Big 12 preseason power poll: Where do Deion Sanders and Colorado rank?
FRISCO, Texas — The Big 12 is once again declining to do a preseason media poll, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have some fun on our own, does it?
The conference convenes Tuesday and Wednesday at the Dallas Cowboys headquarters’ ahead of its 30th season on the football field.
Even with the Brendan Sorsby saga in the rearview mirror, Texas Tech will be the talk of the town. Of course, Deion Sanders and Colorado will make sure to be heard from.
As a whole in 2026, the league is hoping to bust its status as a one-bid conference by getting multiple teams in the 12-team College Football Playoff field for the first time and this may be the best shot with at least a half a dozen teams entering the fall feeling like a Big 12 title is within reach.
Let’s power rank the conference with under two months left until the start of the season:
- BYU
The Cougars get the top spot because of the uncertainty surrounding Texas Tech’s quarterback situation in the wake of Sorsby giving up his fight to play this season, but also because Kalani Sitake’s team is just really darn good. This should be the best defense in the league and with quarterback Bear Bachmeier and running back LJ Martin both back, BYU should have a dominant rushing attack, too.
- Texas Tech
There is a real argument that the Red Raiders should still be No. 1 regardless of who starts at quarterback in Week 1. Will Hammond should return at some point in September, while Texas Tech has a loaded roster again thanks to even more big spending in the transfer portal. A light schedule doesn’t hurt, either.
- Houston
Wait, is this basketball season? Yes, that’s right, it’s not just Kelvin Sampson’s program that can compete for Big 12 titles. Willie Fritz is coming off a 10-win season in year two with the Cougars and has plenty of returning talent, enough to be one of the 25 best teams in the country all season long.
- Arizona
Consistently under the radar, the Wildcats went 9-4 last season in an impressive bounce-back effort in coach Brent Brennan’s second season. Arizona has arguably the best quarterback in the conference in Noah Fifita, who enters his fourth season as the program’s starter. The schedule isn’t the easiest, but this should be a really solid team on both sides of the ball.
- Utah
If this feels too low for the Utes, that’s understandable. But this is a different era in Salt Lake City with Morgan Scalley officially taking over as coach and it’s going to take a while to get used to seeing Kyle Whittingham in Michigan colors. Utah has a proven recipe for success, though, and QB Devon Dampier is one of the Big 12’s most electric players.
- Arizona State
The most difficult schedule in the conference sets a certain ceiling for Kenny Dillingham’s program, but the Sun Devils did well in the transfer portal in what was an offseason roster reset, including getting a pair of stars from the state of Colorado in former Buffs WR Omarion Miller and former CSU Rams linebacker Owen Long.
- Oklahoma State
The Cowboys are hoping a winning formula used across the country works in Stillwater. Not only did OK-State bring in a hotshot young coach in Eric Morris, but he also brought with him multiple stars from North Texas, most notably QB Drew Mestemaker, who led the nation in passing last season and who was voted Big 12 preseason newcomer of the year.
- TCU
Sonny Dykes typically finds a way to churn out winning seasons in Fort Worth, and 2026 has the same expectations, even with QB Josh Hoover off to Indiana hoping to recreate the same magic that Fernando Mendoza did with Curt Cignetti. The Horned Frogs are hoping Harvard transfer QB Jaden Craig can light up the Big 12 the way he did the Ivy League.
- Kansas State
There was no more fitting coaching hire this offseason than Collin Klein returning to Manhattan to lead his alma mater after a successful run as the offensive coordinator at Texas A&M. The Wildcats’ former star quarterback gets his first head coaching job and his first task is trying to make the most of dynamic QB Avery Johnson’s final season.
- Colorado
The Buffs are nearly impossible to place. On one hand, Coach Prime’s program lost nearly every single meaningful young contributor from last year’s disappointing three-win team. On the other hand, there is near universal praise for an incoming transfer class highlighted by Group of Six stars on both sides of the ball, like San Jose State transfer WR Danny Scudero and Tulane transfer DL Santana Hopper. The growth of redshirt freshman QB Julian “JuJu” Lewis may define the season.
- Central Florida
The last time Scott Frost was in year two at UCF, the Knights went 13-0 and had a nation rooting for them as they were denied a chance to play for a national championship. An unbeaten regular season in the Big 12 will get UCF that chance almost a decade later, with Frost back for a second stint in Orlando, but that’s certainly easier said than done this time around.
- Baylor
Anything less than a top-half finish in the conference and an eight-win season probably won’t be good enough for Dave Aranda to keep his job after yet another disappointing season in Waco with his tenure failing to get back to the heights of playing for a Big 12 title in 2021. The Bears are hoping Florida transfer QB DJ Lagway is the answer to their problems.
- Cincinnati
It’s hard to know what to make of the Bearcats, who were also involved in the Sorsby saga as his previous school, but here they are in Scott Satterfield’s fourth season, which is exactly how many seasons his previous stop at Louisville lasted. How long will Cincinnati keep him around?
- West Virginia
Another offseason of roster turnover for Rich Rodriguez as he enters year two of a second stint at a place he once thrived. The lack of offensive consistency was evident all of 2025 and the Mountaineers brought in dynamic Oklahoma transfer QB Michael Hawkins to try and find a needed spark.
- Kansas
A terrible record in one-score games recently (2-9 in their last 11) has tempered the excitement of the Lance Leipold era, which hit its peak in 2023 when KU won nine games. Veteran quarterback Jalon Daniels is out of eligibility after a decorated career, so the Jayhawks will need the duo of former CU running back Dylan Edwards and former CSU back Jalen Dupree to lead the way.
- Iowa State
The Cyclones are in a tough spot after 10-year coach Matt Campbell finally left Ames for greener pastures and a big budget behemoth in Penn State. Jimmy Rogers comes in from Washington State, and this should definitely be viewed as a rebuild at Iowa State, a place that has historically struggled to maintain success until the Campbell era.
King’s Preseason Big 12 All-Conference Awards
Offensive Player of the Year: Noah Fifita, Arizona
Defensive Player of the Year: Cade Uluave, BYU
Newcomer of the Year: Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State
King’s Big 12 Preseason All-Conference Team
Offense
QB: Noah Fifita, Arizona
RB: LJ Martin, BYU
RB: Cameron Dickey, Texas Tech
FB: Garrett Oakley, Kansas State
WR: Omarion Miller, Arizona State
WR: Danny Scudero, Colorado
WR: Amare Thomas, Houston
TE: Terrance Carter, Texas Tech
OL: John Pastore, Kansas State
OL: Shadre Hurst, Houston
OL: Bruce Mitchell, BYU
OL: Evan Tengesdahl, Cincinnati
OL: Joe Cotton, Cincinnati
PK: Kyle Konrardy, Iowa State
PR/KR: Quentin Gibson, Colorado
Defense
DL: Wendell Gregory, Kansas State
DL: A.J. Holmes, Texas Tech
DL: Adam Trick, Texas Tech
DL: C.J. Fite, Arizona State
DL: Keanu Tanuvosa, BYU
LB: Owen Long, Arizona State
LB: Ben Roberts, Texas Tech
LB: Cade Uluave, BYU
DB: Jamel Johnson, TCU
DB: Evan Johnson, BYU
DB: Brice Pollock, Texas Tech
DB: Will James, Houston
P: Palmer Williams, Baylor