As WVU wades into the season, a very short update on the 16-team Big 12

As one who covered West Virginia University sports for years (and years and years) and now a full-time fan of my alma mater, I’ve always noticed my enthusiasm for the Mountaineers’ conference intensifies exponentially the more they win.
After the season opening WVU letdown against Penn State (which followed that win by struggling against Bowling Green), it’s been a little tough to get interested in the Big 12. Mountaineer fans, after all, are still learning about this 2024 team, right?
Yet it’s not a good time to let our attention drift. There are now 16 teams in the incorrectly named Big 12 with the addition of the “four-corner” ex-Pac-12 programs: Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah.
I challenge WVU fans to even name the other 12. (Answer at the bottom.)
I’ll admit I was looking over the most recent Associated Press Top 25 poll (which I voted on for years) and my eyes skipped right over Arizona, which sits at No. 20. The eyes instead went to No. 15 Oklahoma, a former Big 12 member. (Us old guys don’t like change.)
I mean, I used to cover WVU’s conference (the Big East) for SI.com’s Stewart Mandel, who began The Athletic. Was all over it.
But back to the point of the blog. If the Mountaineers beat (especially if they dismantle) rival Pitt this Saturday, enthusiasm will return. It will be good to have a grasp on their conference.
So without getting too deep, here are a few tidbits:
• Newcomer Utah, currently ranked No. 12 in the A.P. rankings, is widely considered the gem of the Big 12. The problem with that so far is the Utes struggled to get by Baylor, No. 12 in the league preseason poll, 23-12. So they aren’t exactly looking like the SEC’s No. 1 Georgia.
• The Big 12’s No. 2 and 3 preseason poll teams are flipped in the A.P. Top 25. Oklahoma State is ranked No. 13 after rallying to defeat Arkansas (ranked 14th of 16 in the SEC preseason poll). Kansas State is ranked No. 14 but had to rally to defeat Tulane 34-27.
• Kansas, the No. 4 team in the preseason Big 12 poll, fell to Illinois after the Jayhawks were ranked No. 19/20 nationally. (Remember when KU was godawful?)
• Perhaps the best Big 12 victory so far was Iowa State’s 20-19 decision at then-No. 21 Iowa. ISU kicker Kyle Konrardy, it was reported, “etched his name in Cyclones’ lore” after nailing a 54-yard field goal to win it.
• The conference’s five nationally ranked teams did go 4-1 in week two.
• The Big 12 had three preseason first-team All-America players, according to the A.P. in OSU running back Ollie Gordon II, Colorado all-purpose player Travis Hunter and Arizona wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan. (Yes, yes, I know. Ohio State had four on the team alone.)
• And how about this? Both weeks this season, Big 12 players led the nation in scrimmage yards, as Arizona State’s Cam Skattebo gained 297 yards against Mississippi State (262 rushing and 35 receiving) and Arizona’s McMillan had 304 receiving yards (and four TDs) against New Mexico. The latter was the most since Ohio State’s Jaxson Smith-Njigba had 347 against Utah in the 2022 Rose Bowl.
• Finally, Friday’s Arizona-Kansas State game will not count as a conference game because it originally was scheduled as a non-conference game prior to Arizona joining the league. The non-conference status also applied to last week’s Baylor-Utah game for the same reason.
So, there ya go, a short tutorial on the Big 12. If you’re like me, you’ll need them here and there until we truly grasp all the new teams.
Oh, and while on the subject, here are the other 12 teams and the years they joined:
• Baylor (1996)
• BYU (2023)
• Cincinnati (2023)
• Houston (2023)
• Iowa State (1996)
• Kansas (1996)
• Kansas State (1996)
• Oklahoma State (1996)
• TCU (2012)
• Texas Tech (1996)
• UCF (2023)
• West Virginia (2012)
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Mitch Vingle covered sports in West Virginia for 38 years. Follow Mitch on Twitter at @MitchVingle and be sure to check out the rest of Wheelhouse Creative’s website for your marketing and advertising needs. If interested, call us at 304-905-6005.