PurpleMenace.com - Big 12 Stock Report: Week 1

September 3, 2012

Travis L. Brown
PurpleMenace.com Editor

Each week, I'll look at the performances of Big 12 teams and give a stock report on how that week's game changes the team's overall stock in the conference. It's a one-stop read for analysis, stats and scores from the weekend's action.

Team	Stock	Breakdown
Baylor	(W, 59-24 over SMU)	The Bears proved they are still a team to watch in the Big 12 in the post-RGIII era. Quarterback Nick Florence threw 21-for-30 for 341 yards and four touchdowns against one of the better Week 1 opponents that a Big 12 team faced in an opener. A total of 613 yards of offense against even an average SMU team is impressive.
Iowa State	(W, 38-23 over Tulsa)	It took a quarter to warm up to the game, but Iowa State dominated the final three frames to knock off a solid Tulsa squad. ISU managed 441 yards of total offense and finished plus-two in turnover differential, but allowed Tulsa 358 yards in the game.
Kansas	(W, 31-17 over South Dakota State)	Allowing South Dakota State to gain 411 total yards should drop Kansas' stock, but there's not really anywhere left to fall. Kansas did pick up the win and moved the ball well for 432 yards, but allowed SDSU to sneak back into the game in the fourth quarter.
Kansas State	(W, 51-9 over Missouri State)	Kansas State did handle its business against Missouri State, but picking up just 169 yards through the air didn't answer the Wildcat's air-attack questions. KSU remains a threat to any team, but I still don't know much more about this team than I did before the first game.
Oklahoma	(W, 24-7 over UTEP)	Entering the locker room tied at seven with UTEP is far below anyone's expectations for the No. 4 team in the nation. UTEP slashed through the middle of OU's defense for 207 yards in a game that was much closer than the score dictates. The stats at the end of this one for OU look fairly decent, but the play on the field was far from that.
Oklahoma State	(W, 84-0 over Savannah State)	Well? OSU covered the spread... Nothing proven or gained in this matchup.
TCU	Bye Week	TCU was idle in Week 1. We'll see what the Frogs are made of next Saturday.
Texas	(W, 37-17 over Wyoming)	Texas allowed Wyoming to hang around much too long for a team ranked in the top 15 in the nation. The Longhorn's quarterback woes seem to be the same as last season, moving the ball for just 156 yards through the air. As was expected, the 'Horns running backs were the heart and soul of the offense, with both Malcolm Brown and Joe Bergeron rushing for over 100 yards.
Texas Tech	(W, 44-6 over Northwestern State)	Texas Tech got the win and put up decent numbers, but in watching the game, looked very stale. The Red Raiders were a minus-two in turnover differential, but will need to face a better opponent to really gauge what the team has.
West Virginia	(W, 69-34 over Marshall)	I give West Virginia a big green arrow up for its offensive performance. From the extremely small sample size of one game (with a TCU bye), WV looks to have the best offense in the conference. Geno Smith was almost perfect, thrown 32-for-36 for 323 yards and four touchdowns. However, WV's defense was troublesome, allowing Marshall 545 yards and 34 points, but two of those scores came against second team players.