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Big 12 Football Power Rankings 2018: Is Texas back after Week 7?

By Patrick Mayhorn

AUSTIN, TX - OCTOBER 13: Collin Johnson #9 of the Texas Longhorns and Breckyn Hager #44 celebrate after the game against the Baylor Bears at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, TX - OCTOBER 13: Collin Johnson #9 of the Texas Longhorns and Breckyn Hager #44 celebrate after the game against the Baylor Bears at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /
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FORT WORTH, TX – OCTOBER 11: Tre King #24 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Amon G. Carter Stadium on October 11, 2018 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
FORT WORTH, TX – OCTOBER 11: Tre King #24 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Amon G. Carter Stadium on October 11, 2018 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

I was, perhaps, a bit overly zealous last week in moving TCU back up to the number three spot. They’re still not very good, and belong in the back half of the conference. This actually illustrates a pretty interesting dynamic in this conference, circulating around the fact that the Big 12 has five good teams, and the cutoff at five is extremely precise. The drop-off after five is steep, and I really think that the difference between Texas Tech and TCU at the end of the year is two or three wins. That could be the difference between a bowl appearance and no bowl appearance, the difference between a coach getting fired or an extension. It’s a wild way for a conference to work.

It’s unfortunate for TCU that they’re in the bad half of the conference, obviously, but I don’t think all is lost quite yet. Their offense needs to improve, but with a young quarterback, they should improve as he gains more experience. Meanwhile, the defense seems pretty solid, so they should be able to hang with just about anyone.

Texas Tech was on the other side of the game with TCU on Thursday night, and because of their win, they’re on the other side of the conference. The good side. Is Texas Tech actually good? I still really don’t think I can say that for sure yet, because I’ve just seen this story from them so many times. However, I can say that about almost every team in this conference. I think my number one team this week is barely a top 25 team. It’s all a jumble.

What we do know is that despite some strange quarterback decisions, Texas Tech won on Thursday, thanks largely to their defense. That’s strange. I don’t expect it to continue, but if Texas Tech can just be pretty good on defense, and like top 20 on offense, they might be a Big 12 title contender.

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