Another Week of Upsets?

The Big 12 lived up to its reputation with a wild week ten that saw Iowa State and K-State go down in major upsets. Contenders Colorado and BYU are on the road this week – are more surprises on the horizon?

Let’s dive right in to week eleven in the Big 12. 

P.S. I owe you guys the men’s basketball anonymous player survey. This week has been a little hectic, but I promise you will see the first installment of it next week. Thank you for your patience!

You can see the full football anonymous player survey from this summer here in the meantime.

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Week Eleven Primer

I’ll be previewing games every week based on a scale of one to five Yormarks. Five Yormarks is the most entertaining and enticing game possible, while one Yormark is a snooze-fest. 

Here’s your week eleven primer! All times listed are Central Time (CST)

Five Yormarks

#21 Colorado (6-2, 4-1) at Texas Tech (6-3, 4-2) – 3:00 Fox
Line: Colorado -3.5

It’s been a while since Lubbock has seen a game with this much on the line. There are Big 12 title and College Football Playoff implications, and Fox’s Big Noon Kickoff is in town. Red Raider fans are starving to finally shatter a decade-and-a-half-long eight-win ceiling, so you know this will be a top-notch atmosphere.

Last week, Iowa State and K-State's losses cleared a legitimate path for Colorado to reach the Big 12 championship game and College Football Playoff. The tiebreaker scenarios will be tricky for the Buffaloes if they wind up tied with ISU, but the door is open much wider than it was a week ago.

Texas Tech is still in the mix, too, thanks to arguably the biggest win of the Big 12 season last week in Ames. At 6-3, the Red Raiders are off to their best start through nine games since 2013.

I’m expecting plenty of points scored on Saturday. Both teams average over 32 points per game in conference play and feature some of the league’s biggest stars. Everybody knows about Colorado Heisman candidates Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders, but not enough people know about Tech star running back Tahj Brooks. 

Brooks averages 130 yards per game and scored the game-winning touchdown at Iowa State last week. The Red Raiders also have a better-than-expected passing attack to complement Brooks. Tech is only one spot behind Colorado on the list of Big 12 passing yards leaders. 

Defense is where Colorado could have the edge. Nobody in the Big 12 gives up more passing yards than Texas Tech, which seems like a bad recipe against one of the nation’s most dynamic passing attacks. Meanwhile, Buffs defensive coordinator Robert Livingston has done an excellent job putting together what has turned into an above-average unit this year. 

The Buffs were bothered by a raucous home crowd in Lincoln, Nebraska, earlier this year. Can the Lubbock faithful get to them? That could be a much-needed boost for the Tech defense. 

Coach Prime says his team is ready for it – tortillas included. This is the soundbite of the week in the Big 12. 

4 Yormarks

#9 BYU (8-0, 5-0) at Utah (4-4, 1-4) – 9:15 ESPN
Line: BYU -3.5

One of the best things the Big 12 gained in conference realignment is the Holy War. On Saturday, we get our first look at what this storied rivalry looks like under the Big 12 banner. 

The talk for this game started in July at Big 12 media days. Remember Utah quarterback Cam Rising stirring things up?

Rising won’t be playing, and his injuries spearheaded a disastrous season for the Utes. But Utah linebacker Karene Reid told KSL’s Josh Furlong that the Utes still relish the chance to ruin their rival’s unbeaten season. 

"I would prefer to have had that record, but to be on that side where you can ruin their season and kind of have that nothing-to-lose edge, hungry mentality is — it's dangerous."

Based on the teams' records, the Vegas line on this game is much closer than you might think. That’s to be expected in a rivalry game with the favorite on the road. 

How will an anemic Utah offense move the ball against one of the Big 12’s best defenses? They’ll have to start by protecting the football. Nobody in the Big 12 forces more turnovers than BYU, and nobody in the Big 12 throws more interceptions than Utah. 

We’ll see who plays quarterback for the Utes. Head coach Kyle Whittingham reopened the quarterback competition between Issac Wilson and Brandon Rose during the bye week. Neither was effective in a loss to Houston two weeks ago.

Beyond the rivalry, there’s no shortage of motivation here for the Cougars after being slighted by the College Football Playoff selection committee on Tuesday. 

Can they avoid having a dream season derailed by their bitter rival? I can’t wait to find out. 

#17 Iowa State (7-1, 4-1) at Kansas (2-6, 1-4) – 2:30 FS1
Line: ISU -3

Who is going to have more fans in attendance at Arrowhead? 

Kansas is in the midst of a bitterly disappointing season, and Iowa State packs Kansas City’s T-Mobile Center every year for the Big 12 tournament. Cyclones’ fans haven’t had a chance to hit Arrowhead since 2009 and 2010’s losses to K-State. It’s been tough for Kansas to muster much of a home field advantage in KC this year anyway, but it will likely be more challenging this week.

The question on the field is how motivated Kansas will be. Despite a 2-5 record, the Jayhawks pushed K-State to the brink in their last game before falling 29-27. They’ve led in the fourth quarter of five of their six losses. They’re third in the Big 12 at 6.4 yards per play in conference games. There’s enough talent there to beat the Cyclones, especially if they get the version of Iowa State that played UCF and Texas Tech. 

Everything is still on the table for the Clones. If they win out, they’ll likely be in the Big 12 championship game with a shot at the College Football Playoff. 

“I would say there’s definitely a sense of urgency, like there has been all season, but even more prominent here at practice,” Iowa State linebacker Kooper Ebel told the AP. “At times, we’re just inches off, and those inches really matter, and they showed up last Saturday. We’re honing in on those details — those little details.”

If Kansas wins out, the Jayhawks will be bowl eligible. Head coach Lance Leipold insists his team has stuck together through the struggles this year. 

They’ll get the chance to play spoiler with three straight games against Big 12 contenders Iowa State, BYU, and Colorado.

3 Yormarks

West Virginia (4-4, 3-2) at Cincinnati (5-3, 3-2) – 11:00 FS1
Line: Cincy -4.5

Believe it or not, this is a matchup of two teams that are technically still alive for the Big 12 championship game and College Football Playoff. 

It’s also an old Big East rivalry. The Bearcats and Mountaineers met every year from 2005 to 2011. 

This isn’t the same West Virginia team we’ve seen most of the year. It should be start number two for WVU quarterback Nicco Marchiol, who threw for 198 yards and two touchdowns in a win at Arizona two weeks ago. Saturday will also be the debut of Jeff Koonz as the Mountaineers defensive coordinator after Jordan Lesley was let go during the bye week. 

Cincinnati can get bowl eligible and double its win total from last year by beating West Virginia. It’s been a very encouraging second season for head coach Scott Satterfield, but back-to-back road trips to K-State and Iowa State are looming. Securing bowl eligibility at home before making those trips would be big for the program. 

UCF (4-5, 2-4) at Arizona State (6-3, 3-2) – 6:00 ESPN2
Line: ASU -3

Both of these teams are feeling much better after blowout wins last week. 

UCF put up 600 yards of offense on Arizona and took out the frustration of a brutal five-game losing streak. Arizona State let star running back Cam Skattebo do almost everything in Stillwater, where he out-gained Oklahoma State by himself in a 42-21 win. 

But it may have come at a cost. ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham listed Skattebo as “doubtful to questionable” for Saturday after he was hurt on this play late in the Oklahoma State game. 

That may rob us of one of the best running back match-ups in the country. As impressive as Skattebo’s 125 yards per game and 5.8 yards per carry have been this year, UCF’s RJ Harvey is averaging 133 and 7.0. 

Harvey’s new partner in crime looked like the quarterback of the future last week in the win over Arizona. Dylan Rizk, the fourth quarterback to play for the Knights this year, racked up 349 yards and three touchdowns against the Wildcats. 

A win would go a long way for either team. For UCF, it would be a big step toward bowl eligibility. Arizona State wants to keep pace with the two-loss teams in the Big 12 title race.

2 Yormarks

Oklahoma State (3-6, 0-6) at TCU (5-4, 3-3) – 6:00 FS1

Line: TCU -10.5

I have to give Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy credit. Yes, it’s been a miserable season. But he executed one of the best news dumps I’ve ever seen this week. 

On Monday, Gundy incited criticism from all corners of the Oklahoma State fan base with these comments, which were aimed at anybody who was critical of the program. 

After letting fan frustration simmer for over 24 hours, Gundy issued a public apology – at 9:28 p.m. on election night. 

That, my friends, is how it’s done. 

You can’t use that same phrase about virtually anything happening on the football field for the Cowboys this year. They’ve lost six straight and, most recently, were out-gained as a team by Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo in a 21-point loss. 

TCU isn’t feeling much better after losing on a last-second field goal to rival Baylor in Waco last week. That loss effectively killed any hope of rallying to get to the Big 12 championship game. 

Based on the Horned Frogs' remaining schedule, there’s a viable path to 8-4, but TCU has struggled to string three good performances together all season. 

The Horned Frogs’ defense will be shorthanded against Ollie Gordon on the defensive line due to injury issues, but Sonny Dykes’ offense should have no trouble scoring on an OSU defense that has allowed 38+ points to each of its last five opponents.

1 Yormark

None

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