The predictable response is to see LSU and Alabama at the very top of any poll here in Week 12 of the college football season. But a quick glance past those familiar names and it’s clear that the voters on a national scale have no love for the Big 12 this season. Of course, it’s the conference’s own fault.
Arkansas and Virginia Tech and Stanford sit in the next three slots of the USA Today/Coaches Poll this week, meaning that there are no Big 12 teams represented for the first time since the Oklahoma Land Rush. The Cowboys of Oklahoma State sit at No. 6, right ahead of undefeated Houston, and the Sooners aren’t even in the top 10 after their upset loss to Baylor. In other words, one team in the Top Ten and none in the Top Five.
It’s a down year for the Big 12, whose only good story is the Kansas State Wildcats at this point.
Here’s the complete Top 10 for the USA Today/Coaches Poll:
1. LSU
2. Alabama
3. Arkansas
4. Virginia Tech
5. Stanford
6. Oklahoma State
7. Houston
8. Boise State
9. Oregon
10. Michigan State