Where do we even begin with the Big XII? The same conference that provided many of highlight reel material for Sports Center on Saturday nights for their fast break offenses also captured the eyes and ears of the college football world as the result of a three way tie near the end of the season. Oklahoma, Texas, and Texas Tech each finished with one loss in conference and Big XII officials were confused on how to deal with the situation. They dove into the conference rule book and decided that Oklahoma should have the good fortune of winning the Big XII South.
Texans hadn’t been this angry since the Bush/Gore battle for the White House in 2000. One would think that after dealing with this mess that the powers in the Big XII would have changed the tiebreaker rule during the off-season ensuring that a situation like this would not reoccur. Well think again. Against popular opinion and common sense, the coaches in the conference decided that the tiebreaker system should stay in place and nothing should change. The recommendation will be sent to conference officials who will then have the final decision on what the procedure should be. Regardless of conference official’s shortcomings the Big XII will be full of excitement and frenzy this fall. To top it off, the Big XII Championship moving from Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas to the new Dallas Cowboys’ stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Let’s look at the forecast for the two divisions
North:
Since the inception of the Big XII conference championship, the North has only won four conference titles compared to eight by the South. The North also has not won a conference title since Kansas State blew out Oklahoma in 2003, 5 years ago. I feel pretty confident when I say that I don’t foresee that curse being broken this season.
Kansas, fresh off of an eight win season, capped off by a win over Minnesota in the Insight Bowl is the early favorite to win the North this season. The Jayhawks return Senior QB Todd Reesing, whose 68 TD tosses ranks 5th among active D-I QBs. His prime target Dezmon Briscoe compiled seven 100 yard receiving games last season and put on a clinic against the stingy OU defense exploiting them for 269 yards on 12 catches. Add hardnosed runner Jake Sharpe and a solid WR in Kerry Meier to the mix, and that is a recipe for success in Lawrence. Challengers to Kansas in the North will either rise up in Lincoln, NE or Columbia MO.
Nebraska: Folks in Lincoln are excited to see Bo Pelini as head ball coach for a second season. Last season, Pelini guided the ‘Huskers to a 9 win season and a January 1st Gator Bowl victory over Clemson. The Huskers are anchored on defense by physical specimen in 6’4, 300 lb Sr. defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh. Suh lead last year’s defense in sacks and interceptions and also had an astounding 19 tackles for losses. The defense also returns two other starters on the D-Line. The offense is a little more questionable. Zach Lee takes over for school record setting QB Joe Ganz and he will be expected to learn fast. He will be helped by RBs Roy Helu, Jr. and Quentin Castille, both upperclassmen. There is no question that Pelini has Nebraska on the right track and the question should be when, rather than if.
Mizzou has been living the high life the past couple seasons in the North. All of that is about to change. Sorry Tiger fans, but the well is tapped. Chase Daniel, Jeremy Macklin, Chase Coffman, and super safety William Moore have all left the college ranks leaving huge question marks for this season. However, if there’s a coach that can make due with what he has, it is Gary Pinkel. The unquestionable leader of the team will be Sr. LB Sean Witherspoon. Witherspoon led the team in tackles for losses and tied for the most INTs. He is an all conference player that will be playing on Sundays this time next year. The offense will seem anemic this season after all of the talent at its disposal the past couple of seasons. QB Blaine Gabber will run point for the Tigers who will look to Jr. RB Derrick Washington for leadership on that side of the ball.
Colorado got off to an impressive 3-0 start that included a rousing overtime victory against West Virginia. Unfortunately, that was as good as it got for the Buffs in 2008. They were hit hard by the injury bug and the team that took the field for the final game of the year was a mere skeleton of the one that began. Dan Hawkins, that mastermind behind Boise State’s ascendance in the college football world, enters his fourth year at Boulder and is looking to improve. He was awarded a contract extension last season thus buying him a little time to right the ship.
Kansas State University and Iowa State will debut two new head coaches in Bill Snyder (who previously coached this team in 1989-2005) and Paul Rhoads respectively. Snyder is a future Hall of Fame coach that had the daunting task of brining Kansas State from the cellar of college football to being on the cusp of playing for the 1998 national championship. Unfortunately, this time around for Snyder may be just as hard. The program was left in disarray from coach Ron Prince and the cupboard bare. Brandon Banks, last year’s Big XII Newcomer of the Year, and one of the most underrated WRs in the game will headline a young receiving core that will catch passes from junior QB Carson Coffman (brother of former Mizzou standout Chase Coffman). Banks is a speedy 4.25 wideout that has the capability of burning you through the air and on the ground. K-State’s O-line is another bright spot that has depth and size. The defense’s strong point will be their linebacking corp. Optimism abounds in the Little Apple and folks are anxious to see if “God” Snyder can pull off another turnaround for the program.
Iowa State was home to college football’s version of Coach Swap. Head coach Gene Chizik, in a move that baffled college football fans everywhere, and overjoyed people in Tuscaloosa, left ISU for Auburn. In return, ISU received Auburn D-coordinator Paul Rhoads. He coached at Iowa State in the same capacity from 1995-1999 and did a remarkable job .Winning in Ames is not easy to do when competing with the heavyweights of the Big XII. Rhoads will have his hands full from the beginning. ISU is also implementing the spread offense with new O-coordinator Tom Herman. In the words of Sam Cooke, “A change is gonna come,” folks in Ames just want to know how long they will have to wait for that change.
South:
Texas and Colt McCoy will be a force to reckon with this fall. Fresh off a Texas sized snub, Mack Brown and Co. are looking to avenge their misfortune last season. Colt McCoy will take the reins of the offense for one final time capping a dynamic record setting career as a signal caller. McCoy was arguably the best QB in the nation given his contributions rushing and passing. Gone is WR Quan Crosby, but the Longhorns return McCoy roommate and burner Jordan Shipley. Shipley was granted a 6th year of eligibility by the NCAA and is the Longhorn’s best receiving threat. In 2008, Shipley had 89 receptions and 1060 receiving yards. He is also a dynamic punt return threat as well. Texas’s offensive line should be just as solid as last year providing great protection for McCoy and either Vondrell McGee or Cody Johnson. There is not yet a clear cut favorite at the running back position and the Horns may be using a running back by a committee approach until either one does anything to distinguish themselves from the other. Will Mushchamp enters his 2nd year at defensive coordinator. All-American defensive end Brian Orakpo left for riches in the NFL but Sergio Kindle should not allow the defense to drop off too much. Corner,Chykie Brown and safeties Blake Gideon and Earl Thomas will be menacing to opposing offenses as well. Texas will come out swinging from the bell, taking no prisoners.
Oklahoma has won the Big XII conference 6 times out of 7 tries. However, they are just 2-5 in BCS bowl play under Stoops. Last year’s OU team looked like they would be the one to finally shake the monkey off of the school’s back. The Sooners traveled to Miami with only one goal in mind; BRING THE CRYSTAL BALL BACK TO NORMAN. However, their efforts fell short and they lost to Florida. Last year’s offense resembled a fast break basketball offense. QB Sam Bradford became only the second sophomore ever to win the famed Heisman Trophy and the OU offense shattered the record books with ridiculous numbers on offense. The force behind those accolades was Oklahoma’s freakish offensive line. But with anything, all good things must come to an end. This season Bradford will be working from under and new offensive line that returns just one starter. They will be tested from the start as the Sooner’s open the season against BYU. Thankfully for the Sooner faithful, the effective running back tandem of Demarco Murray and Chris Brown return. Both rushed for over 1,000 yards last season and do not show any sign of slowing down. Germain Gresham, TE, is the Sooners’s leading receiver who hauled in 66 catches for 950 yards and 14 TDs last season. Gresham surprised many when he decided to return to Norman for his senior year. The Sooners are also looking at sophomore WR Ryan Broyles to step up and fill the void of Juaquin Iglesias. The Sooner’s strength this year looks to be their defense. They return 8 starters from last year’s conference championship team. Star linebacker Ryan Reynolds (no, not the actor) will lead alongside LB Austin Box. Reynolds suffered a season ending knee injury in the Red River shootout and is anxious to get back on the field. Dominique Franks, a junior will anchor a solid OU secondary. This season will be a little different for the Sooners and their strength lies with the defense. Instead of them averaging 51 points a game look for them to average around 45.
Oklahoma State: Coach Mike Gundy made national headlines in 2007 for his famous “I’m a man” rant which was an instant classic. He has seemed to tone down his rhetoric and is sticking with Xs and Os. Since arriving in Stillwater four season ago, he has done a good job of turning the program in the right direction. The Cowboys went 9-4 last season and reached as high as 7 in the AP poll. The Cowboys have perhaps the best skill position trio in the nation with QB Zac Robinson, RB Kendall Hunter, and WR Dez Bryant. Robinson, is unquestionably one of the most exciting college QBs to watch passing for 3,064 yards last year and rushing for 562 for a total of 33 TDs. His favorite target, Dez Bryant led the Big XII last season in receiving yards, yards per game, and he tied Texas Tech’s Michel Crabtree for TDs with 19. RB Kendall Hunter was the conference’s leading rusher totaling 1550 yards on the ground. He ran for 16 scores and averaged 6.4 yards per carry. Oklahoma will miss the presence of 1st round draft pick TE Brandon Pettigrew but they should continue to roll along just fine. OSU’s problem lies with the defensive side of the ball which showed as they gave up 176 points the in their last four contests of the season. Maybe T. Boon Pickens can dole out a little cash and pay for a defensive upgrade to go along with the facility upgrades. The Cowboys will be fun to watch this year as they will light up the scoreboard. But for them to realistically compete with Texas and Oklahoma, they will have to step up on defense.
Texas Tech was left out of the conference title talk with people literally dismissing them and their record. Their only blemish during that point in time was a loss on the road against the Oklahoma Sooners. Granted the Red Raiders lost 65-21, they still had one loss along with Texas and Oklahoma. Unfortunately, they lost again at the hands of Ole’ Miss 47-34, thus rending their claim of national championship talk moot. Mike Leach has always been known as mad scientist of sorts when it comes to organizing a dynamic passing offense, but Texas Tech’s key to their success in the South last year was a solid defense. Texas Tech’s secondary from last year has moved on leaving only Jamar Wall at cornerback. Leach will have to shore up the defense quickly if he expects to continue off of last year’s successes. On offense, Tech will be just as dynamic as always with Taylor Potts taking over for Big XII leading passer Graham Harrell. Potts is taller and bigger than Harrell which has the buzz in Lubbock teaming with speculation. RB Baron Batch and WRs Edward Brittan will help ease pressure off the shoulders of Potts. Expect Tech to produce typical Mike Leach numbers offensively but they will regress back to the Texas Tech of old in conference relevance thanks to their defense.
Baylor: Robert Griffin. Remember that name. As a true freshman, Griffin passed for 2,091 yards and 15 TDs while rushing for 843 yards and 13 TDs. If last year was an indication of Griffin’s potential, people in Waco are in for a treat for the rest of his career. Baylor fans have a lot to be excited for with a team loaded with underclassmen that preformed well last season and gained valuable experience from playing time. Griffin’s main receiving threat is fellow sophomore Kendall Wright. As a freshman, Wright pulled in 50 catches for 649 yards and five TDs. He also was honored for his efforts with a spot on the Big XII freshman all-American team. In addition to Wright Bears return, senior WRs David Gettis and Mikail Baker are coming back for more. Baylor also has a respectable rushing attack to compliment their passing game. The Bears averaged 195 yards per game on the ground last season. Baylor’s defense is going to be solid this season thanks in part to a deep talented linebacking unit and heavy hitter free safety Jordan Lake. Art Briles is entering his second season at Baylor and has the program on its way to losing the cupcake brand on conference opponent’s schedule. Yes, Baylor will not be competing with Texas, OU, and Ok. State for the crown but they’ll be good enough to upset a few unexpected teams.
Texas A&M: Mike Sherman’s first year as the Texas A&M’s head coach was one that he would rather forget. Losses to Arkansas State and near losses to New Mexico and Army did not resonate well with folks in College Station. Sherman adopted a physically demanding off-season conditioning and weight program that required players to train starting at 6 am. Sherman wanted a faster, better conditioned, and grittier football team. Morale among the players was high in College Station going into this summer and they hope to carry that intensity over to the gridiron this fall. The Aggies will have a solid secondary which finished in the top five statistically in the conference last season. DE Von Miller is a force to reckon with on the defensive line and will provide a solid pass rush on opposing teams. Offensively, the Aggies will have to get accustomed to life after Mike Goodson and Jorvorskie Lane. Cyrus Gray and Bradley Stephens will have to step up and replace the void left by those two departures. The Aggies have a rising star in QB Jerrod Johnson who had a solid sophomore campaign last season. Rome was not built in a day and Texas A&M fans are going to have to be patient with the work in progress underway in College Station.
GQSportsFanMan’s predictions:
North: Kansas
South: Texas
BIG XII CHAMPS: TEXAS
