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Big 12 Football Power Rankings, Week 8: Oklahoma makes statement

By Dante Pryor

DALLAS, TEXAS - OCTOBER 12: Jalen Hurts #1 of the Oklahoma Sooners wears the Golden Hat trophy after defeating the Texas Longhorns 34-27 during the 2019 AT&T Red River Showdown at Cotton Bowl on October 12, 2019 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
DALLAS, TEXAS - OCTOBER 12: Jalen Hurts #1 of the Oklahoma Sooners wears the Golden Hat trophy after defeating the Texas Longhorns 34-27 during the 2019 AT&T Red River Showdown at Cotton Bowl on October 12, 2019 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
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WACO, TEXAS – OCTOBER 12: Erik Ezukanma #84 and SaRodorick Thompson #28 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders celebrate a fourth-quarter touchdown against the Baylor Bears on October 12, 2019 in Waco, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
WACO, TEXAS – OCTOBER 12: Erik Ezukanma #84 and SaRodorick Thompson #28 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders celebrate a fourth-quarter touchdown against the Baylor Bears on October 12, 2019 in Waco, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images) /

7. player. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. Last Week: 7. Texas Tech Red Raiders. 874. 3-3, 1-2

There isn’t much room for bias or opinion in these Big 12 power rankings, but Jett Duffey should start for Texas Tech the rest of the season. The Red Raiders are a different team with him under center. They play with a different energy than they do with Alan Bowman — he’s the future, so you can redshirt him and ride with Duffey.

This season specifically, Duffey is a better fit for what first-year head coach Matt Wells wants to do offensively. Wells likes dual-threat quarterbacks, and that’s what he had at Utah State.

Texas Tech has a manageable schedule book-ended by two tough games against Iowa State and Texas. Bowman is out for the foreseeable future, so this is the perfect time for Duffey to prove he’s the best man for the job.

3-3, 1-2. Last Week: 6. player. Pick Analysis. 877. Scouting Report. West Virginia Mountaineers. 6

The Mountaineers looked like a tire team against Iowa State Saturday. After giving Texas everything it could handle two weeks ago, the Mountaineers simply had nothing left against Iowa State. Austin Kendall left the game early because of injury and the Mountaineer defense couldn’t stop the Iowa State offense in the second half. Three turnovers didn’t help West Virginia’s cause.

Unfortunately things don’t get any easier for the Mountaineers as they travel to Norman to face the Sooners in the first of two difficult road games.

Also, this is the point in the season where teams that aren’t deep usually get exposed. Neal Brown is a fantastic coach, but when you don’t have the jimmies and joes, the x’s and o’s don’t matter much.

Last Week: 5. Oklahoma State Cowboys. 5. Pick Analysis. 4-2, 1-2. 856. Scouting Report. player

The Cowboys were off this week healing from their second conference loss to the Red Raiders in Lubbock. Hopefully the ‘Pokes are saddled up. They play two of the best defenses in the conference as they invite Baylor to Stillwater this weekend, and traveling to Jack Trice to take on the Iowa State Cyclones the next week. They still have one of the best trios in the country with quarterback Spencer Sanders, running back Chuba Hubbard and wide out Tylan Wallace. We’ll see how their defense — which hasn’t been bad — holds up for the rest of the season.

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