With two weeks left within the common season, six teams stay alive for the second spot within the Big 12 championship sport and others are nonetheless attempting to turn out to be bowl-eligible.
Based on how the season has performed out thus far, it’s seemingly many of those final video games shall be shut.
The common profitable margin in Big 12 video games is 13.5 factors, lowest among the many Power Five conferences.
In 27 of the 35 convention video games, the margin in some unspecified time in the future within the fourth quarter was one rating (8 factors or much less), in line with Sportradar. Fifteen of these 27 video games ended up determined by one rating.
TCU coach Sonny Dykes factors to high-level teaching and recruiting throughout the board as causes for the competitiveness.
“There’s just no layups,” Dykes mentioned. “Some people have the good fortune of being in leagues where the season starts and they go, ‘Well, we’re going to (win) these six games, then these three games are going to be tough.’ Well, that doesn’t happen in the Big 12.”
Dykes additionally mentioned teams close to or on the backside of the standings have continued to play laborious. Among them is West Virginia, which compelled out athletic director Shane Lyons this week largely due to its struggles in a season that started with a one-score nonconference loss to Pittsburgh and has seen an time beyond regulation loss to Kansas earlier than final week’s win over Oklahoma on a game-ending subject purpose.
“We’re going to continue to fight and get better and win as many games as possible, and do it the right way, like he would want,” coach Neal Brown mentioned.
Oklahoma, tied with the Mountaineers for eighth place, has misplaced its final two video games by a complete of 4 factors, which introduced dwelling the character of the season to educate Brent Venables.
“It will punish you for mistakes, a lack of technique, bad timing, a lack of precision,” he mentioned, “but it will reward you when you do things the right way.”
No. 4 TCU (10-0, 7-0 Big 12) has finished loads proper.
The Horned Frogs beat Texas 17-10 final week to clinch its spot within the Dec. 3 Big 12 title sport in Arlington, Texas. They have prevailed in six convention video games that had one-score margins within the fourth quarter and are firmly within the combine for the College Football Playoff.
“If you’re going to get on the kind of run that we’re on and you’re going to play as many close games as we’ve played,” Dykes mentioned, (*12*)
Entering this weekend, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Baylor, Texas, Texas Tech and Kansas are mathematically alive for the second spot within the championship sport.
No. 19 Kansas State (7-3, 5-2) has the within observe and would clinch on Saturday if it wins at West Virginia and Texas loses at Kansas. If that situation doesn’t unfold, the race could be determined the next weekend.
Ok-State is 3-2 in Big 12 video games that had one-score margins within the fourth quarter. Texas is 2-3 in such video games.
The Big 12 already has six teams which have reached the minimal of six general wins to be certified to play in a bowl. Texas Tech and Oklahoma every want yet another win to turn out to be eligible, and West Virginia and Iowa State would want to win out.
Iowa State (4-6, 1-6) has been the staff with the toughest luck in shut video games. The Cyclones opened convention play with 4 losses by a complete of 14 factors. All seven of their Big 12 video games have had one-score margins within the fourth quarter, and so they’ve misplaced six.
Coach Matt Campbell saluted his gamers’ perseverance by so many robust losses.
“Ninety percent of the teams I’ve been around fold their tent,” Campbell mentioned. “The next thing you know, you get blown out here, you get blown out there, but this team never has and it hasn’t because our seniors have held the standard.”
Texas Tech visits Iowa State on Saturday for a cold-weather assembly of teams attempting to get to bowls.
The Red Raiders wouldn’t have gotten to the Liberty Bowl final season if it hadn’t been for Jonathan Garibay’s 62-yard subject purpose as time expired beat the Cyclones, 41-38.
Iowa State, trying to increase its school-record bowl streak to 6 in a row, is the right illustration of there being no gimmes within the Big 12.
The Cyclones are in final place regardless of main the convention in all 4 main defensive classes.
“This,” first-year Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire mentioned, “is going to be a tight game.”
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AP Sports Writers Stephen Hawkins and John Raby contributed.
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