Around the Big 12, Week 1: Schadenfreude and Sadness

Week One of Big 12 college football is in the books, and there’s plenty to talk about from around the conference. Other than TCU’s shellacking of Southern, the conference had some bright spots, some low spots, and Kansas. Let’s get to it!

THE GOOD

Oklahoma 63, FAU 14

Most people predicted FAU to put a scare in the Sooners, make it interesting and test Kyler Murray in his first start as the anointed successor to Baker Mayfield.

Nope! Oklahoma beat the snot of the Owls, leading 42-0 at the half and not showing a single weakness. Sooners running back Rodney Anderson finished with five carries for 100 yards and two touchdowns. Is that good? That seems good. Murray went a casual 9-11 for 209 yards and two scores.

The Sooners don’t look like they’ve lost a step. The rich get richer.

West Virginia 40, Tennessee 14

Whatever infusion of Red Bull Dana Holgorsen gave Will Grier at halftime worked. After a sluggish performance in the first half that saw the Mountaineers take a 13-7 lead into the break, Grier led West Virginia to a 20-point third quarter, slicing and dicing his way through the Volunteers defense.

Grier’s final statline was 25-34 for 429 yards and five touchdowns, against no interceptions. He’s the real deal — and, through the first week, it seems West Virginia might be as well.

Oklahoma State 58, Missouri State 17

Mike Gundy plugged Taylor Cornelius in where Mason Rudolph used to be, and while it was against an FCS school, Cornelius delivered. He went 24-34 for 295 yards and threw five touchdowns and a pick. Oklahoma State also had two 100-yard rushers, as Justice Hill and LD Brown both cracked the century mark.

The Cowboys did what they should’ve done against an FCS opponent. They’ll have another cupcake next week when they play South Alabama.

Baylor 55, Abilene Christian 27

Is it good that Baylor gave up 27 points to ACU? Probably not. But this was a solid start for the Bears. They led 38-20 at the half, and Charlie Brewer and Jalan McClendon each looked solid at quarterback. Brewer left midway through the game with a back injury, which hopefully won’t be too serious. He’s a good player, and fun to watch.

For a Baylor team that won just one game last year — and lost to Liberty — this was a perfectly fine beginning.

THE BAD

Ole Miss 47, Texas Tech 27

The Texas Tech defense was supposed to be new and improved. Ole Miss scored 14 points before it had a minute of possession. Whoops!

The only thing hotter than Kliff Kingsbury himself is the seat he’s sitting on.

Kansas State 27, South Dakota 24

Here’s how bad this win is for the Wildcats: when I was writing my pick for this game, I honest-to-god thought they were playing South Dakota State, because I didn’t know South Dakota Coyotes were a real football team playing FBS opponents. It was only when I saw Iowa State had SDSU scheduled that I realized my mistake.

Then SDU led Kansas State 24-12 at the half.

Good news, Wildcats: your defense pitched a second-half shutout! Bad news: everything else!

THE UGLY

Maryland 34, No. 23 Texas 29

Texas, baby, we gotta talk.

Look, losing at a neutral site to Maryland is bad enough. Losing to a team without a head coach is even worse, and losing when your quarterback throws a horrific interception that mirrors the one he threw to lose to Oklahoma State last year is just high comedy.

But Tom Herman said he’s not concerned, and that his team looked better Saturday than they had at any point last year. That’s good, right? Let’s see if the fans on the OrangeBloods forums agree!

Ah. Well.

Nicholls State 26, Kansas 23 (OT)

Even the Frogs O’ War writers’ room didn’t think KU could lose to Nicholls State. Nicholls isn’t even a state, for Pete’s sake!

David Beaty might end his Kansas career with only one win since 2016. Hey, who was the last team Kansas beat, again?

Rock Chalk!

N/A

Iowa State’s game against South Dakota State was cancelled due to lightning. The Cyclones will start next week against Iowa.