BCS Rankings 2011: Why Oklahoma State Has Peaked at No. 3

Live this week like it's your last, Oklahoma State fans.

Your team has peaked at No. 3, and will be plunging down the polls and computer rankings in the coming weeks.

The Cowboys have yet to beat a team that is any sort of serious contender. The closest they came was an improbable come-from-behind victory over a decent Texas A&M squad.

The offense is clouding the judgement of the polls and the computers.

Their numbers on that side of the ball are nothing short of astonishing. The Cowboys are second in the nation in scoring, averaging just under 50 points per game. QB Brandon Weeden is putting together the sort of senior season that should get him a look in the NFL.

He already has thrown for 2,710 yards and 22 TDs, and has a potential Heisman candidate in Justin Blackmon (834 yards, 10 TDs) that makes his job very easy. With running back Joseph Randle also playing extremely well (842 yards, 16 TDs), this offense can be downright scary.

That's why we go back to the soft schedule. The Texas Longhorns have the 30th best defense in the nation, and that has been the toughest defense seen all season.

For whatever reason, the Cowboys have played a ton of soft defenses and they are taking full advantage.

That's going to all change this week against No. 14 Kansas State. The Wildcats are strong upfront and have terrific depth. They just got embarrassed by a supremely talented Oklahoma team and will be looking to erase the bad taste in their mouth rather quickly.

Defensively, the Cowboys are a joke. They give up over 26 points a game, a painfully bad 62nd in the nation. They did hold the vaunted Baylor in the first half, but they struggled against the likes of Texas A&M and Missouri. They certainly haven't faced a player with the skills of Landry Jones or Klein to this point. 

They struggle with speed and don't have the size up front to shut down opponents' running game. They've given up at least 24 points in all but one of their eight games. Even if the Cowboys can contain QB Collin Klein, it's going to be incredibly difficult for Oklahoma State to stop stud sophomore RB John Hubert.

If the Cowboys escape, they will end up losing to Oklahoma, who still has a shot at a championship. The Sooners are better at almost every position aside from receiver, and have gotten back on the right track rather quickly after being humbled by Texas Tech.

The Cowboys are not balanced enough to be consider elite along the likes of No. 4 Stanford or No. 5 Boise State.

It's not the players fault that the schedule has been cupcake soft to this point, but because of that it's extremely difficult to have such an unproven team ranked third.

Oklahoma State is an explosive team, a team that is very entertaining to watch, but when it comes down to the KSU and OU games—their lack of depth and overall talent on defense is going to ultimately extinguish their championship hopes. 

That's why the time is now to enjoy your lofty ranking.