An interesting story for the first two months, now the spotlight is on Brandon McAnderson and Kansas against Oklahoma State. Could this be a big upset week in the Big 12? Check out the previews, analysis and predictions for the Week 11 Big 12 Games.
Kansas
(9-0)
at Oklahoma State
(5-4)
8:00 PM ABC
Why to watch: The initial
scouting report on Oklahoma State before
the season began was that it had good
enough offensive talent, and good enough
overall athleticism, to beat anyone in
America, but was going to be just flaky
enough to be able to lose to anyone,
anytime. Last week, OSU lived up to its
billing in one game, destroying Texas
for three quarters with stunning ease,
and then losing after a fourth quarter
collapse. Having lost to Troy earlier in
the year, the Cowboys showed they could
lose to anyone, and now they get a
chance to show they can beat the best of
the best with No. 4 Kansas coming to
town with dreams of a national title
still dancing around their heads. Yeah,
Kansas is in the mix now. Yeah, Kansas
has been breathtaking at times, and is
coming off a 76-39 destruction of
Nebraska. Yeah, the stats are
impressive. But now the spotlight is on,
and now the rest of the world will be
watching and analyzing everything the
team does to see if this really is a
team worthy of the ranking. With the
Missouri game in two weeks, and Iowa
State coming to Lawrence next week,
there's still work to be done. Getting
by OSU first will be step one. Last
year, these two played one of the
weirdest, wildest games of the season
with OSU overcoming a 17-0 halftime
deficit to score 42 second half points
helped in a stunning display of
firepower. This year's game should be
almost as interesting. Why Kansas
might win: Oklahoma State has
decided to stop playing defense. There's
no pass rush whatsoever, the secondary
has been torched by almost everyone,
including Texas A&M and Kansas State,
and it isn't going to be able to to slow
down a KU offense, that at times, is
efficient as any in America. KU doesn't
make mistakes and does all the little
things right leading the nation in
kickoff returns, is second in turnover
margin, and always comes through when
times get tough. Yes, the team is that
good. Why Oklahoma State might win: The
Kansas defense has yet to be tested.
Nebraska's offense put up big yards,
especially through the air, but the game
had gotten out of hand. The best offense
the Jayhawks have faced, technically, is
Toledo's, and it wasn't playing in
mid-September like it is now. By far,
this is the most balanced, talented
attack KU has had to deal with, and
while the defense has come through big
all season long, it could be in for a
big shock if all the OSU parts start
working early on. Who to watch:
Kansas CB Aqib Talib is becoming the
team's signature star, getting a big
feature in Sports Illustrated and Thorpe
Award recognition as one of the nation's
best defensive backs, and now he has his
work cut out for him with a chance to up
his NFL stock. Oklahoma State senior
Adarius Bowman has flown under the radar
despite coming up with a solid year. The
almost certain first day NFL draft
choice has five 100-yard games and seven
touchdowns, averaging 16 yards per
catch, but he hasn't been able to
recreate the magic of last year's game
against the Jayhawks. Not only did
Bowman take over the game, he came up
with an all-timer of a performance with
13 catches for 300 yards and four
touchdowns. What will happen: Kansas
has been average on the road, struggling
to get by Colorado and Texas A&M, and
it'll be in for a battle yet again.
Unlike the battles with the Buffs and
Aggies, this game will be a big-time
shootout with several momentum flows and
several home runs. Like last week, OSU
will struggle in the fourth quarter as
the Jayhawk machine rolls on. CFN Prediction:
Kansas 48
... Oklahoma State 40
...
Line: Kansas -5.5 Must See
Rating: (5
Seinfeld: Season 9 - 1 Bee
Movie) ... 4
Big 12 Saturday, November 10th
Colorado
(5-5) at Iowa State
(2-8)
12:30 PM
Why to watch: All of a
sudden, Iowa State has gone from being
the Big 12's punching bag, and one of
the worst teams in America, to a bit of
a force, battling Oklahoma and Missouri
well before coming up with a stunning
31-20 win over Kansas State. This is
just the kind of momentum first year
head man Gene Chizik wants to generate
going into the off-season, and with a
road trip to Kansas to finish up,
winning in the home finale against
Colorado might be vital for the young
team's psyche. The Buffs are a win away
from bowl eligibility and the next step
in the program's turnaround. Beating
Nebraska at home in two weeks would be
nice, but getting to six wins this week.
against a team it's beaten five of the
last six years including last season for
one of the team's two wins, would allow
everyone to let out a bit of an exhale.
This is a tougher, better game than it
appeared to be a few weeks ago.
Why Colorado might win: Iowa State
might have gotten the offense going over
the last two games, but this is hardly
an explosive juggernaut that'll put up
points in bunches. It capitalized on
three Kansas State turnovers, and if CU
can avoid giving up the ball and
screwing up, the Iowa State offense
isn't going to put up more than 21
points. Even though ISU won, it's not
like it stopped Kansas State, giving up
a huge day to WR Jordy Nelson. However
... Why Iowa State might win: ... the
Colorado offense hasn't exactly been
sharp lately. If the Buff running game
isn't working, the offense isn't going
to do much. The running game isn't going
to do much. Iowa State has problems
against good passing teams, but it's
been a brick wall against the run.
Colorado is 4-1 when running for more
than 150 yards, and 1-4 (with the win
coming against Colorado State in the
season-opener) when it's under. Iowa
State has only allowed more than 150 in
two games, and has given up just 327
yards over the last three weeks to
Oklahoma, Missouri and Kansas State. Who to watch:
It took almost the full season for the
Iowa State coaching staff to realize
that Bret Meyer wasn't doing much to
move the ball. In came redshirt freshman
Austen Arnaud last week for a relatively
ineffective Meyer, and he ran for 19
yards, connected on five of seven passes
for 130 yards, and provided more of a
spark for the attack. Meyer will still
play, but with the emergence of Arnaud,
a good-sized bomber who can push the
ball down the field, and RB Alexander
Robinson, who ran for two touchdowns
against the Wildcats, the future is now
for the Cyclones. What will happen: Iowa
State has started to play well, while
Colorado is struggling. The Buffs have
the better team, but on Senior Day and
in the final home game of the year, the
Cyclones will use their strong defense
and good young offensive players to get
by for their final win of the year. CFN Prediction:
Iowa State 27 ... Colorado 23
...
Line: Colorado -5 Must See
Rating: (5
Seinfeld: Season 9 - 1 Bee
Movie) ... 2.5
Kansas State
(5-4) at Nebraska
(4-6)
12:30 PM
Why to watch: There's
reeling, and then there's Kansas State
and Nebraska. No, Kansas State isn't in
the same team photo when it comes to
sliding teams, but after a loss to Iowa
State, even though it's improving,
there's work to be done to get to a bowl
game. With Missouri up next week
followed up by a trip to Fresno State,
which should be much tougher than it
looks on paper, the Wildcats have to get
bowl eligible now. Nebraska's season
might have gone into the tank with a
five-game losing streak and an all-timer
of a loss last week, getting blasted
76-39 to Kansas after giving away a win
to Texas by getting blown past in the
fourth quarter, but if it can win in
what's almost certain to be Bill
Callahan's final game in Lincoln, bowl
eligibility is still possible with a win
this week and a win over Colorado two
weeks later. Stranger things have
happened. Why Kansas State might win:
Nebraska's defensive back seven can't
tackle, the secondary is getting torched
by anyone who tries to throw, and the
line isn't generating and pass rush and
is getting shoved around against the
run. Outside of that, everything is
peachy for the Nebraska defense. Kansas
State's offense isn't consistent, but it
can explode with several big plays.
Expect KSU to come up with at least
three huge scoring plays from 40+ yards.
Getting 400 yards passing yards won't be
a problem. Why Nebraska might win: The
passing game has gotten going. As bad as
things have been everywhere else, the
Huskers have been able to bomb away,
with Sam Keller throwing well against
Texas before getting hurt for the year,
and Joe Ganz taking over last week and
bombing away for 405 yards and four
touchdowns. He threw four interceptions,
and he'll be almost certain to give away
a few to the Wildcat secondary, but he
should also be able to keep the Huskers
alive by throwing, throwing, and
throwing some more. Who to watch:
If you thought Kansas State WR Jordy
Nelson was having a big season before,
he could put up jaw-dropping, all-time
caliber numbers this week if he can get
loose in the Husker secondary. The
senior has double-digit catches in five
games making 14 for 214 yards and a
touchdown last week against Iowa State.
For Nebraska, last week was the breakout
game for Maurice Purify, who made seven
catches for 158 yards and three
touchdowns as he looked and played like
the unstoppable playmaker the Huskers
were hoping he'd be from the start of
the year. While he hasn't been bad, now
he'll be featured even more with Ganz
under center. What will happen: The
last time Nebraska lost on Senior Day
was in 2003 to Kansas State.
History will repeat itself as the
Wildcats will break open a tight game
midway through the second half with two
back-breaking long scores. CFN Prediction:
Kansas State
38 ... Nebraska 27
...
Line: Kansas State -7.5 Must See
Rating: (5
Seinfeld: Season 9 - 1 Bee
Movie) ... 3
