Looking towards the 2021 college football season, expectations are high but not just for the Oklahoma Sooners. The Iowa State Cyclones enter the conversation of having lofting expectations heading into the season. After reaching the conference title game for the first time in their history, ISU knocked off the Oregon Ducks in the Fiesta Bowl. Can they repeat as challengers for the Sooners in 2021?
Outside of Iowa State looking to knock off Oklahoma, you will find the usual suspects at the top. The Texas Longhorns have a new head coach and he is looking to bust the recent trend of losing to the Red River Rivalry counterparts. Oklahoma State has its own issues as they try to replace Chuba Hubbard and Tylan Wallace on the offensive side of the ball. They haven’t bested their in-state rivals since 2014.
247Sports broke down their predicted order of finish, once again the Sooners at the top looking down at the rest of the conference.
Kansas Jayhawks
Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal
No surprise here as the Jayhawks are predicted to finish dead last in the conference. New head coach Lance Leipold has plenty of work to do after the firing of Les Miles after just two seasons. A positive first step for the new man in charge will be winning a game or two. Projected Record: 2-10
Texas Tech Red Raiders
Michael C. Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
The Texas Tech Red Raiders are going into year three of Matt Wells tenure and last year didn’t go well. Tech lost their starting quarterback Alan Bowman to Michigan through the transfer portal but picked up Oregon’s Tyler Shough. With the return of Sonny Cumbie to run the offense, there is some optimism. Wells needs to find a way into a bowl game to save his job in Lubbock. Projected Record: 5-7
Baylor Bears
(William Wotring/The Dominion-Post via AP, File)
It has been a wild ride as of late with the Baylor Bears. Matt Rhule took over the program for one season taking them from worst to a Big 12 Championship appearance. Once he left for the NFL it was Dave Aranda’s turn. He has the defense playing well but can the Bears regain some of their offensive explosion in 2021? Projected Record: 5-7
Kansas State Wildcats
Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
In the last two seasons, the Wildcats have found a way to knock off the Oklahoma Sooners. Everything outside of that has been less than consistent. The return of Skylar Thompson should give the offense a boost and Deuce Vaughn looks to continue to be a nightmare for defenses to figure out in 2021. Predicted Record: 6-6
West Virginia Mountaineers
Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
The Mountaineers have built up a reputation of being one of the better defensive teams in the country. That is their calling card but for an offensive coach in Neal Brown, the offense needs to do its fair share of the work. If WVU can get their offense rolling in 2021, it would do wonders for getting them back into the conversation. Predicted Record: 6-6
Oklahoma State Cowboys
Sarah Phipps-USA TODAY Sports
The Oklahoma State Cowboys started off the 2020 campaign on fire and seemed like a virtual lock to play in the Big 12 title game, at least halfway through the season. Losses to Texas, Oklahoma, and Texas Christian derailed that idea. Replacing two key offensive weapons won’t be easy and Spencer Sanders needs to limit his turnovers to challenge the Sooners in 2021. Predicted Record: 7-5
Texas Christian Horned Frogs
Andrew Dieb-USA TODAY Sports
Texas Christian had a rough start to the 2020 campaign with a 1-3 record after four games. Quarterback Max Duggan was barely cleared for football prior to the season kicking off. He would eventually take back over and lead the Frogs to a 5-1 run at the end of the year. If the team can build on that run, TCU should be a contender by season’s end. The defense just has to replace a lot of key talent that left for the NFL. Predicted Record: 7-5
Texas Longhorns
(AP Photo/Michael Thomas)
Tom Herman’s lack of success against Oklahoma, Iowa State, and TCU was his undoing as he was removed after 2020. The Longhorns turned to Steve Sarkisian to right the ship and challenge OU once again. A new head coach, new staff, and a new starting quarterback will have plenty of work ahead of them. Can either Casey Thompson or Hudson Card give UT the level of quarterback play they have been missing since Colt McCoy’s departure over a decade ago? Predicted Record: 8-4
Iowa State Cyclones
Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Matt Campbell is pushing all of the right buttons as he turned around an Iowa State program that won just three games before his arrival in 2016. The Cyclones return most of their team including Brock Purdy and the nation’s leading rusher Breece Hall. Can they find a way to defeat Oklahoma twice in 2021? No one has figured out how to do that just yet. Predicted Record: 10-2
Oklahoma Sooners
(Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
No surprises here, if you want to be the best you have to beat the best. TCU, Texas, Baylor, and Iowa State have all challenged OU since the return of the title game and failed. The Sooners have CFP level aspirations and this might be Lincoln Riley’s best squad since he took over as head coach. The question is can he avoid the early season hiccups that could shatter those dreams in 2021? Predicted Record: 11-1
1
1
1
1
1
1
