The Big XII South Might See a Little Bit of the Same in 2009.

The Texas Longhorns, Oklahoma Sooners, and Texas Tech Red Raiders, could not escape the controversy that surrounded them at the end of the 2008 season. Texas had beat Oklahoma, but lost to Texas Tech. Oklahoma beat Texas Tech, but Texas Tech beat Texas, who had already beat Oklahoma. This was the only conference losses for these three teams and they were to each other. It sounds complicated, but the rules made it simple to understand. In the event that there is a three way tie, then the highest team on the BCS rankings will play in the Big XII Championship game. Texas and Texas Tech losing so late in the season, left the door wide open for Oklahoma. Oklahoma losing early in October to Texas, took advantage of that opening. Oklahoma went on to put up big offensive numbers and they jumped ahead of Texas by .014 of a point in the BCS rankings, the last week of the season. This led them to play for the conference championship and then onto the BCS national title game. All three teams finished a great conference season going 7-1, but Oklahoma leading in the BCS rankings and winning the Big XII Championship game, got the ticket to Miami to play the Florida Gators. Simple enough, right? This year we might have to do this again with two out of these three teams. Texas and Oklahoma are highly predicted to finish one and two in the Big XII South, again. A very talented and dangerous Oklahoma State will have something to say about that.

Texas returns with Heisman runner-up Colt McCoy and one of his favorite targets and big play maker, Jordan Shipley. An assortment of talented running backs will take carries by committee. With a mediocre schedule, look for them to put big numbers against it’s weaker opponents, should it come down to a tie-breaker again. Oklahoma, who scored over 700 points last season, has the Heisman winner and probably a top 5 draft pick coming back, Sam Bradford. Accompanying Bradford is DeMarco Murray and Chris Brown, both who rushed for over 1,000 yards last season and a key return and probably the best tight end in the country, Jermaine Gresham also comes back to Norman. Look for this offense to be just as impressive as they were last year. Oklahoma State returns with highly explosive Dez Bryant, who very well could be a Heisman candidate this year. Bryant possesses the same speed and height that Michael Crabtree did last year, but he also returns punts and kicks. Kendall Hunter also returns who rushed for over a 1,000 yards last year and Zack Robinson in his third year also returns to Stillwater. This could be his breakout year, especially with such a duel threat to take the attention off him. Oklahoma State probably has the most explosive trio in the country, look for these three to put up big numbers as well.

Even with all this offensive firepower returning to these three teams, the key will come down to the defense. Texas returns 9 players on defense including Sergio Kindle and Lamarr Houston, along with all of their secondary. The Longhorns key return is Defensive Coordinator Will Muschamp. Muschamp is entering his second year at Texas and already showed the impact that his intensity, discipline, and most importantly, his defensive schemes had on opponents last year. Now with a full year under Will Muschamp, look for this defense to turn some heads. Oklahoma returns 9 players on defense including Gerald McCoy. McCoy is a very big but talented defensive tackle, but the Sooners will have to play with two new safeties. That could be trouble when playing a highly explosive offense, but their defensive line is solid, which could mean not enough time for quarter backs to throw the ball. Oklahoma State returns 6 players on defense including a very fast and brutal defensive back, Perrish Cox, but the Cowboys were ranked 110^th in pass defense last year. If they can improve that even slightly and use their speed in the middle, then the offense should be able to pull them through some tough games. The offense will need to get the ball back though to be a factor.

The rest of the Big XII South unfortunately will not compete with these three teams. Baylor’s talented players are looking stronger than ever before, but still need time to develop. Don’t expect them to contend this year, but they might very well score an upset over a big school or a rival. Texas Tech lost a lot of offensive firepower, with the departure of Graham Harrell and Michael Crabtree, but we know what Mike Leach’s offense is capable of. Look for his offense to put big numbers up again, but probably not enough to be in the same position he was last year. Texas A&M also has a lot of talented players, but its another rebuilding year in College Station. Look for them as always, to put a scare or even a win against one of its rivals.

Texas, Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State have the potential to bring controversy again to the Big XII this year. The tie-breaker rule after much controversy was not changed for the 2009 season. If these three teams find a way to lose to each other, but beat each other through one another, but not lose another in the Big XII South, then I can guarantee one thing. This conference should be the most exciting to watch in college football come 2009.