Baylor leaps up a spot with TCU’s loss, despite being on a bye this past week. They head to West Virginia on Thursday night.
Where does Baylor finish: 8. I want to believe in Baylor. I really do. I like Matt Rhule a lot, and I think he will, in general, turn things around at Baylor. They already have four wins this year, and could absolutely get to six. However, I like Oklahoma State and TCU more. I think the Bears have several winnable games left, and if they can beat Oklahoma State and TCU, I’ll be more than happy to give that sixth spot. I just don’t see that happening.
Texas Tech stays put at five despite their blowout win over Kansas because Kansas is bad. However, I think the Red Raiders are legitimately good this year, and as they face off with better Big 12 teams over the next five games, they have a great chance to move up the rankings. It was great, and surprising to see Alan Bowman back so soon, and I think as long as Tech has him healthy, they can beat almost any team in the conference.
Where does Texas Tech finish: 5. I think Texas Tech is a great story. Kliff Kingsbury is probably going to get another year, and this team is probably going to finish with a pretty solid record. However, the rest of the schedule is extremely tough. I just don’t see them beating any of the next three teams on their schedule, which makes it tough. A 7-5 finish puts them firmly in the top half of the conference, as the divide between five and six is pretty massive.