Big 12 Power Rankings: BYU Takes Big Jump, Utah Holds Top Spot
Sep 16, 2024, 9:37 PM
BYU football made a jump in the week four edition of the Big 12 Power Rankings. (Courtesy of Jaren Wilkey/BYU Photo)
(Courtesy of Jaren Wilkey/BYU Photo)
SALT LAKE CITY – As we enter week four of the college football season, it’s time for another installment of Big 12 power rankings.
Every week, KSL Sports Zone host Alex Kirry and I drop our Big 12 power rankings on our radio show, “First & 12.”
It airs Sundays at 10 a.m. (MT) until Noon on KSL NewsRadio and the KSL Sports Zone.
You can also listen to the show on the KSL Sports app and all major podcasting platforms.
Big 12 Power Rankings 2024 Season: Week 4
Here’s how we have the power rankings stacked up in the Big 12 entering the week four slate.
1. Utah (3-0, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 1
Utah 38, Utah State 21
This week: at Oklahoma State | 2 p.m. | FOX
Utah got a win without Cam Rising. It wasn’t always pretty in Logan, but they had the ability to turn on a switch against the Aggies.
2. Oklahoma State (3-0, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 2
Oklahoma State 45, Tulsa 10
This week: vs. Utah | 2 p.m. | FOX
Alan Bowman is letting the Big 12 know you can’t simply stack the box to beat Oklahoma State. Saturday in Stillwater is going to be a great showdown.
3. Kansas State (3-0, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 4 (Up 1)
Kansas State 31, Arizona 7
This week: at BYU | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN
What a welcome to the Big 12 moment from Kansas State to Arizona. The only problem was that it was a non-conference game. What’s good for K-State is that 2.8 million people saw that performance.
4. Iowa State (2-0, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 3 (Down 1)
Bye
This week: vs. Arkansas State | Noon | Big 12 Now on ESPN+
Iowa State was able to bask in the glory of a rivalry win over Iowa with a bye week.
5. UCF (3-0, 1-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 6 (Up 1)
UCF 35, TCU 34
This week: Bye
UCF stormed back to pull off a big win in Ft. Worth. The Knights have one of the best backfield tandems in college football.
6. Arizona State (3-0, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 5 (Down 1)
Arizona State 31, Texas State 28
This week: at Texas Tech | 1:30 p.m. | FS1
Texas State tested Arizona State, but the Sun Devils were able to escape San Marcos with a win despite a pedestrian performance from Cam Skattebo.
7. BYU (3-0, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 10 (Up 3)
BYU 34, Wyoming 14
This week: vs. Kansas State | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN
BYU had its best game of the season in a rout over Wyoming in Laramie. The defense is tough, but the running back situation is lean heading into league play.
8. Arizona (2-1, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 7 (Down 1)
Kansas State 31, Arizona 7
This week: Bye
The Wildcats need more than T-Mac to survive the grind of the Big 12.
9. Colorado (2-1, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 12 (Up 3)
Colorado 28, Colorado State 9
This week: vs. Baylor | 6 p.m. | FOX
Travis Hunter is the best player in college football. He continues to do things that we should appreciate more.
10. TCU (2-1, 0-1 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 9 (Down 1)
UCF 35, TCU 34
This week: at SMU | 3 p.m. | The CW
Blowing a 21-point lead at home is not a great start for new defensive coordinator Andy Avalos in Cowtown.
11. Baylor (2-1, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 13 (Up 2)
Baylor 31, Air Force 3
This week: at Colorado | 6 p.m. | FOX
Baylor dominated a bad Air Force team. A good barometer of this Bears team will come on Saturday in Boulder.
12. Texas Tech (2-1, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 16 (Up 4)
Texas Tech 66, North Texas 21
This week: vs. Arizona State | 1:30 p.m. | FS1
Texas Tech looked like the Red Raiders of old, putting up 52 points in the first half on a day they honored Wes Welker.
13. Kansas (1-2, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 8 (Down 5)
UNLV 23, Kansas 20
This week: at West Virginia | 10 a.m. | ESPN2
Jalon Daniels and the Kansas offense are committing too many turnovers. It needs to be fixed quickly.
14. Houston (1-2, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 15 (Up 1)
Houston 33, Rice 7
This week: at Cincinnati | 10 a.m. | FS1
The first win of the Willie Fritz era was a dominating performance over Rice.
15. Cincinnati (2-1, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 14 (Down 1)
Cincinnati 27, Miami (OH) 16
This week: vs. Houston | 10 a.m. | FS1
Cincinnati is better than last year, but it still puts them near the bottom of this poll.
16. West Virginia (1-2, 0-0 Big 12)
Last week’s power ranking: No. 11 (Down 5)
Pitt 38, West Virginia 34
This week: vs. Kansas | 10 a.m. | ESPN2
Someone has to occupy the 16th spot, and the Mountaineers get that nod after losing both of their games to the FBS competition.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
