Is West Virginia the Worst Team in the Big 12? New Power Rankings Are Out

The third full weekend of league play is in the books. Each Sunday, we'll update our Big 12 power rankings throughout the season. Here's how I see things through Week 6. If the ranking changed from last week, you'll see last week's ranking listed in parentheses.

16. Oklahoma State Cowboys

The Pokes were crushed by Arizona on the road, and I'm not sure they'll win another game this calendar year. There's not much difference between OSU and WVU, but winnable games are fewer and farther between for the Cowboys.

15. West Virginia Mountaineers

Much like Oklahoma State, WVU will be underdogs in every one of its remaining games (maybe with the exception of Colorado). Khalil Wilkins showed some things, so maybe there's a glimmer of hope heading into the bye week.

14. Colorado Buffaloes

I was impressed with how long the Buffs kept TCU's offense in check. A 14-14 game heading into the fourth quarter was unexpected, but the Frogs' offense came to life and put CU away.

13. UCF Knights

It's hard to win games when you get shut out in the second half. The Knights learned that on Saturday, against a defense that gave up a billion yards to Cincinnati the week before.

12. Kansas State Wildcats

K-State blew a two-score lead in Waco, and with that loss, the Wildcats drop to a very surprising 2-4 on the season.

11. Houston Cougars

Houston got humbled on Saturday by Texas Tech after getting out to a red-hot 4-0 start. They'll bounce back.

10. Arizona Wildcats

Arizona took care of business against Oklahoma State and didn't allow the loss to Iowa State to beat them twice. Their defense has now allowed 17 or fewer points in four of their five games.

9. Baylor Bears

Huge comeback win for the Bears, but that defense is concerning and is a major reason why I have them ranked in the bottom half of these rankings. If they figure things out on that side of the ball, they'll rise quickly.

8. Kansas Jayhawks

A nice, solid road win over UCF, even if it wasn't in a convincing fashion. Right now, Kansas just needs to find ways to collect wins, especially with the schedule set to ramp up.

7. BYU Cougars (6)

The 38-24 score doesn't indicate how in control BYU was of this game. This one felt in the Cougars' favor the minute they went up two scores. They fall one spot, but it's because of Cincinnati's upset of Iowa State.

6. Iowa State Cyclones (2)

Loved the fight Iowa State showed on the road after a really ugly start. They'll need to bounce back next week at Colorado before entering a brutal three-game stretch vs. BYU, Arizona State, and TCU.

5. Cincinnati Bearcats (7)

The Bearcats jumped on Iowa State and looked like they were going to run them out of the building, scoring 31 in the first half. They toyed with fire, but came away with the win and are now a top-five team in the league.

4. Utah Utes (5)

BYE WEEK

3. TCU Horned Frogs (4)

It took a while for TCU to get separation on Colorado, but Josh Hoover did his thing again, tossing four touchdowns in a 35-21 win.

2. Arizona State Sun Devils (3)

BYE WEEK

1. Texas Tech Red Raiders

I went bold and predicted Houston to spring the upset, but Tech dominated. They are real, folks. Money can buy happiness after all.