By: Ryan Moreland (@ryanmoreland)
It just wouldn’t be the Big XII without some drama, would it? The top of the conference is looking strong, but the race for #3 is red hot.
| Order | Tiebreaker |
| 1 | Conference Record |
| 2 | Head-to-Head |
| 3 | Record vs common conference opponents |
| 4 | Point differential vs common conference opponents |
| 5 | Record vs common overall opponents |
| 6 | Point differential vs common overall opponents |
| 7 | Overall record |
| 8 | Overall point differential |
Since every conference team will eventually play each other, most ties will end with a head-to-head. However, there can be scenarios that take us much deeper (just look at the Big XII last season).
Now, for how the playoffs work. The top three teams in each conference will get an automatic bid to the playoffs. After that has been settled, the last 4 teams will be voted in by a league-wide vote. After the field is set, seeding will begin. This season, the top 8 teams will be seeded, and then they will get to draft their opening-round opponents (which I cannot wait to write content about).
I cannot predict which way the vote will go, so for these articles, I will be focusing on the automatic bids.
Also, keep in mind that three-way tiebreakers are broken for the top team, and then the two remaining games go back to head-to-head.
Current Standings
| Team | Overall Record | Conference Record | Tiebreaker Reason (if applicable) |
| Oklahoma | 6-0 | 3-0 | |
| Texas A&M | 4-2 | 2-1 | |
| Texas | 2-4 | 1-2 | Point differential vs common conference opponents (+5) |
| Nebraska | 3-3 | 1-2 | Point differential vs common overall opponents (+27) |
| Colorado | 3-3 | 1-2 | Point differential vs common conference opponents (-11) |
| West Virginia | 1-5 | 1-2 | Point differential vs common conference opponents (-47) |
This tie works out in a similar way to the tie in the ACC. Texas breaks the four-way tie by having the best point differential within the conference. However, once the tie is broken, you must start back over at the top of the tiebreaker. Since Nebraska and Colorado both have the exact same point differential within the conference (-11), the tie can next be broken by overall point differential, which Nebraska wins.
Colorado and West Virginia haven’t played yet and have the same record against common conference opponents, so we once again go back to point differential against common conference opponents, which Colorado wins.
Now we know where the conference is right now. Let’s look at where the conference is heading.
Conference Title Race
Oklahoma can win the Big XII with a win over West Virginia this week. Even a loss this week and a win next week would get them a conference title.
Texas A&M still has a chance to win the conference title, but they would need Oklahoma to lose out and themselves to win out. This is because Oklahoma beat the Aggies Head-to-Head.
Technically, any of the remaining teams could end up in a three-way tie with Oklahoma and steal the conference if Oklahoma lost out. However, Nebraska and West Virginia haven’t played Oklahoma yet. If they both beat the Sooners, then they could tie Oklahoma with the tiebreakers in hand.
Playoff Race
Oklahoma is one win away from punching their ticket to the postseason. At 6-0, even if they did lose out and somehow drop out of the top three, they would be an absolute lock as a vote-in team.
Texas A&M can clinch this week, but they need some help. If they were to win over Colorado and Texas lost to Nebraska, then the Aggies would punch their ticket. If that scenario played out, the worst the Aggies could finish is third place (and even that would take an improbable tie).
The rest of the conference is in the same boat when it comes to the fight for third place. Texas has the advantage right now, thanks to net points within the conference. However, that could change drastically in two weeks. There are a million different scenarios here (far too many to list), but point differential and total wins are important to pay attention to from here on out.
Speaking of total wins, Nebraska and Colorado are in a good spot (should they need a vote-in) with three wins already. West Virginia could get up to three wins, but they might need to get to the top three to make the playoffs.
