Winning in the Big 12 never comes easy, but it might be somewhat easier for Oklahoma State in this new era.
Next season, the Cowboys are set for the 21st season of the Mike Gundy era, which has seen the most successful two-decade stretch in program history. However, the 2024 campaign was the worst in recent memory, with OSU going 3-9 and winning no conference games.
Despite those struggles, there is still plenty of optimism surrounding the program. While OSU could easily bounce back next season, it is still adjusting to this new era of the Big 12.
With 16 teams in the conference, the Cowboys are still facing new opponents and playing in new stadiums. Once the Cowboys get accustomed to their new conference foes, they might be able to take advantage of this new Big 12 in a big way.
Of course, the Cowboys didn’t quite begin dominating this new Big 12 last season like some anticipated OSU would in the absence of Oklahoma and Texas. Still, OSU could be able to find a groove and establish itself as one of the premier programs in the conference again as early as next season.
Once the Cowboys are able to get back into the top tier of the Big 12 with consistency, the league having 16 teams will suddenly have a much more defined benefit for the Cowboys. Just a few years ago, OSU was in a 10-team league where every team faced every team, giving OSU the same nine opponents each season.
Now, in the 16-team era, the Cowboys will get a different set of opponents each season, still playing the members of the old Big 12 with slightly more consistency. In that mix, OSU could be able to get some favorable schedules along the way.
While OSU had to face the two preseason favorites to begin the conference slate last season, imagine a year where those preseason favorites aren’t on the slate at all. Add in the potential for OSU to field a playoff-contending team in the near future, and the Cowboys’ hopes of winning the Big 12 could skyrocket depending on their schedule.
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The term underrated can often be used when you’re speaking about the Arizona State Sun Devils, even though they had arguably one of the greatest seasons in the program's history. For a quick recap, let’s go all the way back to the college football playoffs, which is exactly where the Arizona State Sun Devils finished their season, which is already impressive enough. The Sun Devils suffered a shocking loss when it came to the Texas Longhorns, as that is what ended their season after they won 11 football games and only lost three of them, with their loss in the incoming via overtime by eight points. Even with the impressive season from their players like Sam Leavitt or Jordan Tyson, they still didn’t stop people from underwriting them. Kenny Dillingham, as someone who isn’t shy to being underrated as he has helped produce many different talented prospects and put them inside the NFL and now he is bringing the best staff with him as they continue to recruit extremely well, which is something that others should be afraid of. The better this team recruits the more dangerous they become as they are gradually ancient closer to the national championship and could likely even make a run this year but what many don’t realize it’s the fact that this 2026 classes is a home run class for Coach Kenny Dillingham, and these Sun Devils have plenty of potential to go back to the college football playoff sooner rather than later, but this time make a deep run for the national championship. This race is the question. Is it still valid to under-rate the Sun Devils? It is a quick answer of no no it is not valid at this time to discuss how outstanding this Sundevil staff is as I continue to bring in the best recruits, which help push them to a national title type of contention. In my professional opinion as National Recruiting Reporter, I firmly believe that the teams that recruited the best simply play the best. This is something that we have seen with Ohio State which just won the national championship. They aren’t afraid to put time into recruiting prospects, and they land the better prospects in the country. Dillingham and his staff is ancient closer and closer to this, which makes them a dangerous threat to many, even including Ohio State, which is hopeful for a back-to-back run.
Caitlin Clark is expected to sit out for a fourth straight game on Sunday when the Indiana Fever take on the Chicago Sky in a much-awaited rivalry matchup. The 23-year-old is still dealing with a reaggravated groin strain and has no timetable to return. The rest of her Fever teammates have had to step up in her absence. There is, perhaps, no other player who has taken a bigger role on the offensive end amid Clark’s injury spell than three-time All-Star Kelsey Mitchell. Mitchell, however, struggled with her shot in Thursday’s win against the Las Vegas Aces. The 5-foot-8 guard shot the ball poorly in the first three quarters, going just 4-of-19 from the field for 12 points. Mitchell caught fire in the fourth, though. She went 4-of-5 in the final frame for nine points, finishing with a game-high 21 points on 8-of-24 shooting. This is exactly why head coach Stephanie White remains completely confident in Mitchell’s scoring ability. The veteran coach has made it clear that she has given Mitchell the green light to shoot the rock. “The biggest thing with Kelsey is just telling her, ‘Let it fly.’ It’s going to go,” White said after Thursday’s win against Las Vegas. "... Keep shooting it from outside. She made some big ones when we needed them.” Kelsey Mitchell Has Stepped up Amid Clark's Injury Mitchell has answered the call for the Fever of late. In the three games Clark has been sidelined, Mitchell has put up averages of 22.0 points on 42.9% shooting. She also knocked down 2.7 triples during that stretch on a 34.8% clip. The 29-year-old veteran will need to keep her foot on the gas on Sunday as the Fever try to take down the Sky at United Center. With Clark watching from the bench, the Fever will rely on Mitchell’s scoring against Chicago as they look to improve on their 13-12 record. The Fever and Sky meet at 3 p.m. ET Sunday on ABC.
The Toronto Blue Jays have the best record in Major League Baseball. Depth contributions throughout the lineup and on the pitching staff are a major factor in their success, but what might be even more important is the heater shortstop Bo Bichette is on. Like most of the rest of the team, after a slow start, Bichette has found his groove, and he put it all on display as Toronto (63-43) won three of four at AL Central-leading Detroit from Thursday-Sunday. Already with two RBI on Thursday and Friday, Bichette added two RBI in Saturday's 6-1 win that included this unreal 13-pitch at-bat against Tarik Skubal. Not many are taking arguably the best pitcher in baseball 13 pitches deep and forcing a walk. In Toronto's 10-4 loss Sunday, Bichette went 5-for-5 with two more RBI. Per StatMuse, it was his fourth five-hit game in the big leagues. Bichette entered the four-game series with a .281 average and now heads to Baltimore with a .289 average. That's superstar stuff from the 27-year-old two-time All-Star. Through 103 games, Bichette has 13 HRs and 65 RBI, putting him on pace for a 20-HR, 99-RBI season. He has driven in 100 runs only once during his seven-year MLB career. Bichette is doing himself wonders in a contract year, especially after a down, injury-plagued 2024 season. Toronto's chance to extend him at a discounted rate is long gone, and it feels like a formality that Bichette will at least test the market this winter. We've seen megadeals handed out to some of the league's best shortstops in recent years, including the Mets' Francisco Lindor, Texas' Corey Seager, Philadelphia's Trea Turner and Minnesota's Carlos Correa. Combine that with the increasing contract values around baseball, and Bichette is set to receive a massive payday. For now, Bichette's focus is on helping the Blue Jays win and make a postseason run that includes Toronto's first World Series title since 1993.
There may be more to Christian Wilkins’ recent surprise release from the Las Vegas Raiders. NFL reporter Josina Anderson reported Saturday that "some sources believe an incident involving a teammate may have factored in-part into the Raiders' fatigue and release" of Wilkins. The nature of the incident is not clear. However, many believe the Raiders had a very good reason to move on from Wilkins considering the money they had invested in him. It also suggests the Raiders saw no alternative if they went straight to a release. Wilkins was dumped by the Raiders just one year into a four-year, $110 million deal. The Raiders suggested Wilkins failed to take rehab seriously as he tries to work his way back from a foot injury. Other teams do not appear to have the same concerns about Wilkins as the Raiders did, and he should find a new landing spot fairly easily. That is one of the reasons some suspect there is more to the Raiders’ decision than they are publicly saying.
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