NCAA Football Report (Week 2)
The NCAA is ruled by the Power Five Conferences that are made up of some of the biggest college football programs in the country.
These conferences are where the best talent goes to try to win National Championships and to try to make the NFL.
They are the schools that everyone is watching at all times and generally are the only conferences that have a chance at making the playoff.
The SEC, Big Ten, Pac-12, ACC and the Big 12 are the conferences that tend to get the most recognition and in the four game playoff format, it is tough to unseat them in the playoffs.
It is tough enough between the conferences to the four playoff teams as at least one conference will always be left out.
The others will all find their way to the playoff with little room for the other smaller conferences.
Even amongst the Power Five, there is a pecking order though as the SEC, ACC and Big Ten have all shown a lot of promise recently.
All three have had teams that have taken a national championship in the playoff era and all three have teams that were ranked among the best in the preseason.
The Pac-12 was close behind with a few teams earning rankings and many believing that their dip was just a temporary thing as west coast football is alive and well.
The one conference that never seemed to get any respect though was always the Big 12 conference.
They have been a conference on the decline for a long time as big name teams have continued to leave and the ones left aren’t among the best in the country.
Recently the decline of the conference has become more concerning as some believe that if it continues it might quickly be forgotten about.
The main reason why they remain one of the Power Five is because of the fact that Texas and Oklahoma are a part of the conference.
Without those two schools, the Power Five would likely just be a Power Four while the Big 12 would struggle to survive.
Even now the Big 12 is struggling as Texas is a shadow of itself and Oklahoma has struggled to compete with the best programs in the world.
Without either of those programs sitting near the top of the rankings and in the playoffs the Big 12 is at risk of both of those teams leaving to find a better place to compete.
Then again it is up to those two programs to start competing and although the Big 12 may have its challenges in recruiting they are still two of the biggest and best-known programs.
All it takes is a few good years and some key wins from either of the programs to start bringing the Big 12 back into the limelight.
The more Big 12 teams are talked about and seen the better recruiting will be and the more likely they are to compete.
The Sooners are beginning to do their part to restore the name of the conference as they are the only Big 12 team to make the playoff.
This week they took another big step towards restoring the name of their conference when they went head to head with one of the biggest programs in the country.
Ohio State was a lock for the playoff this year as they were expected to compete with the likes of Clemson and Alabama.
They were set to take on Oklahoma in their second game in Columbus and it seemed like a pretty easy win for the Buckeyes.
Then came Baker Mayfield and the Sooners as they pushed the Buckeyes every step of the way in their game.
They started to take over and eventually, the game ended with the Sooners on top 31-16 and the Buckeyes season came crashing down.
There is still plenty of time for Ohio State to climb back into the playoff picture but it is going to be hard with the Sooners likely about to occupy a spot.
The Sooners showed that they can compete with the best teams in the country and for the Big 12 that is a big win.
Not only that but the fact that the win helped Baker Mayfield make progress in the Heisman race and brought the Big 12 back to relevance through a star player.
The Sooners will be looked at the rest of the way though as they will move at least within striking distance of the playoff after their big win.
If they can keep things going they could be the lone representative of the Big 12 in the playoff hunt when the season winds down.
Putting that conference on the national level can only help them grow and hopefully will keep them afloat.
It may also have the effect of making Oklahoma a desirable team for other conferences that may just pick them off and leave the Big 12 with Texas as their only premier program.
The Sport Addiction 