Where Texas lands in ESPN’s updated 2022 recruiting class rankings

The Longhorns are within the top 10 of ESPN’s updated 2022 recruiting class rankings.

Steve Sarkisian is already doing an impressive job bringing in elite talent for his first full recruiting class at Texas.

Although several highly rated prospects have yet to announce their commitments, which will certainly mix up any 2022 recruiting class rankings, the Longhorns have seemingly stayed put with one of the top 10 classes in the nation.

Over the last few months, Texas has seen a rise to No. 5 and also a fall to the No. 10 range. It’s essentially a game of seesaw that doesn’t carry much weight until the classes are finalized on national signing day. Let’s have fun with it anyways.

In ESPN’s updated 2022 recruiting class rankings (subscription required), Texas landed at No. 7 in the nation. Considering Oklahoma is at No. 6, the Longhorns currently have the No. 2 class in the Big 12.

ESPN also notes that Jaydon Blue is their highest graded offensive commit in Texas’ 2022 class, while safety Bryan Allen Jr. holds those honors on the defensive side of the ball.
If Sarkisian’s staff is able to close on a few high profile targets at their BBQ/Pool Party event on July 30 such as Bryce Anderson and Derrick Brown, Texas could very realistically end up in the top five when it’s all said and done.

College Football News predicts where each Big 12 team will finish in 2021

Here’s where CFN predicts each Big 12 team to finish in 2021. Spoiler: There’s a tiebreaker for the No. 2 spot behind Oklahoma.

It’s that time of year when many networks release their predictions for the upcoming 2021 college football season. Continue reading “College Football News predicts where each Big 12 team will finish in 2021”

Big 12 Preseason Rankings: CFN College Football Preview 2021

The College Football News 2021 Big 12 preseason rankings along with a quick take on every team.

The College Football News 2021 Big 12 preseason rankings along with a quick take on every team. 


This is NOT a ranking of where the teams are going to finish. This is based on how good we think the Big 12 teams are going into the 2021 season.

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2021 CFN Big 12 Preseason Rankings

1. Oklahoma Sooners

Quick Take: It’s time to take that next step forward – it’s a team good enough to at least get to the College Football Playoff National Championship. QB Spencer Rattler should become special, the skill players are fantastic, and the defense will be the best in the Big 12. There’s no excuse to do anything but roll through the first ten games before dealing with Iowa State and Oklahoma State.
Oklahoma Preview | Schedule

2. Iowa State Cyclones

Quick Take: The expectations are off the charts, and why not? Almost everyone is back from the team that came oh-so-close to winning the Big 12 title. It’s a better conference this time around and a few losses are coming – Oklahoma is the star of the league – but yeah, the hype is justified.
Iowa State Preview | Schedule

3. Texas Longhorns

Quick Take: It’s not going to be boring. Don’t expect new head coach Steve Sarkisian to get the offense dominating right out of the gate, but the skill talent is in place, the lines are good enough, and the expectations should be set at Big 12 Championship or bust – even with the Oklahoma and Iowa State games away from from Austin.
Texas Preview | Schedule

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4. Oklahoma State Cowboys

Quick Take: 2020’s preseason darling won’t get quite as much love, but it should. It’s not going to be the high-flying fun show you’d normally expect, but the defense has talent and there’s plenty of firepower to keep up the Big 12 pace.
OSU Preview | Schedule

5. TCU Horned Frogs

Quick Take: TCU quietly rolled to a 6-4 season with a nice finishing kick – winning five of the last six games – and now it returns strong with arguably the Big 12’s best defensive front to control one side and QB Max Duggan as the star on the other.
TCU Preview | Schedule

6. Texas Tech Red Raiders

Quick Take: Yeah, Texas Tech is going to be good. The linebacking corps will be fantastic, the offensive line is a strength, and if Oregon transfer QB Tyler Shough really is the next-level talent he’s supposed to be in this O, the Red Raiders will be a problem.
Texas Tech Preview | Schedule

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7. Kansas State Wildcats

Quick Take: It’s the Big 12’s wild-card team. The offensive backfield is good enough to carry things from time to time, but it’s the under-the-radar secondary that might be the differentiating factor. Watch out, though – the schedule is tougher than it appears.
K-State Preview | Schedule

8. West Virginia Mountaineers

Quick Take: Can the offense match the defense? Head coach Neal Brown needs to fight the offensive punch to come through when needed, but the other side of the ball will keep the team in just about every game.
WVU Preview | Schedule

9. Baylor Bears

Quick Take: Year Two under Dave Aranda will be better. The receiving corps is good, the offense will be stronger, and with this coaching staff, the defense is about to take a giant leap forward.
Baylor Preview | Schedule

10. Kansas Jayhawks

Quick Take: The Jayhawks got a terrific coach in Lance Leipold from Buffalo, but it’s going to take a long, long while before this thing gets moving. It’s going to take a total overhaul, but the team will bring the fight.
Kansas Preview | Schedule

 

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Where each Big 12 team ranks in ESPN’s updated FPI

The Big 12 has one of the best conferences according to ESPN’s updated FPI.

Using team strengths coupled with their offensive, defensive and special teams projected value, ESPN’s Football Power Index (FPI) predicts how teams will finish the 2021 college football season.

The Big 12 is all over the board, but the conference is finally receiving the respect it deserves. The FPI foresees the Big 12 having the second-toughest conference schedule in the nation. The most recent rankings feature five teams in the top 25.

Although Oklahoma has been sitting pretty at the top for a while now, this season could be the best conference competition it has faced since before the days of clamoring for Texas to be back.

Let’s take a look where each of the Big 12 teams ranked in ESPN’s most recent FPI rankings.

Texas Football: Longhorns picked to finish third in Big 12 media preseason poll

The media chose Oklahoma to win the Big 12 title for the sixth straight year.

To no surprise, Big 12 media representatives chose Oklahoma to win the conference for the sixth straight year.

The Big 12 Football Preseason Poll was released this week and Texas was picked to finish third, while Oklahoma was the overwhelming favorite with 35 first-place votes. The only other program to receive a first place vote was Iowa State, who landed at No. 2 with four first-place nods.

  1. Oklahoma (35)
  2. Iowa State (4)
  3. Texas
  4. Oklahoma State
  5. TCU
  6. West Virginia
  7. Kansas State
  8. Baylor
  9. Texas Tech
  10. Kansas

The Longhorns finished fourth in the conference last season, but expectations are as high as ever under first-year head coach Steve Sarkisian. Although most new coaching staffs will experience hiccups throughout their first season at a new program, Sarkisian’s roster is talented enough to compete for a conference title right away.

A sleeper team to watch this season is TCU. Gary Patterson has had Texas’ number as of late and they’re certainly talented enough to shake up the conference on any given week.

The Big 12 Football Championship Game will be held on December 4 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Big 12 Football: Ranking the best uniforms in the conference

Which program has the most drip in the Big 12?

The Big 12 is home to some of the most prolific offenses in the nation. With it being the lone conference across the Power Five that has a schedule where each team plays the other, there is certainly the possibility for chaos at every turn.

Not only does the Big 12 have great football, the conference is also home to some of the best uniforms across the college football landscape.

There can be an argument made that the Big 12 has the deepest lineup of uniforms across all schools, therefore ranking the uniforms within the conference is no easy task.

This particular ranking is, of course, opinion based and will not appeal to everyone. I’ve taken into account the uniforms that I see as the best of their assortment. Texas still landed within the top five, and one of the worst programs from a production standpoint may be higher than you think.

Big 12 Football: Ranking the top 10 players in the conference for 2021

The Big 12 will be home to some of the top players in the country throughout the 2021 college football season.

The Big 12 is certainly home to elite talent and is looking to assert itself as a dominant conference throughout the college football world. Although Oklahoma has made the College Football Playoff multiple times, they’ve lost and practically been blown out every time.

On top of that, it was a down year as a whole for the Big 12 last season. There were no playoff representatives and the conference did not produce a single first round pick in the 2021 NFL draft.

For 2021, the conference has the potential to have at least three teams vying for a playoff spot and there are many playmakers across the board. So much in fact that Iowa State’s star tight end Charlie Kolar was narrowly left off of this list.

Here are the top 10 players in the Big 12 conference heading into the 2021 college football season:

Where each Big 12 program lands in PFF’s college football rankings

PFF now has their initial college football rankings in place. For the Big 12 conference in particular, Iowa State fell to No. 21 overall.

PFF has officially released their initial college football rankings ahead of the 2021 season. Continue reading “Where each Big 12 program lands in PFF’s college football rankings”

ESPN College Football Power Index: Big 12 strength of schedule rankings

Big 12 teams flooded ESPN’s FPI rankings in regards to strength of schedule for the 2021 college football season.

The Big 12 conference is in stable shape and should field several competitive football programs in 2021. Continue reading “ESPN College Football Power Index: Big 12 strength of schedule rankings”

12 Texas Longhorns make Athlon Sports’ preseason All-Big 12 teams

Oklahoma and Iowa State led the conference with the most selections in Athlon Sports’ preseason All-Big 12 teams.

Athlon Sports recently honored the best players in the Big 12 conference for the 2021 college football season. Continue reading “12 Texas Longhorns make Athlon Sports’ preseason All-Big 12 teams”