Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Big 12 predictions heading into week six.
For the first time this century, neither Oklahoma nor Texas is ranked heading into the annual Red River Showdown. The Longhorns have suffered close losses to Texas Tech and Alabama and the Sooners were decimated by injuries during a blowout loss to TCU.
Unlike in previous years, the rest of the Big 12 actually has a pulse and the entire conference seems to have a shot at the conference champiosnhip. Let’s take a look at what’s happening in the Big 12 this week.
The Big 12 has an unexpected team leading the way in the standings after the amazing week two slate of games
Well, that was a fun weekend, wasn’t it? We had a couple of ranked teams drop home games to teams from the Sun Belt Conference, and the Sooners won their matchup by 30.
Not only that, but the Sooners moved up in both the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll and the AP Poll from No. 7 to No. 6 following Texas A&M’s loss to Appalachian State.
Despite Oklahoma’s solid start, their lack of conference games keeps them from the top of the Big 12 standings. Early in the season, only two teams have played a conference game. Kansas traveled to Morgantown to face the West Virginia Mountaineers. The Jayhawks moved to 2-0 with their overtime win over West Virginia.
These are not the Jayhawks of yesteryear. They aren’t going to challenge for the Big 12 title, but they aren’t the pushovers they once were. Lance Leipold, take a bow.
Since the Jayhawks are the only Big 12 team with a win in conference play, they are leading the Big 12 after Week 2. Since no one in the Big 12 is playing another Big 12 team in Week 3, the Jayhawks will remain on top of the conference standings for at least another week.
Texas, I owe you an apology. I said that your game against Alabama wouldn’t be close, and that the Tide would roll all over you. That didn’t happen. Before his injury, Quinn Ewers looked like an absolute gamer against a very talented Alabama defense. Hudson Card didn’t shrink when brought in to replace Ewers.
Had Bryce Young not made an extremely athletic move to escape a sack in the final moments of the fourth quarter, the Longhorns would’ve handed the Tide their first nonconference loss on the road since Nick Saban’s first year in Tuscaloosa. To reiterate: I was wrong. The Longhorns were phenomenal on Saturday and deserve their spot in the Coaches Poll and the AP Top 25.
Before Week 2, the BYU Cougars had never hosted a top-10 team as an independent. Now, they are perfect in those circumstances. The Cougar faithful had the Baylor Bears on edge all night, and BYU showed it can run with some of the Big 12’s top dogs.
Texas Tech didn’t keep the fans off the field. The Red Raiders defeated the No. 25 Houston Cougars in overtime in a high-scoring thriller, 33-30. Those cactus emojis might be working. Not for nothing, Oklahoma has to play Texas Tech in Lubbock this season for its final regular season game.
Kansas State smacked around Missouri, and Iowa State won the Corn Bowl. Not what they call their game but go with it. It was Matt Campbell’s first win over Iowa as head coach. Oklahoma State beat down Arizona State and TCU hammered the Tarleton Texans.
It was a good week for the present and future of the Big 12. Both future Big 12 members facing current members turned in great performances.
Whenever OU and Texas do decide to leave, the Big 12 is going to be just fine. The race for the Big 12 title is on.
[listicle id=71198]
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today. You can also follow Ben on Twitter @bendackiw.
The Oklahoma Sooners move inside the top 10 in 247Sports team recruiting rankings.
The month of July has been a good one so far for Brent Venables and the Oklahoma Football program. After being ranked as low as 38th in 247Sports’ 2023 team recruiting rankings, Oklahoma cracked the top ten with the commitment of Lewis Carter, ahead of Alabama and just behind Miami.
This is less than a year after Bob Stoops, Brent Venables, and the coaching staff brought OU’s 2022 recruiting class back from the depths all to way to eighth in the country. Venables and his staff have laid a very solid foundation for OU Football’s future in the meatgrinder that is the SEC.
Led by Denton Guyer’s Jackson Arnold, who just earned his fifth star from 247Sports, the Sooners have assembled a wide variety of talent with big names at runningback, wide receiver, linebacker and more.
The only Big 12 team ahead of OU in the rankings is fifth-ranked Texas. Also in the top 20 are Baylor and Texas Tech at 13th and 16th respectively.
Here’s the full top 25:
- Ohio State
- Notre Dame
- Penn State
- Clemson
- Texas
- Georgia
- Tennessee
- LSU
- Miami
- Oklahoma
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Baylor
- Cincinnati
- Louisville
- Texas Tech
- USC
- Washington
- Northwestern
- Iowa
- Oregon
- Florida
- West Virginia
- North Carolina
- Michigan State
Of the nine teams that are ahead of OU in these rankings, three of them are in the SEC. OU being this high in the rankings at this stage is a very encouraging sign that the Sooners will be able to go toe-to-toe with SEC schools.
OU has 2023 commits from all over, including Texas, Florida, and Missouri. Getting recruits in SEC territory is vital for the onfield success of this program whenever the move to the SEC does happen.
Keep an eye on the recruiting rankings. As we’ve seen the last few weeks, they can change very quickly. It’s only July.
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.
Texas, TCU and Texas Tech are among the 20 finalists to potentially host the 2021 NCAA regionals.
The NCAA baseball postseason is only a few weeks away and on the path to Omaha, home of the NCAA World Series, are the 16 regional cities to host the first leg.
The NCAA Division 1 Baseball Committee announced their final 20 candidates that have the potential to host the 2021 Regionals and eight of those cities will host the subsequent Super Regionals.
Among the final 20 candidates, three Big 12 programs were included: Texas, Texas Tech and TCU.
The Road to Omaha will go through 16 of these 20 potential host sites. ⚾️
— NCAA Baseball (@NCAACWS) May 14, 2021
➡️ https://t.co/EWioVWcfDZ#RoadToOmaha pic.twitter.com/dV1Q4TwBho
The field of teams will consist of 64 programs, similar to the college basketball NCAA Tournament. There will be 30 conference qualifying teams and 34 at-large bids.
As far as fans in attendance, the NCAA’s COVID-19 Medical Advisory Board has allowed stadiums to up to 50% capacity at respective stadiums. The 16 chosen schools to host the regionals will be announced on May 30 at 8:30 p.m. EDT.
Regionals will run from June 4 through June 7 and the Super Regionals will take place from June 11 through the 14.
Jaylon Tyson signed with Texas Tech before requesting a release from his LOI. Just hours later, Tyson announced he was committing to Texas.
New men’s basketball head coach Chris Beard left Texas Tech for Texas and the feeling was immediate for both programs. We knew there was going to be an after-effect from this as some of Beard’s coaches followed him to Austin.
Now, he’s also attracted a player of his to Austin as well.
Four-star forward Jaylon Tyson signed with the Red Raiders on Nov. 11 before requesting a release from his national letter of intent. Just hours later, Tyson announced he was committing to Texas, following Beard.
The John Paul II product is the No. 35 player and No. 8 small forward on the 247Sports composite. Within the state of Texas, Tyson ranks as the No. 4 player. He is one of Texas’ highest-rated recruits ever (No. 18), just behind Andrew Jones.
— jaylontyson_ (@jaylontyson) April 8, 2021
With how depleted the Longhorns’ roster could be next season, landing Tyson is big for Beard. Matt Coleman, Andrew Jones, and Courtney Ramey are still contemplating their futures, leaving little to no perimeter shooting.
This will be the first of a few new faces on the 40 Acres. Beard is going to hit the transfer portal hard to make sure there is not a rebuilding year. In his introductory press conference, the message was clear- the University of Texas was about winning championships.
Landing Tyson was the first step to making sure Texas can contend in the Big 12 next season.
According to Horns247, Chris Beard’s contract is for seven years and $35 million. Beard was making the same amount of money at Texas Tech.
Texas made the coaching hire of the offseason on Thursday. Chris Beard has returned home after five seasons at Texas Tech. To acquire his services, a $4 million buyout was paid and now, Beard’s contract details have been released.
According to Chip Brown of Horns247, Beard’s contract is for seven years and $35 million. The former Texas Tech head coach was making the same amount in Lubbock, while Shaka Smart had a contract for $3.4 million a year.
With Beard making the same amount of money at Texas as he did at Texas Tech, it proves he did not make the switch for a bigger payday. An alumnus of the University of Texas, Beard is here to do one thing – win basketball games.
Source: Chris Beard has agreed to a seven-year, $35 million deal at #Texas. https://t.co/7NzWnkfDoL pic.twitter.com/mPr2c9OE1X
— Horns247 (@Horns247) April 2, 2021
Texas Tech Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt said he and Beard had discussed a “lifetime, rolling contract” in the past. Beard refused and the Red Raiders were not given the opportunity to counter Texas’ offer.
While Beard has seven years on his contract, success will be required from fans before it expires. Six seasons have passed since the Longhorns last won an NCAA Tournament game, while Beard has made it as far as the national championship. He will immediately bring a winning attitude in the postseason to Austin.
