Big 12 Football Power Rankings: TCU Dominates, But Is It Enough for No. 1?

We can officially say that Week 1 of the 2025 college football season is in the rearview mirror after TCU smacked around UNC on Monday night in Chapel Hill. So with that, all 16 Big 12 football teams have played at least one game. So now, it’s time for our first Power Rankings of the Big 12 season. A reminder on how I do these rankings: They are based on what you have actually done on the field, not what we think you will do throughout the remainder of the season. So, with that, here’s a look at our Week 2 Big 12 football power rankings for the 2025 season.

1. TCU Horned Frogs

Well, that was a blow out on Monday night of Bill Belichick. Sure, maybe UNC is going to stink this season, but that was damn impressive on both sides of the ball from Sonny Dykes’ team. And it was a road Power 4 win. Credit where it’s due.

2. Iowa State Cyclones

Iowa State is the only 2-0 team in the Big 12, including a conference win over Kansas State. And then, there was no hangover after the return from Ireland, absolutely smashing South Dakota 55-7. The Cyclones look like they haven’t missed a beat from last season.

3. Utah Utes

Utah had a dominant win over UCLA on Saturday night behind new quarterback Devon Dampier, an offensive line that is stout, and a defensive line that owned the night as well. A Power 4 win to start the season is easily worthy of a Top 3 spot.

4. Kansas Jayhawks

The Jayhawks are off to a 2-0 start after beating Group of 5 Fresno State and then Wagner on Saturday. Not the best competition, but they’ve played two games and have dominated both opponents. Jalon Daniels looks vastly improved from early last season when he was still rusty coming off injury.

5. Arizona Wildcats

Arizona welcomed in Hawaii and smoked ’em, and held a high-octane passing offense in check, which was the most impressive part of the Wildcats’ performance. For a team projected to finish near the bottom of the Big 12, this was an impressive start to the season in Tucson.

6. Cincinnati Bearcats

Yes, the Cincinnati Bearcats lost, but with everyone having only one game under their belt, I give credit to a team who played a Power 4 opponent over those who are blowing out FCS teams. Cincinnati’s defense was pretty darn good against Nebraska in a game that was technically a home game, but felt like a road game at Arrowhead Stadium. Evan Pryor, the Ohio State transfer, has real potential to be a star at running back, too. There’s reason to believe better times are ahead at Cincinnati.

7. Colorado Buffaloes

The Colorado Buffaloes lost at home to Georgia Tech, but all things considered, there are reasons to be optimistic on the Buffaloes. Kaidon Salter looked really solid at quarterback and the offensive line has come a long way as well. Questions are there on the defensive line, but this team looks like it will stay competitive.

8. Baylor Bears

Baylor’s run defense was abysmal against Auburn on Friday night. The offense also wasn’t up to par. This was a bad loss for Dave Aranda‘s team, who looked sloppy and unprepared at times, especially in key moments against Auburn. Maybe the Tigers will end up being a top SEC team, but something tells me this game says more about Baylor than it does Auburn.

9. Texas Tech Red Raiders

The Red Raiders blew out UAPB on Saturday night, and survived a scare with quarterback Behren Morton suffering a lower leg injury. The defensive line, led by Stanford transfer David Bailey, was especially scary. Tech looks like it can be one of the more dangerous Big 12 teams this season.

10. BYU Cougars

Welcome to the show, Bear Bachmeier. The freshman quarterback looked like a veteran on Saturday. Albeit, against Portland State, but if BYU’s defense lives up to expectations, and Bachmeier keeps developing, this is an encouraging sign for BYU this season.

11. Houston Cougars

Speaking of defense, Houston brought it last week in a shut out win over Stephen F. Austin. And quarterback Connor Weigman looks like he can spark some life into an offense that didn’t have much last season.

12. West Virginia Mountaineers

It was Robert Morris, but it was a dominant win and a celebration of welcoming Rich Rod back to Morgantown. Now, it’s Ohio this weekend, and WVU is only a 3-point favorite, so Vegas may not be all that high on the Mountaineers. At least not yet.

13. Oklahoma State Cowboys

Hauss Hejny looked like the real deal at quarterback against UT Martin, but then he broke his foot. Zane Flores held his own in the back up role as well, but UT Martin is UT Martin. For all the improvements we saw, it really gets tested Saturday at Oregon.

14. Arizona State Wildcats

Arizona State is a Big 12 contender, but it was sloppy at times on Saturday against Northern Arizona. Kenny Dillingham was the first one to admit that. Go smack around Mississippi State this weekend and the conversation changes entirely.

15. Kansas State Wildcats

A loss to Iowa State and a game that should have been a loss to North Dakota? Yikes. A less than ideal start in Manhattan. Now, it’s time for Army. But the Wildcats, who are also dealing with injuries, have a lot to figure out before conference play starts, or starts back up, in their case.

16. UCF Knights

A ho-hum seven-point win over Jacksonville State. Thankfully, Scott Frost moved to Tayven Jackson at quarterback. One thing that stood out to me? The defense looked small along the line. That will be an issue come Big 12 play.