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Big 12 Notes – Postseason
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December 7th
… Foe Pause …
Big 12/Pac-12 Bowl matchups set
From ESPN … All times Eastern Time …
Thursday, Jan. 1
CFP Quarterfinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl
James Madison-Oregon winner vs. No. 4 Texas Tech
Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, Florida)
Noon, ESPN
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Bucked Up LA Bowl December 13th
Boise State vs. Washington
SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, California)
8 p.m., ABC
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl – December 22nd
Washington State vs. Utah State
Albertsons Stadium (Boise, Idaho)
2 p.m., ESPN
Pop-Tarts Bowl – December 27th
Georgia Tech vs. BYU
Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Florida)
3:30 p.m., ABC
Kinder’s Texas Bowl – December 27th
LSU vs. Houston
NRG Stadium (Houston)
9:15 p.m., ESPN
Valero Alamo Bowl – December 30th
USC vs. TCU
Alamodome (San Antonio)
9 p.m., ESPN
Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl – December 31st
Arizona State vs. Duke
Sun Bowl Stadium (El Paso, Texas)
2 p.m., CBS
SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl – December 31st
Nebraska vs. Utah
Allegiant Stadium (Las Vegas)
3:30 p.m., ESPN
AutoZone Liberty Bowl – January 2nd
Navy vs. Cincinnati
Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium (Memphis, Tennessee)
4:30 p.m., ESPN
Trust & Will Holiday Bowl – January 2nd
Arizona vs. SMU
Snapdragon Stadium (San Diego)
8 p.m., Fox
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Iowa State (8-4) and Kansas State (6-6) opt out of bowls; face $500,000 fines
From ESPN … The Big 12 is fining Iowa State and Kansas State $500,000 each for turning down bowl invitations. The two schools made their decisions following coaching changes last week.
The Cyclones finished at 8-4, while the Wildcats ended at 6-6. Iowa State coach Matt Campbell left last week for the same role at Penn State, while Kansas State coach Chris Klieman retired. Both schools have named replacements in Jimmy Rogers (Iowa State) and Collin Klein (Kansas State) but will not pursue postseason opportunities.
“While the Conference acknowledges the difficult timing around coaching changes, the Big 12 is responsible for fulfilling its contractual obligations to its bowl partners,” the conference said in a statement Sunday.
The bowl replacements will be determined according to the 5-7 teams with the highest Academic Progress Rates. Rice, Auburn and Florida State are among the replacement possibilities.
Iowa State players met Sunday with administrators and elected not to play.
“The administrative staff and coaches respect and support the players’ decision,” Cyclones athletic director Jamie Pollard said in a statement. “Our student-athletes have had an incredible season and we are grateful for their leadership as we worked through this process with them today.”
Kansas State athletic director Gene Taylor said he made the decision after speaking with the team’s leadership council and Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark.
“This decision was not taken lightly, but with our coaching staff transition and several uncertainties regarding player availability, I felt it was not in our best interest to try to field a team that was not representative of Kansas State University,” Taylor said in a statement. “We applaud this group for fighting back from a 2-4 record to lead us to bowl eligibility yet again, and we are happy that our seniors were able to go out on top with a victory inside Bill Snyder Family Stadium.”
Iowa State has appeared in bowl games in seven of the past eight seasons under Campbell. Kansas State will not participate in the postseason for the first time since 2020.
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December 6th
… Foe Pause …
Texas Tech wins first conference title since 1955: “If we are gonna buy a team, why not the best?”
From ESPN … Once again, Jacob Rodriguez and Texas Tech were asked questions about all the money invested in their team this season.
The Red Raiders so far have gotten quite a return on those millions of dollars spent in the transfer portal. They have their first Big 12 Conference title and are going to the College Football Playoff for the first time, almost certainly with a first-round bye.
“If we are gonna buy a team, why not be the best,” Rodriguez said after No. 5 Tech’s 34-7 win over 11th-ranked BYU in the Big 12 championship game Saturday.
“Man, I can’t wait to see where the CFP is going to put us,” fourth-year Tech coach Joey McGuire said. “We’re looking forward to the bye. You know, we’re hoping and expecting that’s where we’ll be.”
Rodriguez had 13 tackles and Ben Roberts overcame an early injury scare with two interceptions in the second half when Tech (12-1, No. 4 CFP) forced four turnovers while holding BYU to a season-low 200 total yards. The two linebackers have both played more than 40 games for a defense transformed by additions in the transfer portal.
Behren Morton, who made his 35th start but didn’t play in Tech’s only loss this year at Arizona State, threw two TDs to Coy Eakin and Stone Harrington kicked four field goals.
Texas Tech, one of only six schools that have been part of all 30 Big 12 seasons, likely prevented the league from getting a second team in the playoff.
“You can’t make a lot of mistakes like we did. We’ve learned it again. That’s the second time this year,” BYU coach Kalani Sitake said. “I’ve said it before, I think they’re the best team in the country and I’m confirming it. They’re the best team in the country. It just so happens that we had to play the best team in the country twice.”
The only losses by BYU (11-2, No. 11 CFP) are to the Red Raiders, including 29-7 in Lubbock four weeks ago. The Cougars, who likely needed to be in the top 10 for a playoff spot, won’t move up when the final CFP rankings come out Sunday.
… Continue reading story here …
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December 5th
… Foe Pause …
Iowa State loses head coach Matt Campbell to Penn State; Iowa State hires Washington State head coach Jimmy Rogers
From CBS Sports … After whiffing on numerous candidates, Penn State has finally completed its long, winding coaching search by landing on a prominent name in the Big 12. The Nittany Lions have reached an agreement to hire Iowa State’s Matt Campbell pending board approval, sources confirmed to CBS Sports’ Brandon Marcello and Matt Zenitz on Friday evening.
Campbell has achieved unprecedented success, posting a 72-55 record throughout a decade-long tenure at Iowa State and has been tied to various coaching searches across the Big Ten on numerous occasions. Each time his name popped up as a candidate for a premier job, though, Campbell elected to remain with the Cyclones. Prior to his stint at Iowa State, Campbell made a name for himself as a head coach by going 35-15 across five seasons leading Toledo in the MAC.
Campbell’s track record of maximizing his program’s potential indicates he could thrive with the Nittany Lions. Campbell inherited a perennial middling operation when he took the Iowa State job in 2016, and he quickly turned his program into one of the Big 12’s most consistent winners. After a three-win debut, the Cyclones posted just one losing season from 2017 onward. They racked up five consecutive bowl appearances for the first time in school history and reached their first conference championship game in an 11-win 2024 campaign.
Sources told CBS Sports that Campbell is expected to retain interim coach Terry Smith on the staff. Smith has been at Penn State since 2014. Iowa State wasted little time in finding Campbell’s successor by hiring Washington State’s Jimmy Rogers as its next head coach later Friday.
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2 Replies to “Big 12 Notes”
A little irony that Tulane is in and BYU is not considering their mutual QB. BYU sticks to their guns even if some are less than reasonable.
I guess they had to take someone from the ACC at BYU and Notre Dame’s expense. Alabama’s 3 losses and acceptance gives me a rash too. I guess the SEC figured they needed at least more than a third of the entries.
Golden domers bowing out of a bowl game. Bwahahahahahaha! Join a conference.
So that is three teams forgoing those super valuable extra practices.
Go Buffs