Big 12 College Football Power Rankings for Week 2 (2024)

The2024 college football season is underway and the Big 12 starts a new era with 16 teams in the conference. The league went 14-2 in Week 1, with losses coming for West Virginia against No. 8 Penn State and Houston being upset by UNLV.

So now it’s time for our Big 12 Power Rankings. Here’s a reminder on how I’ve done this for year or for those of you who are new at Heartland College Sports: It’s about how your team looked and how it played, notalwaysabout if your team won or lost. And last week’s rankings have little impact on this week’s. That’s what makes this fun. These are also not predictions for the way the season will end, just a Power Rankings based on the most recent performances.

1. Oklahoma State Cowboys

The Cowboys had to open against the reining FCS Champs in South Dakota State, and looked like they picked up right where they left off last season with Ollie Gordon carrying the load on their way to an easy victory that was never in doubt. The offensive line needs to get better ahead of league play, but overall this team will be where we thought it was going to be.

2. Utah Utes

What more can you ask for? 49-0 against a far superior opponent for a team that’s expected to compete atop the Big 12. Cam Rising came out healthy, that’s really all that mattered, but five touchdowns in the first half certainly helps as well. Rising’s output marked the first time Utah had five passing TDs in a half since Brian Johnson against San Diego State in 2008, the last season Utah went undefeated.

3. Arizona State Sun Devils

Arizona State was the surprise of the week in the Big 12. They nearly shut out Wyoming, who they were only favored to beat by a touchdown, and did it with an explosive offense and defense. I don’t want to overreact to Week 1, but they deserve this slot because we’ve only played one game, and guess what, the Sun Devils looked as good as anyone against decent competition.

4. TCU Horned Frogs

TCU’s game may have been overlooked by some given the late start on a Friday, but the Frogs went out west in a tough spot and came from behind to beat an ACC team (weird to say, but that’s what Stanford is). They settled in as the game progressed, and while I think the offense is ahead of the defense, the defense made adjustments in the second half to help seal the win.

5. Kansas State Wildcats

On the flip side, I sense Kansas State’s defense is ahead of its offseason after one game, a blowout win vs. UT Martin. But the trio of Avery Johnson-DJ Giddens-Dylan Edwards showed glimpses of what is going to be a thrilling offense when it all comes together for that side of the ball.

6. Baylor Bears

Last season, Baylor was fresh off a Week 1 loss to Texas State. That’s not the case after blowing out Tarleton. Dave Aranda looks like a different man now that he’s calling the defensive plays again for the first time in years, while Dequan Finn might be the answer he’s been searching for at quarterback the last couple. This week in SLC vs. Utah will be a real test, though.

7. West Virginia Mountaineers

West Virginia lost their game to Penn State, but the Mountaineers had by far the toughest opponent in the entire Big 12, and it’s not even close. I wanted to have them higher, despite the loss, but I can’t justify it. WVU looked overmatched and frankly looked like the moment was just too big for them in front of a raucous home crowd. That being said, there’s no need to overreact. In a new 12-team playoff model, the game is, more-or-less, meaningless in terms of how WVU can still achieve its goals.

8. Arizona Wildcats

Arizona’s offense is a mile ahead of its defense. But that’s in part because the offense is just going to be that good, and that damn fun to watch with Noah Fifita and Tetairoa McMillan. They could end up being the most-lethal QB-WR combo in America. Will that lead to a bunch of Big 12 wins? It depends what happens on the other side of the ball.

9. BYU Cougars

BYU was only favored by a couple of touchdowns in this game but went on to blow out Southern Illinois 41-13. I was most impressed by the growth from QB Jake Retzlaff, who had good pocket awareness, mobility and a nice quick release. I’m not sure my expectations change dramatically for BYU, but it was a great way to start the season.

10. Colorado Buffaloes

Colorado hung on, in spite of itself, to beat North Dakota State in a tough match up on Thursday night. But NDSU is one of the best FCS games a team can schedule in Week 1, so all in all, for Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes to get to 1-0, that’s really all that matters. But the questions on depth, defense and more still linger.

11. Kansas Jayhawks

KU rolled over an easy Lindenwood opponent, but kept it very vanilla for Jalon Daniels and the offense. It was just a chance to get him on the field for the first time in nearly a year and get comfortable seeing action in a real game. There’s not much else to take away from this game, but there’s much more to learn this week vs. Illinois.

12. UCF Knights

UCF rolled to over 450 rushing yards in their opener vs. New Hampshire with a 57-3 win. This team will go far as its running game, while hoping its defense bends and doesn’t break. But KJ Jefferson’s passing game is going to have to improve if the Knights want to find themselves in Arlington come December.

13. Iowa State Cyclones

Death, taxes and Iowa State football underwhelming against an FCS opponent. They won the game 21-3 over North Dakota, but it was still just one of those weird, early-season Iowa State games that is super vanilla and leaves you wanting more if you’re an ISU fan. By the way, Iowa State’s Week 1 plans to go super vanilla doesn’t end up resulting in a positive outcome in Week 2 vs. Iowa. Just saying.

14. Cincinnati Bearcats

Cincinnati’s second year under Scott Satterfield got off to a solid start with a big win over Towson. QB Brendan Sorsby impressed in his debut for the Bearcats. But the defense left something to be desired, and special teams were a problem for the Bearcats, primarily in the first half. The Bearcats muffed a punt, had a kickoff go out of bounds, and kicker Carter Brown missed a 31-yard field goal.

15. Texas Tech Red Raiders

The Red Raiders were 32-point favorites vs. Abilene Christian and nearly blew it, holding on for a 52-51 overtime win. And frankly, if not for some awful play calls by ACU late in regulation, and then on a two-point conversation in the first overtime, Texas Tech might be 1-0 right now. The offense looks fine, but the defense, especially in the secondary, yikes…

16. Houston Cougars

Houston wasn’t even competitive against UNLV on Saturday. We know Willie Fritz had a big rebuild on his hands, but this team was anemic. Donovan Smith never got in a rhythm and he got no help from his offense line. Houston will get better as the season progresses, but that was as brutal a Week 1 start as any Cougars fan could have imagined.