Big 12 Football

The latest College Football Playoff rankings were unveiled on Tuesday evening, giving us an idea of who might be in and who might be out come December. There was little movement at the top, as the first seven teams in Week 11's ranking all won their games. Here's a look at the Top 10 teams heading into Week 12.

1. Georgia (10-0)

2. Alabama (9-1)

3. Oregon (9-1)

4. Ohio State (9-1)

5. Cincinnati (10-0) 

6. Michigan (9-1)

7. Michigan State (9-1) 

8. Notre Dame (9-1)

9. Oklahoma State (9-1) 

10. Wake Forest (9-1)

Although last week wasn't too eventful as far as upsets go, we have some crucial matchups in Week 12 that will likely reshape the playoff landscape. The biggest matchup of the weekend is undoubtedly No. 7 Michigan State at No. 4 Ohio State. The winner of this game will have a good chance to represent the East in the Big Ten Championship.

If Ohio State wins, the Buckeyes will move to 8-0 in the East standings, with just Michigan standing in its way on Nov. 27. If Michigan State wins, it would be tied atop the division with Ohio State, but the win over Michigan two weeks ago, along with a win over Penn State on Nov. 27, would send Sparty to Indianapolis. Michigan defeating Ohio State that same week would also give Sparty the Eastern division title. 

Elsewhere, No. 3 Oregon has a major road test against No. 23 Utah on Saturday night. The Utes are 7-3 on the season and have yet to lose a game at home. Utah also defeated the same Stanford team that upset the Ducks 31-24 in overtime on Oct. 2.  

Once again, the committee kept Michigan State behind Michigan this week, despite MSU defeating Michigan at home just two weeks ago. CFP chairman Gary Barta said on the ESPN broadcast that the committee was impressed with Michigan coming from behind (though the largest deficit they trailed Penn State by was three points, which only happened in the first and fourth quarter) in a win on the road.

No. 5 Cincinnati would need both Ohio State and Oregon to lose in front of them to have a shot at cracking the Top 4. This week for Cincy isn't exactly a cakewalk—the Bearcats face 8-2 SMU, though Cincy is currently an 11.5-point favorite.

For Oregon and Ohio State, winning this Saturday certainly gives them a good shot at maintaining their current respective positions. But if Oregon struggles against Utah—or worse, it loses—that would open the door for Cincinnati, Michigan and Michigan State to move up. If Ohio State loses to Michigan State, that would make OSU-Michigan an even more important matchup and improve the necessity of a tiebreaker scenario to decide a Big 10 East champion.

Last but not least, No. 8 Notre Dame and No. 9 Oklahoma State have outside shots at making it in if they see most of the teams above them lose. Per ESPN's Rece Davis, the lowest an eventual CFP team has been ranked at this point in the season is No. 9. Oklahoma State has a game this weekend against Texas Tech before Bedlam in Stillwater on Nov. 27. If Oklahoma State defeats Oklahoma and then wins in the Big 12 Championship game, they would need at least a couple of two-loss conference champions to have a shot to make it in. The same goes for No. 10 Wake Forest, who may end up being a one-loss ACC Champion. 

And, of course, for No. 8 Notre Dame, which moved up one spot this week, if Cincinnati ends up losing twice before the end of the season, the Fighting Irish could have an outside shot at making it in. Like the Cowboys and the Demon Deacons behind them, that would require some more two-loss conference champions.  

The regular season is winding down, and we're one step closer to seeing who will make it into the final Top Four. The monster Saturday coming up will make who that might be even clearer.

The Big 12 fined Baylor $25,000 after fans rushed onto the field early during the football team's win over Oklahoma last week.

Commissioner Bob Bowlsby issued a statement on the matter Tuesday: 

“We have a duty to ensure a safe game environment that provides the visiting team secure egress from the field for players, staff and support personnel, and protection of the team bench area. I appreciate Baylor’s advance planning and communication, and although well planned, the end-of-game circumstances made its field storming plan impossible to execute, resulting in an interruption of play, impeding the visiting team from reaching their locker room and damage to OU bench area equipment.”

Baylor's student section rushed onto the field with one second remaining in the Bears' 27-14 win, resulting in Oklahoma players and coaches being swarmed by fans. Sooners head coach Lincoln Riley was incensed by the situation, both on the field and while speaking with reporters after the game.

"I don't believe the situation was handled well by a lot of people," Riley said. "But at the end of the day, doing it with class is important to me, and at the end of the day, we decided to bring 11 guys back out even though I damn well didn't want to." 

Baylor fans rushed the field with 1 second left and Lincoln Riley was HEATED 💀 https://t.co/3PHcl7wTOW

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 13, 2021

Baylor's win over Oklahoma snapped a 17-game winning streak for the Sooners, the longest in the nation. It was also Bears' first win over their Big 12 rival since 2014 and just their fourth overall in 32 meetings.

A year removed from an ugly 2-7 campaign, head coach Dave Aranda has Baylor at 8-2 with an outside shot at a Big 12 championship. 

Oklahoma, which was already looked at with some trepidation by the College Football Playoff committee, will likely fall out of the Top 10 following the loss. The Sooners entered last week ranked eighth in the country, behind four one-loss teams despite being undefeated. 

The selection committee will release its latest playoff rankings Tuesday night.

               

One of the biggest upsets of the college football season featured one of the most unlikely heroes.

Jared Casey caught the game-winning pass on a two-point conversion to help Kansas earn a 57-56 overtime win over Texas. This wasn't just the biggest catch of the fullback's career—it was the first:

KU fullback/tight end walk-on Jared Casey from Plainville, Kansas — who caught the game-winning 2-point conversion — had never played a snap of offense for the Jayhawks until tonight. He filled in because of injury. "It just popped into my hands," he said. "A surreal moment." pic.twitter.com/mJiAXA5wlS

— Jesse Newell (@jessenewell) November 14, 2021

Quarterback Jalon Daniels still found him in the biggest moment for a walk-off win:

KANSAS WENT FOR TWO AND GOT IT.

THE JAYHAWKS STUN TEXAS. pic.twitter.com/h6VlqqWiQA

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 14, 2021

Kansas entered the day with eight straight losses and just one Big 12 win since the start of the 2019 season.

The Jayhawks jumped out to a surprising 35-14 halftime lead before Texas stormed back to tie it 49-49 in the fourth quarter. The Longhorns scored the opening touchdown in overtime before Kansas responded with its own touchdown.

The 31.5-point road underdogs decided to go for two and the win, allowing Casey to come through with one of the biggest plays of the year.

He'll now be remembered for a long time in both Kansas and Texas.    

The Texas Longhorns were on the wrong side of history in a 57-56 overtime loss to the Kansas Jayhawks on Saturday night, marking their fifth consecutive defeat. 

Texas had not lost five straight games since 1956, per Yahoo Sports College Football. 

With the loss, Steve Sarkisian also became the first Texas coach to start his career 4-6. Sarkisian was hired in January to replace Tom Herman. 

As for Kansas, it was the Jayhawks' first Big 12 road win since October 2008 and ended their 56-game conference road losing streak. 

The Jayhawks get their first Big 12 road win since Oct. 4, 2008 at Iowa State, snapping a 56-game conference road losing streak.

It was by far the longest active streak in FBS, which now belongs to Vanderbilt (11 straight). pic.twitter.com/PBQw4hfFIZ

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) November 14, 2021

While Texas scored a touchdown in overtime to take a 56-49 lead, the Jayhawks answered on their possession and went for a two-point conversion to win the game instead of settling for the extra point.

KANSAS WENT FOR TWO AND GOT IT.

THE JAYHAWKS STUN TEXAS. pic.twitter.com/h6VlqqWiQA

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 14, 2021

Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels was impressive in the win, completing 21-of-30 passes for 202 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. He added another 45 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Running back Devin Neal also had a great game, recording 169 total yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns.

As for Texas, quarterback Casey Thompson completed 30-of-43 passes for 358 yards, six touchdowns and one interception. Wide receiver Xavier Worthy caught 14 passes for 152 yards and three scores in the loss. 

Saturday's win was just Kansas' second victory over Texas dating back to 2000. The only other time the Jayhawks had beaten the Longhorns came in 2016 when they won 24-21 in overtime.

Another interesting note: Texas has 52 players rated as four stars or higher as recruits. Kansas has one. In addition, only four teams have lost multiple games to Kansas since 2011: Central Michigan, South Dakota, Southeast Missouri State...and Texas. 

Kansas is now 2-8 on the season. The team's only other win this season came in September against South Dakota.  

Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley didn't agree with Baylor head coach Dave Aranda's decision to have his team kick a field goal on the final play of Saturday's 27-14 win over the Sooners. 

After Baylor kneeled twice to run down the clock, fans prematurely rushed the field as the Sooners headed to the locker room. Officials forced Oklahoma to return to the field for the final play of the game, and instead of kneeling a third time, Baylor kicked a field goal while they were up 24-14. 

Oklahoma comes back on the field and Baylor kicks a field goal to end it 🐻

The fans rush the field for a second time in Waco ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/pFYvdfQhBv

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 13, 2021

 “I know why Dave kicked the field goal. I don’t agree with it," Riley told reporters after the loss. "I wouldn’t have done it. I think there’s a code of sportsmanship there.”

Riley also told reporters after the game that Baylor should've received a 15-yard penalty because the home fans rushed the field before the game was over. He added that he considered not having his players return to the field for the final play.

While Riley was upset about the field goal, Aranda explained that his decision to go for it was strategic. 

"That was for the Big 12 tiebreaker," Aranda said in a postgame interview on Fox. "We wanted to be over 10."

However, it's unlikely a field goal would make a difference in deciding the Big 12 champion. In the event of a three-way tie, there's a slim chance scoring differential could be use to eliminate one of those teams. 

Oklahoma's offense struggled Saturday, with quarterback Caleb Williams completing 10 of 19 passes for 146 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions. He also rushed for 17 yards and a score but was benched for former starter Spencer Rattler in the fourth quarter.

The Baylor running game killed the Sooners. Running backs Abram Smith and Trestan Ebner, quarterback Gerry Bohanon and receiver Drew Estrada combined for 296 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. 

The Sooners are now 9-1, while the Bears are 8-2. 

Baylor's win over Oklahoma marked its first victory against the school since November 2014. The Sooners had won their last seven matchups against the Bears.

Oklahoma will face Iowa State next weekend, while Baylor will face Kansas State.  

The No. 8 Oklahoma Sooners suffered their first loss of the season Saturday, falling to the No. 13 Baylor Bears 27-14 at McLane Stadium in Waco, Texas.

Both teams struggled to get much going offensively for most of the day, and Oklahoma freshman quarterback Caleb Williams was held in check, finishing with 146 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions through the air, plus 17 yards and one score on the ground.

Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley replaced Williams with Spencer Rattler in the second half, although Williams returned in the closing minutes when Rattler proved ineffective.

While some offensive fireworks were expected, Baylor held Oklahoma to just 260 total yards, including only 78 on the ground.

Baylor's ground game dominated by comparison, as the Bears rushed for 296 yards and held the ball for 35:19, while Oklahoma only possessed it for 24:41.

By virtue of Saturday's victory, Baylor is 8-2 overall and 5-2 in Big 12 play, while OU is 9-1 overall and 6-1 in the conference.

The College Football Playoff committee was already down on Oklahoma because of its inability to dominate, and now that the Sooners have a loss, their chances at a CFP berth are likely gone.

---

Notable Stats

Gerry Bohanon, QB, BAY: 12/21 for 117 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INT; 9 CAR for 107 YDS, 2 TD

Caleb Williams, QB, OU: 10/19 for 146 YDS, 0 TD, 2 INT; 10 CAR for 17 YDS, 1 TD

Spencer Rattler, QB, OU: 4/6 for 36 YDS, 0 TD, 0 INT

Abram Smith, WR, BAY: 20 CAR for 148 YDS

Kennedy Brooks, RB, OU: 13 CAR for 51 YDS, 1 TD

Tyquan Thornton, WR, BAY: 4 REC for 41 YDS, 1 TD

---

Williams Struggles Mightily in Oklahoma's 1st Loss

There was Heisman Trophy buzz surrounding Williams ahead of Saturday's clash with Baylor, but just like Oklahoma's national championship hopes, they went up in smoke.

The talented freshman never looked comfortable or in sync at any point during the game, as Baylor's swarming defense constantly gave him problems.

It started on the Sooners' second offensive drive when Williams was intercepted on an ill-advised throw in Oklahoma territory:

INTERCEPTED!

The @BUFootball defense comes up with a big time play 💪 pic.twitter.com/UoN0NZp7Ix

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 13, 2021

Williams had a great run for a first down on a 2nd-and-16 play late in the first half, but he had his hand stepped on by a Baylor defender while getting tackled:

Right hand is clearly bothering Caleb Williams as OU heads to halftime. Worth monitoring. Maybe we see a Rattler cameo today?

— Max Olson (@max_olson) November 13, 2021

He appeared to be favoring his hand when entering the locker room, and he continued to struggle when he came back out for the second half.

After having been intercepted only once this season entering Saturday's game, Williams was picked off for a second time early in the third quarter with Oklahoma trailing 10-7:

Caleb Williams INTs coming into today: 1
Caleb Williams INTs at @BUFootball: 2 pic.twitter.com/1ZTeoy9eqP

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 13, 2021

Williams seemingly tried to throw the ball away but failed to get it out of bounds, thus stalling another OU drive.

After Williams nearly lost a fumble on a sack late in the third quarter, the Oklahoma fans present in Waco began chanting for Rattler to enter the game:

"We want Spencer" 👀 pic.twitter.com/HwKnz7j2Zz

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 13, 2021

It was ironic, since OU fans chanted for Williams several weeks earlier, which led to Williams taking the starting job from Rattler.

Skip Bayless of Fox Sports was among those who weren't thrilled with Riley's decision to pull Williams:

WRONG WRONG WRONG. Lincoln Riley just made the mistake of the year, replacing a struggling Caleb Williams with preseason Heisman favorite Spencer Rattler. So much for Caleb's Heisman chances. I believe he would've snapped out of it in the 4th quarter. Caleb>>>>>>>Rattler.

— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) November 13, 2021

The move did not pay dividends for Oklahoma, as Rattler played poorly and was ultimately taken out of the game in the fourth quarter.

Saturday served as a reality check for Williams and the Sooners team as a whole after Oklahoma had narrowly avoided several near-upsets earlier in the season.

The loss to Baylor cost OU a chance at a national title, but a Big 12 title remains possible if the Sooners can regroup.

---

Baylor Rides Defense, Running Game to Upset Win

All eyes were on Williams and the electric Oklahoma offense entering Saturday's game, but Baylor proved why it boasts one of the best defenses in college football.

The Bears were all over Williams and the Sooners from start to finish, forcing two turnovers and preventing OU from finding any type of rhythm throughout.

Baylor set the tone from Oklahoma's first drive of the game by forcing a three-and-out and then intercepting Williams on the second drive, as it held the Sooners to just seven points in the opening half.

The dominance of Baylor's defense carried over to the second half, as the Bears put consistent pressure on Williams and nearly forced a turnover deep in Oklahoma territory late in the third quarter on a strip-sack:

Things are not looking good for Oklahoma on offense pic.twitter.com/c2EuPhGRBF

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 13, 2021

With Williams struggling and perhaps nursing a hand injury, Oklahoma turned to Rattler at the end of the third quarter in hopes of creating a spark.

That didn't happen, as the Bears continued to wreak havoc on the Oklahoma offensive line and sacked Rattler on third-and-long on his first drive to force a punt:

Doesn't matter who's in at QB for Oklahoma, @BUFootball's defense is getting after it 😤 pic.twitter.com/wSB04GwtPX

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 13, 2021

KCENTV's Niki Lattarulo made note of how hungry and aggressive the Baylor defense played throughout:

The #Baylor defense is out for blood today

— Niki Lattarulo (@NikiLattarulo) November 13, 2021

Before Oklahoma scored a touchdown late in the fourth quarter during garbage time, Sam Khan Jr. of The Athletic tweeted a breakdown of the ridiculous production Baylor's defense provided Saturday:

Oklahoma averaging only 3.8 yards per play today.

Baylor's defense has 9 TFLs, 5 sacks, 2 INTs

— Sam Khan Jr. (@skhanjr) November 13, 2021

While defense was the driving force behind Baylor's biggest win of the season, the Bears' running game also thrived, especially in the second half when the team rushed for over 200 yards.

The defining offensive play of the game for Baylor came early in the fourth quarter with the Bears clinging to a 10-7 lead.

Running back Abram Smith dashed 75 yards down the field and into the Oklahoma red zone, setting the stage for a Baylor touchdown to extend the lead to 17-7:

What a run from @BUFootball's Abram Smith! pic.twitter.com/o29YppdpIv

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 13, 2021

Based on how well Baylor's defense was playing at the time, that was essentially an insurmountable lead, and it allowed the Bears to run as much clock as possible in the final quarter.

Baylor quarterback Gerry Bohanon largely struggled as a passer in the game, going just 12-of-21 for 117 yards with one touchdown and one pick, but Oklahoma couldn't handle him as a runner either, as evidenced by his 107 yards and two scores on the ground.

The Bears seemingly figured out the formula to beating Oklahoma and perhaps showed other teams the blueprint for the remainder of the season.

---

What's Next?

Baylor will attempt to continue rolling next Saturday when it goes on the road to face the unranked Kansas State Wildcats.

Meanwhile, the Sooners will look to bounce back from a devastating loss next Saturday when they host the unranked Iowa State Cyclones.

After being benched early in the season because of on-field struggles, Spencer Rattler is back in at quarterback for Oklahoma. 

The sophomore replaced Caleb Williams late in the third quarter of Saturday's game against Baylor. Williams was 8-of-17 for 84 yards and two interceptions before being benched. 

Before head coach Lincoln Riley made the move, Sooners fans were chanting for Rattler to be put in the game. 

"We want Spencer" 👀

Fans want Spencer Rattler to sub in

(via @CFBONFOX)pic.twitter.com/hVetNPmlVb

— Bleacher Report CFB (@BR_CFB) November 13, 2021

Per Jason Kersey of The Athletic, Williams did have his throwing hand stepped on earlier in the game. It's unclear if his issues were related to an injury because of that incident. 

Coming into Saturday, Williams had been playing like one of the best quarterbacks in the nation in three games as the starter. The freshman was 56-of-73 for 875 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Williams threw more interceptions in three quarters against Baylor than he did in his first seven games combined. 

Caleb Williams INTs coming into today: 1
Caleb Williams INTs at @BUFootball: 2 pic.twitter.com/1ZTeoy9eqP

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 13, 2021

Rattler was the Sooners' starting quarterback for the first six games of the season. He was completing 74.3 percent of his passes during that span but had three touchdowns and three interceptions in three games before being benched midway through an Oct. 9 contest against Texas. 

The 21-year-old entered this season as one of the favorites to win the Heisman Trophy. He was fantastic as a redshirt freshman in 2020 with a 67.5 completion percentage, 3,031 yards and 28 touchdown passes in 11 games. 

Despite getting occasionally inconsistent play under center this season, Oklahoma (9-0) entered Saturday as one of four undefeated FBS teams (Georgia, Cincinnati, University of Texas San Antonio). 

The Sooners are also ranked No. 8 in the College Football Playoff standings.

Per Jason Kersey of The Athletic, Williams did have his throwing hand stepped on earlier in the game. It's unclear if his issues were related to an injury because of that incident. 

If TCU running back Zach Evans has any sway with the athletic department, Deion Sanders will be the school's next head football coach. 

The sophomore tweeted very matter-of-factly that he wants the Horned Frogs to hire the Pro Football Hall of Famer:

We want @DeionSanders .

— Zach Evans (@Runzekerun01) November 12, 2021

Evans' comment comes after Drew Davison of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported on Tuesday that Sanders is "squarely in the mix" for the TCU job after an "impressive" first interview with the school's selection committee. 

TCU athletic director Jeremiah Donati announced on Sunday a parting of ways with Gary Patterson. Assistant coach Jerry Kill will take over as head coach on an interim basis for the rest of the season. 

The 61-year-old Patterson was in his 22nd season with the program. He finished 181-79 with six conference titles, including a Big 12 championship in 2014, in 260 games as TCU head coach. 

Sanders is in his second season as head coach at Jackson State. Primetime has led the Tigers to a 12-4 record overall, including an 8-1 mark through nine games this season. 

TCU was off to a 3-5 start under Patterson. The program is on track for its fourth losing season since 2013. 

Jackson State head coach Deion Sanders reportedly remains a candidate to fill the vacancy at TCU, according to Drew Davison of the Star-Telegram:

"I’m not saying he is going to get the job, not saying he’s the leading candidate at this point, but he is in the mix." The latest on Deion Sanders and TCU's vacancy ... https://t.co/W1vvNinYli

— Drew Davison (@drewdavison) November 9, 2021

TCU is looking for a new head coach after parting ways with Gary Patterson last month. Jerry Kill has served as interim coach for the 4-5 squad.

Sanders is in his second season as head coach at Jackson State, leading the squad to an 8-1 record to start the 2021 campaign. 

A foot injury has kept Sanders off the sidelines, but his recruiting prowess has been especially notable for the FCS squad.

Jackson State had the No. 55 recruiting class in the country in 2021, per 247Sports, just two spots behind TCU. The class included Sanders' son, Shedeur Sanders, a 4-star prospect who has thrived for the HBCU program.

The quarterback has 2,414 passing yards with 23 touchdowns and three interceptions in nine games this season.

Deion Sanders' ability to turn Jackson State into an immediate winner could lead to more high-profile jobs. The former Hall of Fame player also has experience within Texas as a head coach at Trinity Christian School.

It could be a fit for TCU, which is looking to reestablish itself as a power in the Big 12 and nationally.

The Horned Frogs had 11 seasons with at least 10 wins under Patterson since 2002, but the team has struggled lately with just an 18-17 record from 2018-20.    

Texas wide receiver Joshua Moore is entering the transfer portal.

"The plan is for Josh to go into the portal," Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian told reporters Monday. "That's his option and opportunity to do that; that's what college football provides, and we wish him the best of luck."

Anwar Richardson of Orangebloods reported last week that Moore and Sarkisian had a "heated exchange" following practice. Richardson added that the junior pass-catcher's future with the program was "questionable."

Moore was Texas' leading receiver in 2020, catching 30 passes for 472 yards and nine touchdowns in eight games. He has fallen down the pecking order in 2021, with 24 receptions for 265 yards and three touchdowns so far.

His departure nonetheless leaves the Longhorns in a tough position to finish out the year.

Sarkisian announced last month Jordan Whittington will miss at least the remainder of the regular season because of a clavicle injury. Having already seen a torn ACL keep him out for all of last year, Troy Omeire underwent season-ending knee surgery in September.

Xavier Worthy (36 receptions, 696 yards, eight touchdowns) will have to shoulder an even bigger load in the passing game with Moore out of the picture.

While most fans knew better than to get irrationally excited about Texas' 4-1 start, it looked like in early October that Sarkisian was at least laying the groundwork to make more progress over the next few years.

Since beating TCU 32-27 on Oct. 2, the Longhorns have lost four games in a row, displaying an uncanny ability to unravel in the fourth quarter. Now, a notable skill position player is leaving after a reported argument with the head coach.

Sarkisian's maiden voyage in Austin could be going better.