THIS wEEk IN THE INSIDE ONE OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL’S PREMIER CONFERENCES | COmPILED BY PaTRICk STEVENS, SPECIaL TO gaTEHOUSE mEDIa BY THE NUmBERS gamE OF THE wEEk NO. 23 WEST VIRGINIA (3-1, 1-0 BIG 12) POwER RaNkINgS AT NO. 8 TEXAS CHRISTIAN (4-0, 1-0) STANDINgS Breaking down the Big 12 (Through Sept. 30) When: 2:30 p.m. CDT Saturday Where: Amon G. Carter Stadium, Fort Worth, Texas TV: Fox Sports 1 Team Conf. All T25 1. Oklahoma (4-0): Oklahoma 1-0 4-0 1-0 After their bye TCU1-0 4-0 1-0 TCU head coach Gary Patterson runs onto the field Kansas State 1-0 3-1 0-0 week, the Sooners before a Sept. 2 game against Jackson State in Fort West Virginia 1-0 3-1 0-1 will face Iowa State Texas1-0 2-2 0-1 Worth. [RODGER MALLISON/STAR-TELEGRAM] Oklahoma State 1-1 4-1 0-1 in their Big 12 home opener. Texas Tech 0-1 3-1 0-1 Iowa State 0-1 2-2 0-0 Expect a cranky defense after Kansas 0-1 1-3 0-1 coaches had two weeks to Baylor 0-2 0-5 0-1 pick apart a shaky showing at INDIVIDUAL LEADErS Baylor. (Last week: 1) (Through Sept. 30) 2. Texas Christian PASSING YARDS (4-0): Kenny Hill and PlayerYds. 1. Mason Rudolph, OKST 1,909 the Horned Frogs 2. Nic Shimonek, TTU 1,578 3. Will Grier, WVU 1,374 emerged as the 4. Baker Mayfield, OKLA 1,329 top threat to Oklahoma in the 5. Peyton Bender, KU 1,227 league after upending Okla- PASSING TOUCHDOWNS homa State. A victory at home PlayerNo. 1. Mason Rudolph, OKST 16 over West Virginia would further 2. Baker Mayfield, OKLA 13 solidify that status. (LW: 2) 2. Will Grier, WVU 13 4. Nic Shimonek, TTU 12 5. Several tied at ... 9 3. Oklahoma State (4-1): Held Texas RUSHING YARDS PlayerYds. PROVING Tech to less than 1. Justice Hill, OKST 516 400 total yards in 2. Justin Crawford, WVU 451 3. Khalil Herbert, KU 438 a much-needed victory. The 4. Darius Anderson, TCU422 5. David Montgomery, ISU 355 Cowboys head into their bye week a game back in the Big 12 RECEIVING YARDS THEIRWORTH PlayerYds. standings but far from finished 1. James Washington, OKST 647 as a league contender. (LW: 3) 2. Denzel Mims, BAY533 TCU, WEST VIRGINIA LOOK TO CEMENT STRONG 3. Keke Coutee, TTU 499 4. West Virginia 4. Marcell Ateman, OKST 449 STARTS AS THEY FACE OFF IN KEY BIG 12 BATTLE 5. Gary Jennings, WVU 438 (3-1): The Moun- SCORING taineers didn’t quite PlayerPts. have enough to beat 1. Matt Ammendola, PK, OKST 54 KEYS FOr experienced two weeks Control the clock. Just 2. David Sills V, WR, WVU 42 Virginia Tech in the season’s 2. Denzel Mims, WR, BAY42WEST VIrgINIA ago when it barely had the as running the clock opening week. After beating 4. Matthew McCrane, PK, KSU 41 ball a third of the game? helped keep Mason 5. Connor Martin, PK, BAY38Third down stops. No three overmatched teams, West one in the country is bet- Or do they adjust their Rudolph and the Okla- Virginia finally gets another big TEAM STATISTICS ter at converting third usual approach in order to homa State offense off the test as it visits TCU. (LW: 4) (Through Sept. 30) downs than Texas Christian keep TCU’s offense off the field two weeks ago (as field at the risk of throw- did the Cowboys’ pen- 5. Kansas State TOTAL OFFENSE which has extended pos- (3-1): After finding Team Yds./GPts./G ing off their rhythm? chant for turnovers), the Oklahoma State 583 46.8 sessions (or scored touch- a way to beat Oklahoma 606 48.0 downs) on 62.3 percent same is true this week West Virginia 595 48.8 KEYS FOr TCU with QB Will Grier, TB Baylor despite Texas Tech 537 42.3 of those situations. QB some offensive sluggishness, Baylor 405 27.2 Kenny Hill and the Horned Involve Anderson. Two Justin Crawford and the TCU497 47.8 rest of the Mountaineers’ the Wildcats head to Austin to Kansas 481 32.3 Frogs are exceptional at weeks ago, West Virginia face a Texas team looking to Texas444 34.5 defense arriving in town. Iowa State 409 32.8 remaining on schedule, allowed Kansas RB Khalil win back-to-back games for Kansas State 408 37.5 and forcing TCU into Herbert to break loose for prEDICTION the first time all year. (LW: 5) PASSING OFFENSE LEADERS third-and-long is the first 291 yards and two TDs. It Team Yds. Yds./G step West Virginia must doesn’t take a lot of film Texas Christian 31-24. 6. Texas Tech Oklahoma State 1,996 399.2 (3-1): It’s tough to Texas Tech 1,643 410.8 take to ensure it doesn’t review to reach the con- Both teams are coming Oklahoma 1,599 399.8 become the latest victim clusion the Horned Frogs out of a bye week, so there give up 7.3 yards West Virginia 1,455 363.8 per play and find Baylor 1,432 286.4 of Gary Patterson’s team. would be well-served to could be some intrigu- a way to win. It’s also tough RUSHING OFFENSE LEADERS Foot on the pedal? The get Darius Anderson going ing new wrinkles utilized Team Yds. Yds./G Mountaineers face a bit of a in the ground game. TCU in this one. West Virginia to face Oklahoma State. That TCU929 232.3 said, the Red Raiders need to West Virginia 924 231.0 dilemma. Do they stick with ranks 25th in the country has topped the 50-point Oklahoma State 921 184.2 their style, which involves in rushing offense, while plateau in three consecu- be better, starting with this Kansas State 916 229.0 week’s trip to Kansas. (LW: 6) Oklahoma 823 205.8 them running tempo but West Virginia is 107th tive games, but will face could subject them to the against the run. This could a much greater challenge 7. Texas (2-2): STaRS OF THE wEEk same fate Oklahoma State decide this week’s game. in the TCU defense. Michael Dickson was the national • S DeShon Elliott, Texas: punter of the Collected two interceptions BEST OF THE REST THIS WEEK’S OTHEr TOpgAMES week, and two boots of more as the Longhorns earned a than 60 yards justify that pick. victory at Iowa State. TEXAS TECH (3-1, 0-1) IOWA STATE (2-2,0-1) at KANSAS STATE (3-1, He’s a valuable weapon for a • K Matthew McCrane, Kansas at KANSAS (1-3, 0-1) No. 3 OKLAHOMA(4-0, 1-0) 1-0) at TEXAS (2-2, 1-0) team that’s still finding itself State: Made all four of his field on offense. (LW: 7) goal attempts in the Wildcats’ When: 11 a.m. CDT Saturday When: 11 a.m. CDT Saturday When: 6 p.m. CDT Saturday 33-20 defeat of Baylor. Where: Memorial Stadium, Where: Oklahoma Memorial Where: Darrell K. Royal-Texas 8. Iowa State (2-2): • QB Mason Rudolph, Okla- Lawrence, Kan. Stadium, Norman, Okla. Memorial Stadium, Austin, The Cyclones homa State: Threw for 376 TV: Fox Sports 1 TV: Fox Texas couldn’t muster yards, three TDs and one INT Notes: Texas Tech leads series Notes: Oklahoma leads series TV: Fox Sports 1 much on offense in the Cowboys’ victory at 17-1 and has claimed 10 in a 74-5-2 and has won 18 in a Notes: Kansas State leads series against Texas, and will prob- Texas Tech. row against row against 10-7 and has ably encounter even more • WR James Washington, the Jayhawks, the Cyclones won seven of severe issues at Oklahoma Oklahoma State: Collected including last dating back the last nine this week. (LW: 8) nine receptions for 127 yards year’s 55-19 rout to 1991. His- meetings with and a TD as the Cowboys in Lubbock. The tory suggests the Longhorns. 9. Kansas (1-3): The bounced back from their first visiting Red Raid- the Sooners Call the Wild- Jayhawks come ers acquitted didn’t need cats’ offense loss of the year. Herbert Mayfield Ertz off a bye to face a themselves well a bye week boring, or Texas Tech defense STaT OF THE wEEk in their first loss of the season, a to get ready for Iowa State, plodding, or old-fashioned. Truth that gave up almost 600 yards 41-34 setback against Oklahoma but they surely put it to good be told, it’s effective and suits to Oklahoma State. It’s not a bad 17 State. While QB Nic Shimonek use in getting the likes of QB the personnel coach Bill Snyder spot for David Beaty’s program wasn’t perfect and the Texas Baker Mayfield ready for the has assembled in Manhattan. to pick off a victory, but it needs Consecutive Big 12 victories Tech defense did give up more final two-thirds of the regular QB Jesse Ertz and the Wildcats to take care of the ball. (LW: 9) for Oklahoma, tied for its than its share of yardage, the Red season. Iowa State lost to Texas came out of their bye to earn 10. Baylor (0-5): The most ever and tied for the Raiders remained quite resilient in a Thursday night game last a victory over Baylor, and now Bears have been third longest in league history throughout and demonstrated week, and QB Jacob Park and they must head on the road in more competitive behind Kansas State (21 from their 3-0 nonconference mark was the Cyclones’ offense — which league play for the first time this since the start of 1997-99) and Texas (20 from not a fluky start.