Big 12 Football 2018: Pokes make push for top spot

In Baylor’s first matchup against a power five opponent this year, they did just about what I think they’ll do in all future matchups against power five teams this year. They lost. Baylor was overpowered by a secretly decent Duke team, and failed to score a point in the first half, before finally making some noise in the second half, though not nearly enough.

Duke’s offense wasn’t particularly efficient, but they were good enough to secure a pretty easy win. Neither Jalan McClendon nor Charlie Brewer were very good at quarterback for the Bears, as that battle continues on for far too long. The running game was non-existent, and two turnovers just doomed Baylor, even with Duke missing two of its best players.

After their bad loss to Mississippi State two Saturdays ago, Kansas State got back on track this past Saturday as they took care of business against UTSA. A 24 point win against a bad UTSA team may not be super impressive, but if you don’t consider the ten points UTSA scored in what was essentially garbage time, and if you remember that Kansas State doesn’t care how much they win by, it becomes less concerning.

Overall, this game was fine. I didn’t watch it live, because I’m not an insane person, but in watching the highlights and reading through recaps, it looks like this was a pretty typical Bill Snyder win. Skylar Thompson looked great as the main quarterback, Alex Barnes was alright, and the defense had no real issue with an inexperienced UTSA offense. My only strong take here is that this team needs to clean up the turnovers. They’ve had seven in three games, including two here. That won’t work against good teams.