14)
This might be the most controversial decision of the Power Rankings this week. But look, Baylor had three-straight losses to arguably three of the best teams in the Big 12 in Colorado (which needed a Hail Mary), BYU and Iowa State. I know they didn’t look good in the two latter games, but still, those are high-end losses in this league, and then they went out and put on one of the most impressive halves of football we’ve seen this season in that second half vs. Texas Tech, where they ended the game with five-straight touchdowns.
Related: Five Biggest Takeaways From Week 8 of the Big 12 Football Season
7. Texas Tech Red Raiders (Last Week: 4)
Texas Tech falls from No. 4 to No. 7 this week. I could make the case to move them down further, but given they are 3-1, with some solid wins in this league, I’m electing to keep them in the top half. I’ve recently said I wanted to see more from Tech, and the more we saw on Saturday, the uglier it got. That was a brutal performance vs. Baylor.
8. West Virginia Mountaineers (Last Week: 8)
West Virginia should be right where it is here at No. 8. They are the perfect “middle” team in the Big 12. They lose to who they should lose to, and they beat who they should beat. But for Neal Brown and WVU, they’ve now lost nine consecutive games vs. ranked opponents. For a program with WVU’s history, that’s unacceptable.
9. Arizona State Sun Devils (Last Week: 6)
Arizona State had a great start in Cincinnati, but couldn’t mount a comeback when they needed to with a back up quarterback in control of the offense. Plus, teams moving multiple time zones east have struggled all season. Arizona State now gets a bye week after an incredible start to the season, based on the preseason expectations, which had this team finishing last in the Big 12.
Related: Look: Kenny Dillingham Apologizes on Social Media for Critical Kicker Comments
10. UCF Knights (Last Week: 11)
UCF gets a little bit of credit here for taking the No. 1 team down to the wire. But there are still major issues for the program, like how to complete a pass. The running game got going, led by RJ Harvey, the defense had some big picks, but passing the football in 2024 is kind of important, and this team doesn’t know how to do it.
11. TCU Horned Frogs (Last Week: 15)
TCU came off the bye and pulled off a road win at Utah, which was fairly unexpected. They did a better job not turning the ball over, but there’s still a lot to do for this program to prove it’s turning the corner this season under Sonny Dykes. If they beat Texas Tech this weekend, then TCU fans can start to believe again.
12. Kansas Jayhawks (Last Week: 16)
Kansas felt like it took all its frustrations from their five-game losing streak out on Houston. Jalon Daniels looked like the quarterback we all thought he could be, while the secondary looked like what we expected from that unit. They’re only 2-5, but I could see KU playing spoiler down the stretch.
13. Oklahoma State Cowboys (Last Week: 13)
Like UCF, Oklahoma State deserves credit for taking one of the undefeated Big 12 teams down to the wire on the road. But the defense couldn’t make a stop when they needed to. This season remains a huge disappointment for the Pokes, no matter how you spin it. Moral victories should not be a thing in Stillwater.
14. Arizona Wildcats (Last Week: 9)
Arizona’s wheels have totally fallen off after another awful loss. The Wildcats are a mess on both sides of the ball, but the offense woes remain one of the biggest surprises in the entire Big 12 Conference. It’s the second-least efficient offense in the Big 12, according to league stats, ahead of only Utah.
15. Utah Utes (Last Week: 10)
Utah’s slide continued with a bad loss to a TCU team that was in the dumps before coming to Salt Lake City. The defense has been solid, but the offense has been abysmal. This led to the resignation of offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig on Sunday night. Time to get some new blood into that coaching room.
16. Houston Cougars (Last Week: 12)
Houston’s win over TCU two weeks ago was nice, but to come out of a bye week and get blasted like they did at Kansas is a tough look for UH. Granted, they had to go back to Donovan Smith at QB, but it didn’t really matter. This team struggled on both sides of the ball in a big way.
