2026-27 Big 12 Football Conference Preview: Who Can Stop Red Raiders?
Written by: Nate Hornung
Published: Fri Jul 24, 2026, 4:35 pm ET
Read Time: 8 minutes
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The Big 12 and ACC continuously compete for the worst Power Four conference in College Football, and based on the betting odds, they'll be the least exciting. The Texas Tech Red Raiders are the reigning champions of the Big 12, and they are looking to do it again. Despite some offseason issues regarding their transfer QB, Texas Tech is still -105 to repeat as conference champions. Will anyone stand in their way?
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Big 12 Conference History
Coy Eakin has gone for 48+ receptions and 635+ receiving yards in his last two years at Texas Tech with 13 total touchdowns.
Past 10 Big 12 Conference Champions
- 2025: Texas Tech Red Raiders over BYU Cougars
- 2024: Arizona State Sun Devils over Iowa State Cyclones
- 2023: Texas Longhorns over Oklahoma State Cowboys
- 2022: Kansas State Wildcats over TCU Horned Frogs
- 2021: Baylor Bears over Oklahoma State Cowboys
- 2020: Oklahoma Sooners over Iowa State Cyclones
- 2019: Oklahoma Sooners over Baylor Bears
- 2018: Oklahoma Sooners over Texas Longhorns
- 2017: Oklahoma Sooners over TCU Horned Frogs
- 2016: No Championship Held (Oklahoma Sooners won the regular season)
Just like last season, the oddsmakers think we see the Red Raiders take down the Cougars in the Big 12 Title. But are there any teams that could surprise them?
Can Bear Bachmeier lead the BYU Cougars back to the Big 12 Championship?
Odds to Win the Big 12 Conference
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- Texas Tech Red Raiders -105
- BYU Cougars +550
- Utah Utes +850
- Kansas State Wildcats +1400
- Houston Cougars +1600
- TCU Horned Frogs +2000
- Arizona Wildcats +2200
- Arizona State Sun Devils +2200
- Oklahoma State Cowboys +2800
- Kansas Jayhawks +3300
- Baylor Bears +3500
- UCF Knights +4000
- West Virginia Mountaineers +4000
- Colorado Buffaloes +8000
- Cincinnati Bearcars +10000
- Iowa State Cyclones +10000
Big 12 Football Preview: Team Tiers
QB1 🔥 pic.twitter.com/oBIBmykCtT
— Texas Tech Football (@TexasTechFB) July 24, 2026
Tier 1 – Lubbock on Top
Although the Red Raiders are in a tier of their own, I would NOT be willing to bet them to win the Big 12. For starters, too much can go wrong for a -105 number that really has no value. Sure, I would expect them to be bigger favorites than that price in the Championship, but tying up your money for that long isn't worth it in my eyes. Especially considering the Tier 2 teams.
The Red Raiders thought they'd have Brendan Sorsby as their QB this season, but instead they turn to Will Hammond, who was serviceable last year, but is also coming off a torn ACL.
What we CERTAINLY learned from last season, is none of these Big 12 teams stand a chance against the Big Ten or SEC in the College Football Playoff, despite the conference champion likely earning a berth.
Devon Dampier threw for nearlyt 2,500 yards and added 835 on the ground, totaling 34 touchdowns and just five interceptions in his first season for the Utes
Tier 2 – Teams From Utah
The Utes and Cougars both are good enough to compete with Texas Tech in my eyes, with a slight nod to the Cougars. However, The Holy War is being played in Salt Lake City this season. BYU also has to host Notre Dame, which will be hard enough in the middle of the season. Bear Bachmeier needs to step up his passing game just a tad, but the Cougars return plenty on both sides of the ball (including two stud running backs) for a team that made the conference championship last season.
As for Utah, they begin life without Kyle Whittingham leading them, but they still have Devon Dampier and Morgan Scalley has been with the program since 2001 as a player, patiently waiting for his time to lead his alma mater. The defense plugged the couple of holes needed with veteran transfers, and they added a couple new pass catchers for Dampier. Braden Pegan and Kyri Shoels both went for 750+ receiving yards and a combined seven touchdowns last year at Utah State (Pegan) and San Jose State (Shoels)
Leaning slightly with the Cougars, I see value in both of these teams to win the Big 12 title, depending on who you like in their November 7 head to head matchup. Even if BYU loses to Notre Dame and Utah, they play some of the worst teams in the Big 12, so I like them to go over their 8.5 win total at (-130).
Avery Johnson runs it back at Kansas State, this time with Collin Klein as his Head Coach
Tier 3 – Can You Avoid Losing the Easy Games?
Kansas State, Houston, Oklahoma State. In my opinion, these are the next best three in this conference. The Cowboys basically just became "Even Further North, North Texas", as Eric Morris brings over tons of talent from Denton to Stillwater. We'll see how they compete at the Power Four level. Kansas State has a new head coach in Collin Klein, and he should certainly help get Avery Johnson to perform at his best, much like he did Marcel Reed at Texas A&M last year. The Wildcats also boast an easy schedule, avoiding Texas Tech, Utah and BYU. Plus, they host Houston, Oklahoma State, and Arizona, who could be the toughest games on the schedule. They also do not leave Manhattan for any non-conference contests.
As for Houston, I really want to be high on this team. Conner Weigman had a great season, they added running back Makhi Hughes, who had 1,300 yards in back to back seasons with 24 touchdowns for Tulane before being injured at Oregon last year. My problem is their schedule. They go to Lubbock on a short week early in the season. And they face Utah and Kansas State on the road, traveling for their three hardest matchups.
Overall, if these teams handle business against the bottom of the conference, it will just come down to finding a few upsets along the way.
After two seasons at Florida, DJ Lagway heads to Waco to be the qaurterback for the Baylor bears
Tier 4 – I Still Don't Believe in You
Noah Fifita and Arizona don't move my needle. TCU having to replace gunslinger Josh Hoover worries me for the team from Fort Worth. Arizona State tries to replace Sam Leavitt as Kenny Dillingham desperately chases his success from 2024. And finally, the Baylor Bears give DJ Lagway a second chance after things didn't work out in Florida.
You might see some highlight reel plays from these teams, but overall, they will all be meh at best this Big 12 season.
Tier 5 – Barely Worth Mentioning
Iowa State, Cincinnati, Colorado, Kansas and West Virginia. They are all just lucky I included a few sentences about them in this article. We learned last year that this conference is very top heavy on the gridiron, and it should be the same this season. Don't expect much from these teams, other than heavy, sorrowful drinking from the fans.
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Nate has been a recreational sports bettor for about 5 years. In that time, he has grown to love the pursuit of winners and sticking it to The Man. Nate loves data and uses his understanding of numbers to help him be a more profitable sports gambler, however he will be the first to tell you this game is about more than just stats.
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