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It’s a new look for the Big 12 in 2024. Two heavyweights left the conference and four new members will add some excitement to what should already be a wild race for the Big 12 title. There will not be a repeat champion as Texas, one of the two heavyweights is no longer a Big 12 member.
That leaves Oklahoma State, the conference runner-up, as well as teams like Kansas, Kansas State, and Utah to battle for the crown. Ask any number of experts who will win the Big 12 in 2024 and you might get several different answers. That should make for an exciting Big 12 regular season. Scores & Stats will be here all season breaking down the Big 12 and the NCAA football championship races.
Utah will enter the 2024 season as the favorite to win the conference championship. The Utes will welcome back seventh-year QB Cam Rising, who missed last season with a knee injury. We’ll find out just how good the Utes are when they travel to Oklahoma State on Sept. 21.
Scores & Stats will preview the best Big 12 games of the season, as well as the best games around the country each week. We will have the best NCAA football odds throughout the season. Big 12 teams will play a nine-game regular season schedule. The top two teams at the end of the regular season will meet in the Big 12 championship game. That game will be played on Saturday, Dec. 7, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Big 12 Conference Realignment
Like the other Power 4 conferences, the Big 12 will have a new look in 2024. That comes after the addition of four new teams last season. Texas and Oklahoma are off to the SEC and the Big 12 adds former members Utah and Colorado as well as Arizona and Arizona State. All four new programs arrive via the downfall of the Pac-12.
The conference will now have 16 teams and will continue its regular season format. All Big 12 teams will play a nine-game conference schedule that rotates on an annual basis. At the end of the regular season, the top two teams in the standings will face one another for the Big 12 championship. The conference scrapped the two-division format after the 2010 season when Nebraska left for the Big Ten and Colorado exited to the Pac-12.
2024 Big 12 Conference Odds
Check out the latest Big 12 Conference odds, courtesy of the top sports betting sites:
| Big 12 Teams | Conference Odds | Total Wins | Make Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Utah Utes | +300 | O/U 9.5 Wins | Y(+260)/N(-350) |
| Kansas State Wildcats | +350 | O/U 9.5 Wins | Y(+300)/N(-400) |
| Kansas Jayhawks | +800 | O/U 8.5 Wins | Y(+700)/N(-1200) |
| Oklahoma State Cowboys | +800 | O/U 7.5 Wins | Y(+900)/N(-1800) |
| Arizona Wildcats | +900 | O/U 7.5 Wins | Y(+700)/N(-1200) |
| UCF Knights | +900 | O/U 7.5 Wins | Y(NA)/N(NA) |
| Iowa State Cyclones | +1000 | O/U 7.5 Wins | Y(+750)/N(-1400) |
| Texas Tech Red Raiders | +1200 | O/U 7.5 Wins | Y(+850)/N(-1600) |
| TCU Horned Frogs | +1600 | O/U 7.5 Wins | Y(+1200)/N(-3000) |
| West Virginia Mountaineers | +1800 | O/U 6.5 Wins | Y(+1200)/N(-3000) |
| Colorado Buffaloes | +2800 | O/U 5.5 Wins | Y(+1700)/N(-10000) |
| Baylor Bears | +6000 | O/U 5.5 Wins | Y(+4000)/N(-100000) |
| Cincinnati Bearcats | +6000 | O/U 5.5 Wins | Y(+2800)/N(-50000) |
| Arizona State Sun Devils | +12500 | O/U 4.5 Wins | Y(+6600)/N(NA) |
| BYU Cougars | +12500 | O/U 4.5 Wins | Y(+8000)/N(NA) |
| Houston Cougars | +12500 | O/U 3.5 Wins | Y(+6600)/N(NA) |
Who Wins the 2024 Big 12 Football Championship?
As mentioned, Utah enters the 2024 season as the favorite to win the conference title. The big reason is the return of Rising on offense and seven starters on defense. The Utes will be challenged by Kansas and Kansas State which both went 9-4 last season.
Oklahoma State will also be in the mix with its own seventh-year quarterback, Alan Bowman. The Cowboys return the nation’s leading rusher – Ollie Gordon – and 17 starters. Arizona is coming off a surprising 10-3 season, but the Wildcats will have a new head coach in Brent Brennan. Former head coach Jedd Fisch left for Washington. UCF is also in the mix as five teams are given better than +1000 odds to win this year’s Big 12 title.
Utah +300
- Head coach: Kyle Whittingham
- 2023 Record: 8-5 (5-4 Pac-12)
The offense struggled last season without Rising and TE Brant Kuithe. Kuithe returns as well as three starters on the offensive line. The Utes did lose top rusher Ja’Quinden Jackson, but they return a number of experienced backs. Utah will continue to rely on a powerful running game and Rising to get them into the end zone.
Where Utah will really shine is on defense. The Utes finished last season ranked No. 4 (82.8 ypg) against the run. They were also top-20 in total defense (307.2 ypg, 13th) and scoring defense (19.3 ppg, 19th). Seven starters return from last year’s unit and the Utes should be the best defense in the pass-happy Big 12.
Kansas State +350
- Head coach: Chris Klieman
- 2023 Record: 9-4 (6-3)
Chris Klieman has carried on the tradition started by Bill Snyder back in the 1980s. If you throw out the 2020 COVID season, Klieman and the Wildcats have won at least eight games in four seasons. Kansas State won the Big 12 in 2022 and finished 9-4 last season, losing three Big 12 games (Oklahoma State, Texas, Iowa State) by a combined 12 points.
The Wildcats will have a new quarterback, Avery Johnson, who starred in the Pop-Tarts Bowl last season. The Wildcats offense will once again rely heavily on the run. KSU finished 11th in the nation averaging 204.4 rushing yards per game last season. Leading rusher D.J. Giddens (1,226 yds., 10 TDs) returns. Seven starters are back on a defense that ranked 26th in scoring (21.0 ppg) last season.
Oklahoma State +800
- Head coach: Mike Gundy
- 2023 Record: 10-4 (7-2)
This could be one of those seasons for Mike Gundy and the Cowboys. Gundy returns nine starters on offense, including Bowman at quarterback and Gordon in the backfield. Gordon, who only had 19 carries in the first three games last season, ran for 1,732 yards and 21 touchdowns. The entire Cowboys offensive line is back and nothing beats experience.
Defensively, OSU had some issues against the pass last season. They were eighth in the Big 12 in sacks and allowed 275 passing yards per game (123rd in the nation). Eight starters return on defense and that experience should help the Cowboys improve. It will also be the second year in defensive coordinator Bryan Nardo’s 3-3-5 defense.
2024 Big 12 Football Championship Prediction
It’s a wide open race in the Big 12 in 2024. Rising and a solid defense make Utah the favorite, but what about Kansas and Kansas State? The Jayhawks defense will be their crutch and the Wildcats have too many holes to fill on offense. That leaves Oklahoma State – nine starters on offense, eight on defense. The Cowboys won 10 games last year, have an experienced quarterback, the nation’s leading rusher, and an improving defense. Oklahoma State avoids Kansas and Arizona on the schedule and gets Utah at home. Plus, the price is right.
Bet: Oklahoma State +800
Will Any Big 12 Football Teams Make the Playoffs?
The problem with the Big 12 is the overall parity in the conference. It typically happens every season. The best teams in the Big 12 beat each other up and at the end of the season. A two-loss Oklahoma State made the conference championship game last year. With the expanded playoff this season, a two-loss or even three-loss team is likely. The Big 12 champion wlll make the CFP, but it’s unlikely the conference gets a second team.
Bet: Oklahoma State to Make the Playoffs +900
The Best Big 12 Football Teams Overs
How Oklahoma State’s win total is 7.5 is beyond me. This number is likely to move. The Cowboys won 10 games last year and return a total of 17 starters (18 if you include the punter). OSU has an experienced quarterback, the nation’s leading rusher, and all five offensive line starters back. The Cowboys will miss Big 12 contenders Kansas and Arizona on the schedule and they get the SEC’s Arkansas and Utah at home. Jump on this before the number rises.
Bet: Oklahoma State Over 7.5 Wins
Like Oklahoma State, Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell returns a wealth of talent in 2024. Campbell welcomes back nine starters on both sides of the ball. The Cyclones took some lumps with then-freshman Rocco Becht at quarterback. With a year under his belt and a top-50 defense, Becht and company will avoid Oklahoma State, Kansas, and Arizona on the schedule. Campbell and Iowa State went 7-6 and lost their bowl game in 2019, just like last year. The following season, the Cyclones went 9-3 and played in the Big 12 title game.
Bet: Iowa State Over 7.5 Wins
The Best Big 12 Football Teams Unders
Coming off a 3-9 inaugural season, Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham returns just seven total starters. The offense averaged just 17.8 points per game (121st in the nation) and will have redshirt freshman Sam Leavitt running the show in 2024. The defense was among the nation’s worst and the schedule is brutal. The Sun Devils get Kansas and Utah in back-to-back weeks and Oklahoma State, Kansas State, and rival Arizona all on the road.
Bet: Arizona State Under 4.5 Wins
Cincinnati is another Big 12 team coming off a disappointing 3-9 season. The Bearcats lost seven straight at one point last season. They allowed 30 points per game (100th in the nation) on defense and they’ll break in a new quarterback – Brendan Sorsby (6-3, 235) – on offense. Cincinnati lost a few close games last season, but until the Bearcats defense improves don’t expect six wins.
Bet: Cincinnati Under 5.5 Wins
The Best Big 12 Football Sleeper Team
Colorado caught the nation’s eye with a 3-0 start last season. Then, the wheels fell off the bus and the Buffaloes finished 4-8. UCF started last season with three straight wins too, only to lose their next five in a row. Neither of those two teams return enough experience to do any damage this season, but one team does.
Iowa State (+1000) returns 18 starters, nine on each side of the ball. There is experience at quarterback and on the offensive line. The defense was a top-50 unit against the run (134.2 ypg, 37th), in total defense (363.2 ypg, 50th), and in scoring defense (22.8, 42nd). The Cyclones avoid playing Oklahoma State and get Kansas State at home in the season finale. That game could be for a shot at a berth in the Big 12 championship game.
Big 12 Heisman Watch
The Big 12 has a ton of talent, especially at the quarterback position. Visit our Heisman Trophy odds and you’ll find three Big 12 quarterbacks among the top-20 on the betting board. Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders and Arizona’s Noah Fifita are both listed at +2500 to win the award. Utah’s Cam Rising is a bit further down the board at +3300.
The big issue for the conference in the Heisman race will be having a team in the thick of the playoff race. Heisman winners typically come from championship-caliber teams. The conference’s best shot at a Heisman is likely Gordon, the Oklahoma State running back. He’s not among the top-20 on the betting board, but he will have the stats and his Cowboys should be a top-10 team for much of the season. That will place him squarely in the Heisman discussion.
