Big 12 Update: Conference Favorites Solidified

The cream has risen to the trop. And the Cowboys have dropped to the bottom.

With five weeks left in the regular season, four teams have asserted themselves as real favorites to compete for a Big 12 title in Arlington the first weekend in December. BYU and Iowa State are the last unbeaten squads left, while Kansas State and Colorado each have just one conference loss. Meanwhile, Oklahoma State is still the only team winless in Big 12 play after a 38-28 loss to Baylor, which you can read about here.

Here’s a look at what happened throughout the rest of the league.

No. 11 BYU 37, UCF 24

The Cougars left Orlando still unbeaten as they continue to climb the rankings. This one was never in question after BYU jumped to an early 17-0 lead.

BYU will go into its bye week at 8-0 before facing in-state rival Utah, which is on a four-game losing streak. UCF will host Arizona at 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

TCU 35, Texas Tech 34

TCU scored a pair of unanswered touchdowns in the fourth quarter to steal this one from Tech and improve to 5-3, while the Red Raiders dropped to 5-3. Tech has now lost two straight while the Horned Frogs have won their last two.

After beating OSU in Waco, Baylor will host the TCU as both teams are looking for a third straight win. The Red Raiders will look to get back on track with a trip to No. 11 Iowa State.

West Virginia 31, Arizona 26

The Mountaineers fought off a late comeback try from Arizona to get back to .500 at 4-4. Arizona, meanwhile, is 3-5 in its first season in the Big 12.

WVU gets a week off before heading to Cincinnati. Arizona will cross a few time zones to play UCF in Orlando.

Houston 17, Utah 14

The Utes haven’t won a football game since beating OSU in Stillwater in their first true Big 12 matchup. Houston was originally thought to be the punching bag of the conference but has notched a pair of Big 12 wins, while preseason darlings Utah and OSU are the ones getting beat up on.

Utah will need a drastic turnaround during its bye week before taking on in-state rival BYU. Houston will host Kansas State at 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

No. 16 Kansas State 29, Kansas 27

The Jayhawks nearly ended their 15-year drought against their most hated rival, but instead, K-State fought off the upset and made it 16 wins in a row in the rivalry. Down 27-23 at the start of the fourth, K-State shut down the Jayhawks and made a pair of field goals to win and remain a Big 12 frontrunner.

K-State heads to Houston next at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, while KU, at 2-6, will get a week off before hosting undefeated Iowa State.

Colorado 34, Cincinnati 23

Coach Prime’s squad solidified itself as a real contender late Saturday night.

Both teams entered the contest at 5-2 with one conference loss, but Colorado proved to be on another level than the Bearcats. Colorado will get a week off now before going to Texas Tech, and Cincinnati will host West Virginia after a bye week.

Big 12 Standings