The Big 12 has already hosted its annual media days event in Texas. Now, all the attention for the conference is going to be focused on preparing for the 2025 regular season.
Ahead of the season, Phil Steele shared his preseason Big 12 rankings. These are specifically based on his preseason power poll. That’s based on a variety of factors and balances several different polls that Steele puts together for his annual magazine.
With that in mind, here’s a look at where Steele thinks the Big 12 currently stands. Alongside that is where each team currently ranks nationally.
The Arizona State Sun Devils came into 2024 with abysmal expectations. They quickly proved everyone else wrong and by the end of the season, they were Big 12 champions and playing in the Playoff. Now, Arizona State is going to need to deal with completely opposite expectations in 2025.
Luckily, the Sun Devils are going to return starting quarterback Sam Leavitt. He’ll be without running back Cam Skattebo, but there is still plenty of talent on the roster. So, while not being a perfect team, they do come into the season atop the Big 12.
It’s been an inconsistent Baylor tenure for head coach Dave Aranda. On the one hand, he does have a Big 12 championship. On the other hand, he has found himself on the hot seat after a very difficult 2023 season. However, after seeming to figure out in 2024, Steele now has massive expectations for the Bears.
Baylor seemed to find its solution at quarterback with Sawyer Robertson last season. Add in a team that hasn’t seen egregious turnover, and Baylor appears to be one of the best teams in the conference. That means they could even be competing for a trip to the Playoff.
3. Utah Utes (19th nationally)
The Utah Utes struggled mightily in their first season in the Big 12. Going 5-7 with issues on the offensive side of the ball, there were rumors that Kyle Whittingham might even step down. He didn’t, though, and now he wants to bounce back in a major way.
Fixing the offense was the major concern in the offseason. That included bringing in new offensive coordinator Jason Beck to run the offense along with transfer quarterback Devon Dampier. If that connection works, then Utah could be a major threat.
Nobody had as exciting an offseason in the Transfer Portal as Texas Tech. The Red Raiders transfer class is ranked first in the 2025 cycle, according to the On3 College Football Team Transfer Portal Rankings. That includes 21 incoming transfers to Texas Tech.
Transfers don’t make a team inherently successful. Still, there’s a lot to like about what Texas Tech is putting together. If everything clicks into place, then the Big 12 is up for grabs for the Red Raiders.
Since their unbeaten regular season and trip to the College Football Playoff, TCU has been a bit inconsistent under head coach Sonny Dykes. That included a breakout season for quarterback Josh Hoover. If he takes another step forward, the Horned Frogs become a major threat.
If there’s something TCU can hang its hat on, it’s that Sonny Dykes has always worked well with quarterbacks. In his Air Raid offense, there are going to be plenty of opportunities. The Horned Frogs just can’t afford a slow start to the year.
Iowa State is coming off a season where they played in the Big 12 Championship Game. That ended up being a loss. With that, the Cyclones continue the search for their first conference championship since the 1912 season.
Head coach Matt Campbell has done a phenomenal job during his time at Iowa State. Now, with returning quarterback Rocco Becht, the hope is he can finally get the program over the hump. That means winning the Big 12 and going to the Playoff.
There are plenty of preseason rankings that have Kansas State higher than seventh. But, amid a run of seven Big 12 teams from 15th to 30th nationally, per Steele, it’s easy to see that there is so much parity expected from this league. So, while Kansas State enters seventh here, they’re very much in contention.
Returning quarterback Avery Johnson and new offensive coordinator Matt Wells are working together. That combination is going to be vital to the Wildcats. If they click into place together, then there’s no telling how far the Wildcats can go.
The BYU Cougars were a surprise in a very good way last season, winning double-digit games. That made them a legitimate threat to win the Big 12, and even though they came up short, the hope is that they can build on that. It won’t be easy, though.
Head coach Kalani Sitake has had to deal with the loss of starting quarterback Jake Retzlaff this offseason. That came after the traditional portal period and BYU wasn’t able to add a replacement. Add in plenty of other turnover, and this well coached team has questions to answer.
It’s been a difficult go of things for the Cincinnati Bearcats in both their first two Big 12 seasons and first two years under Scott Satterfield. Last season was particularly painful. After a 5-2 start to the year, they dropped their final five games to miss a bowl.
There is pressure on Satterfield to perform in 2025. It won’t be easy, though. There still is, on paper, a talent gap between the Bearcats and the rest of the conference. So, taking a step forward and avoiding those losing streaks is going to be vital.
There’s some good and bad for Houston to build on. Head coach Willie Fritz, now in his second season did have a good defense in year one. Known as a program builder, it even seems like Fritz can build on that moving forward.
The problem is that Houston was awful on offense in 2024. That needs to turn around quickly. Houston brought in transfer quarterback Conner Weigman and the hope is that he’ll have an immediate impact there.
After going to bowls in two straight seasons, Kansas took a step in the wrong direction last year and missed a bowl. Now, head coach Lance Leipold is looking to find a way to bounce back. Of course, in a congested Big 12 race, that’s easier said than done.
Much of the success that Kansas has had under Leipold comes down to quarterback Jalon Daniels. He’s had some injury issues. However, when healthy, he makes Kansas among the best teams in the conference.
Colorado finds itself in an interesting spot. Head coach Deion Sanders returns. However, he needs to replace key players, like his son, Shedeur Sanders, and Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter. That’s an almost impossible task, of course.
Still, Sanders is confident that Colorado can compete next season. Elsewhere, the Buffaloes are among the most hotly debated teams in the Big 12. In Steele’s case, he has them toward the bottom of the conference.
The Arizona Wildcats were a major disappointment during the 2024 season. It was the first season for Brent Brennan, replacing Jedd Fisch. However, Fisch took several key players with him and the offense didn’t live up to expectations.
The pressure is on year two for Brennan, as he finds himself on the hot seat. Luckily, for Arizona, they return quarterback Noah Fifita. He’s among the best quarterbacks in the league. So, there is hope he can spark a quick turnaround.
The West Virginia Mountaineers brought back an old face, head coach Rich Rodriguez. He’s one of the best coaches in program history and previously led the program to some of its best seasons back in their Big East days. It’s a rebuild, but there’s hope is he can replicate in the Big 12.
Rodriguez made the decision to flip the roster in the Transfer Portal. That’s going to make it a bit of a mystery what the Mountaineers actually look like on the field next season. For now, they’re starting toward the bottom in Steele’s rankings.
The UCF Knights are in a very similar situation to West Virginia. After a frustrating 2024, they found themselves in need of a new head coach. Thus, the return of Scott Frost. It was Frost who previously led a turnaround in Orlando from winless to unbeaten in just two seasons.
UCF enters 2025 with a brand new roster at several key spots. That includes a quarterback battle, which is still up in the air with Big 12 Media Day in the rearview mirror. So, as it stands now, the Knights have some work to do.
Rounding out Steele’s preseason Big 12 rankings is Oklahoma State. The Cowboys had an awful 2024, going winless in Big 12 play. That, in turn, led to an offseason of staff changes. Head coach Mike Gundy even had his contract restructured.
The major question in Stillwater goes back to the quarterback position. If Gundy can find someone to lead well, then Oklahoma State could outpace expectations.
