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Big 12 newcomer Utah is expected to win the league in 2024.
The conference unveiled its preseason media poll on Tuesday — 1 week before all 16 teams convene in Las Vegas for Big 12 Media Days. The Utes took the top spot, though by a relatively slim margin. Utah received 20 first-place votes while Kansas State — picked to finish second — received 19.
Oklahoma State got 14 first-place votes while Kansas (5) and Arizona (3) were the only other teams to top media ballots.
The full preseason poll is below:
- Utah
- Kansas State
- Oklahoma State
- Kansas
- Arizona
- Iowa State
- West Virginia
- UCF
- Texas Tech
- TCU
- Colorado
- Baylor
- BYU
- Cincinnati
- Houston
- Arizona State
Utah will be led in 2024 by a pair of seventh-year seniors in quarterback Cameron Rising and tight end Brant Kuithe. Both players missed the entirety of the 2023 campaign with injuries suffered the year prior.
Rising’s knee injury, suffered in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 2, 2023, was the subject of constant attention throughout the 2023 campaign. Utah never felt settled at the quarterback spot in his absence, but he was never close to a return given the extent of the injury. Still, Utah managed 8 wins and a ninth consecutive bowl appearance (excluding 2020 when Utah played just 5 games).
Related reading: After a lost season, utah is a Playoff contender either way in 2024
Kansas State makes the much-anticipated move from Will Howard (transfer, Ohio State) to Avery Johnson. The backfield partnership between Johnson and tailback DJ Giddens is expected to be a productive one for the Wildcats, who went 9-4 last year and beat NC State in the Pop-Tarts Bowl.
Utah (+300) and Kansas State (+380) are also the betting favorites to win the Big 12 at most of the major US sportsbooks. At FanDuel, Oklahoma State (+900) has the third-shortest odds but after that it’s UCF (+950) that has some attention.
Iowa State is +1000 to win the league. Arizona is +1500. West Virginia, picked 1 spot ahead of UCF in the media poll, is +1700 to win the league.
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The Knights went 6-7 last season. They opened the year 3-0 before losing 5 consecutive games to begin Big 12 play. But they beat Cincinnati on the road, smashed then-No. 15 Oklahoma State at home 45-3, and beat Houston to reach bowl eligibility.
This offseason, coach Gus Malzahn hit the portal hard to land former Arkansas quarterback KJ Jefferson and 26 others.
Three of the Knights’ six regular-season losses came by less than 3 points. And that helped led to a below-expectation season. UCF’s point differential was that of an 8-win team. The gap between expected and actual was one of the largest in the FBS last season, making UCF a breakthrough candidate in 2024.
Media members voting on the Big 12’s preseason poll, however, seem to be firmly in wait-and-see mode on Malzahn’s Knights.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
