The Big 12 Conference was represented well in the Athlon Sports Preseason College Football Top 25 Rankings — the lower half of them at least.
Kansas State led the way at No. 17, followed by No. 19 Oklahoma State, No. 21 Kansas and No. 24 Arizona, which will be making its debut in the Big 12 in 2024 after coming over from the Pac-12 Conference with Arizona State, Utah and Colorado.
The Wildcats are led by sixth-year head coach Chris Klieman, who has a 39-24 record through his first five seasons and won a Big 12 championship in 2022.
Oklahoma State is led by running back Ollie Gordon II, who won the Doak Walker Award in 2023 as the nation’s top college running back after he rushed for 1,732 yards and 21 touchdowns to go with 330 receiving yards and 1 touchdown.
Kansas is buoyed by the return of quarterback Jalon Daniels, who earned All-Big 12 honors in 2022 but only played three games in 2023 after a back injury. All-Big 12 selections also return with cornerback Cobee Bryant and running back Devin Neal.
Arizona has one of the nation’s best wide receivers and perhaps the top NFL prospect at the position in Tetairoa McMillan, a 6-foot-5, 210-pound junior who had 90 receptions for 1,402 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2023 and has 2,104 receiving yards and 18 touchdowns through his first two college seasons.
