Another Big Weekend Lies Ahead for the Big 12

For the first time in awhile, the Big 12 is getting some much needed respect.

Thank you, OU and TCU.

Both teams went on the road and knocked off a Power 5 opponent, with OU’s big-time win over Ohio State and TCU knocking off Arkansas in Fayetteville.

If you haven’t noticed, people noticed, and suddenly the negative comments over Week 1’s surprising loses by Texas and Baylor are directed squarely at those programs and not the league as a whole.

Fast forward to this coming weekend, and the conference has another BIG opportunity to make a statement. There may not be a marquee game of the caliber of OU-Ohio State, but with half of the league taking on Power 5 opponents, there are a lot of opportunities to fortify the belief that the Big 12 is back.

It starts at 11:00 a.m. with Oklahoma Sate on the road to face the Pittsburgh Panthers in the house that the Rooneys built. Pitt may not be a top-25 team, but beating any ACC program right now looks good, especially if the Cowboys can do so convincingly. Plus, this is a Pitt program that knocked off Penn State and Clemson last year.

Throw in Kansas State on the road at a sneaky good Vanderbilt team and Texas Tech with a chance to start 3-0 with a win over Arizona State, and the Big 12 will earn some more respect if they can go 3-0 in those three games.

For the league’s reputation to continue to rebound this season, they need their best to win big.

OSU is a 13.5 point favorite over Pitt. Kansas State is a 4-point favorite over Vandy. Tech (yes Tech) is a 7.5-point favorite over Arizona State. If those three teams can all win, and do so convincingly, it helps tremendously.

A bonus would be if Texas was able to knock off USC or Baylor was able to rebound and beat Duke.

The league has missed out on a couple of opportunities with West Virginia coming up short against Virginia Tech in week one, and Iowa State blowing a 4th-quarter 10-point lead at home against their in-state rival Iowa.

The Big 12 can make another big statement this weekend. It may not be “planting your school flag in the middle of the Horseshoe” big, but it’s still one that will carry weight all season long.