#2 The Big XII

The Oregon Trail may be picking TCU, but I still see it as Bedlam battle for the crown.

1. Oklahoma University – Sooners – 11-1 / 9-0: OU may have made a bad deal when they signed up for this game with UH.  I think it costs them an undefeated season.  They will still be pressed by OSU and TCU.
2. Oklahoma State University – Cowboys – 11-1 / 8-1: I think a lot of the national press is looking past the Cowboys because of the last three games last year.  Hey they weren’t great, but they were played without key line components and a hobbled QB, that pretty much shut the offense down.  The Cowboys return 17 off of that team (and on CBS they called the Cowboys overrated, but the lowest pick was 4^th), and should be improved.  The sad thing is my numbers show OU stealing another championship from us in Bedlam.
3. Texas Christian University – Horned Frogs – 9-3 / 6-3: TCU lost enough key players they probably come up short in three key games:  vs OU, vs OSU, and @BU.
4. West Virginia University – Mountaineers – 7-5 / 5-4: I’m seeing a split of big out of conference games here with a win over Mizzou, and a loss @BYU.  WVU is the first of a pack of teams that aren’t ready to compete with the top 3, and probably win the home games and lose the road games with those 5 teams.
5. Baylor University – Bears – 7-5 / 5-4: I still think any pick on the Bears will be tough.  I didn’t alter my formula for them so this is simply based on their returning roster, and that was before some of the losses occurred.  They look to be in a mixed results position with wins coming at home or on the road at bottom feeders, and losses coming on the road or at home from the top 3.
6. Kansas State University – Wildcats – 6-6 / 4-5: The Wildcats got all the bad ones at home and most of the good ones on the road.  So they’re coming in a bit south of WVU and BU.
7. Texas Tech University – Red Raiders – 7-5 / 4-5: Tech is again just fighting the averages, one game that could be a big boost for them is BU in Arlington, that would be late win that could push them up into the top 4.  And BU could be hurting by then as their depth has got to be a question mark.
8. University of Texas – Longhorns – 5-7 / 3-6: Well the Longhorns will make some noise with a 2-0 start, but the rest of the season may put some more heat under Charlie Strong’s chair.  Also the schedule is not good for them as they have to travel to OSU, TT, & KSU.  A bit of Red River magic or a Baylor collapsing when they finally visit Austin could dampen the coals a bit.
9. Kansas University – Jayhawks – 2-10 / 1-8: That’s right 2 wins.  They open with Rhode Island, and they have reached a parity point with ISU so they get that game since it’s in Lawrence.
10. Iowa State University – Cyclones – 1-11 / 0-9: Sorry Clones, this is a tough league when you’re low on the totem pole and treading water.  San Jose State could be a 2^nd win to go with Northern Iowa.