Big 12 Overrated...?

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BlackShirt1340

Five-Star Recruit
Who agrees with all the talking heads on ESPN that the Big 12 is overrated?

I personally think that the guys on ESPN don't have a clue what they are talking about. To say that Oklahoma is overrated after a loss to BYU (which is now ranked #6!) after losing their star heisman winning quarterback to injury, but still only losing by one point is ridiculous. OU will rebound like they always do after a loss and I can easily see them going the rest of the year only possibly losing one more game.

Oklahoma State is famous for not knowing how to handle the pressure of being ranked high. Consistently, throughout their history (and most recent history), they reach a high ranking, beat one quality opponent and manage to have a LETDOWN game against a lesser adversary. I know that Houston is a really good offensive team, but after holding a Georgia team to 10 points, there is no reason they should not be able to OUTSCORE Houston. Watching that game, Robinson looked completely out of sync the entire game.

Texas has consistently played DOWN to the level of their opponents. in 2007, they managed to lose to Kansas State, a team that we scored 10 touchdowns on in our worst season in recent history. They almost loss to us in our worst season in that same season and barely escaped at home 28-25, and almost lost to Arkansas State 21-13 (you know, that same team we just PUMMELED yesterday). But when it comes to big games, UT can hang with anyone in the country.

Texas Tech is showing that they can reload (granted, against weaker opponents) and by the time they reach Lincoln, may be just as formidable as last season. Baylor is a one trick pony, but could possibly ride Robert Griffin III to a decent season (which is a step up for a usually terrible BU team). Texas A & M is weak but what else is new.

Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri are all looking strong early on. We all know the weaknesses in Nebraska's D and can see the strong offense that we are producing so far this year. The test at VT will be a big sign of how far we have actually come. Kansas is looking much stronger on defense this year than they have in the past couple of years (but they've only played cupcakes), but we will see how strong that defense is when they reach the power of the Big 12 offenses. Missouri had a slip-up against BGSU last night, but I am going to attribute that very close game that required a comeback more to Mizzou sleeping in the first half, rather than BGSU coming out on fire. Watching the gamecast, both teams were struggling hard in the first three quarters, but once mizzou hit stride, it seems that the only thing that stopped them from scoring 60 was the time running out.

The lower half of the big 12 North doesn't even need to be mentioned, as the 3 of them combined may win 6 games this season.

I think the Big 12 is living up to the hype just as they are expected. In my opinion, there is nothing that has happened that I wouldn't expect to happen. Oklahoma is an exception, but the injury to Bradford is the only reason they lost that game, guaranteed. They were struggling mightily with BYU before Bradford's injury, but I think he would have managed at least another touchdown or field goal drive in the entire second half. :dunno

What do you think? ESPN analysts crazy? Or right on with their accusations that the Big 12 is overrated?

.... I think the Big 12 and the country is going to be in for a surprise when the Big Red train gets rolling and we hit our potential that Bo keeps saying we're nowhere near yet. I can't wait for that day, and feel sorry for the team we play when we hit that stride. Hopefully, we hit it next week in Blacksburg! :w00t

:restore

 
I don't think the Big 12 is overrated by any means but it has been made to look bad by how some of the teams are playing here lately. You got a OSU losing to Houston, K-State losing to LA-Lafayette, ISU getting crushed by Iowa, Mizzou almost lost to Bowling Green and then there's Colorado which won't win one game the way their going. So yeah right now the Big 12 is definitely behind the SEC but I think the best of the Big 12 is better than the best of the SEC but not as deep.

 
Yeah well, they're talking heads, like you said. They pride themselves on finding fun and interesting stuff for everybody to talk and think about. For once, Lou Holtz actually had our back and said that we were not overrated.

But if you look at how things have set up recently, you could consider us overrated, but I don't agree with them. OU loss to a good BYU team, but they didn't have their starting quarterback. People will say "yeah but Bradford struggled throughout the first half". Has anybody ever seen a game that Bradford struggled the ENTIRE game through? Even though they lost to Florida, he still had a good showing during certain portions of the game. I'm sure he would have stepped it up a notch and OU would have won had he not been injured.

Texas is Texas. Struggle against lesser teams, find ways to win against big time teams. It's the same story for them every year.

OSU proved they are overrated. They had one chance this off season to prove they deserved the hype, and they proved it. Next week they go and lose to Houston? They are the same story every year as well.

The Big 12 North is the same as always. A lot of potential that doesn't translate into beating the South. MU won't be the Big 12 North champ this year, and it's going to come down to KU and NU. I give NU the nod just because KU has to face all those tough South opponents this year.

So yeah, the talking heads will be talking heads. But they do raise a fair point, in that the Big 12 "powers" didn't have great showings early in the season. They'll be eating their words come season end, when they see a Big 12 team in the National Title game again.

 
Does it matter? The only time strength of conference means anything is if there are 3 or more undefeated teams (or less than 2 undefeated teams and a bunch of 1 loss teams) trying to jockey for poll position to get into the BCS "National Title Game". Meanwhile, Okie Lite, OU, and especially CU and KSU will take a hit in recruiting against us. Sure I'd like the whole B12 to be undefeated until we beat them, but I certainly don't care if the conference has a down year or 10.

 
So the Big 12 is overrated, does that mean the SEC isn't? The toughest O.O.C game any of them have played was Georgia traveling to Stillwater, and they LOST! So how freaking good is the SEC then? And I don't want to hear "well Alabama beat VT!", because the ACC is a freaking joke, and the Huskers will expose that next saturday.

I wonder, did any of those talking heads happen to mention how badly LSU struggling against Washington? Or that Tennessee lost to a horrible UCLA team? Of course not, because that would go against their opinion that the SEC is the only conference that matters! :espnsucks:

 
My opinion is that the Big 12 is overrated after these first two weeks ... atleast in how I viewed or perceived us. Some of the better teams have had unexpected losses and the the bottom teams seem worse than I projected. The teams I like and follow ... Huskers, Mizzou and Kansas ... have all had some wins ... but against who?

So two weeks in ... I feel the conference is overrated ... at this point.

I don't really care what ESPN thinks at this point ... this will all shake out in the end. I think it helps us if the league is stronger ... so these losses have really put a damper on a pretty good start for us.

Well find out how good we are against VT for sure ... then we will see how we respond ... either after a win or possible a loss ... I'm lookin' forward to seeing that team finish out the season and face the likes of OU, then Mizzou and see if we make it to the conference championship.

SheepdogMark

 
I think that the premise may be valid after this week end! But ask yourself this question, where is the strenght. There does not seem to be much! This may be a great year for the Huskers to put it together. Things will gell but there may be only one or two domiant teams this year. The polls now are way screwed up.

 
I think the conference got a bloody nose this weekend yes. Alot of teams were looking forward to other games or didn't show up at all. We are still among the best out there but i think the teams that lost had some coaching let downs.

 
The Big 12 took a nasty rep hit over the weekend. We were getting into the argument that we are on par with the sec. And how teams played certainly didnt do any favors.

No big 12 team should lose to non BCS teams. OSU, CU and KSU all managed to violate this one this week. OU lost last week, and even with Bradford there was no guarantee of a win. That o-line is bad. regardless of what they did to Idaho.

ISU is ISU, no one ever expects them to win, so no rep hit there.

Texas and KU both started slow vs inferior opponents. and MU barely escaped a loss with a 4th quarter rally.

If over the next two weeks NU loses to VT and OU were to lose to Miami, only one Big 12 team will be going BCS bowling this year. The conference will be punished in the rankings all year

 
If anything I'd say Okie St. was over-rated.

I don't know why anyone thought their defense was going to be so much better this year. Maybe a little, but not much.

Of course, they could have still been patting themselves on the back for beating Georgia. But I still really wasn't that surprised that Houston was able to put up the amount of points that they did.

 
Look at the two making the argument, regardless of who they were for/against.

I'm not sure who Mark May had to give oral favors to, to get that job, but his college football knowledge is in his a$$.

And Lou Holtz, well, go to the woodshed for my thoughts on him...

The Big 12 is a good conference. Are we the best conference, I don't think so, but are we in the conversation, yes.

 
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