👋 GOOD MORNING - Happy Tuesday! I hope your week is off to a good start.

I truly hope you and your family/friends have stayed dry during this crazy streak of rain here in The Valley — yesterday was especially crazy! Our Halloween decorations did not do terribly well, as I was chasing styrofoam tombstones down the street in a roaring storm. Certainly kept things exciting!

The good news is that it looks like we’re going to dry out pretty soon, and our typical beautiful fall/winter weather is right around the corner. See ya, summer!

On to the show!

— Patrick Brown, PHNX Sports Daily Editor

Oh my word, do we ever have a shakeup in the Big 12 power rankings.

Teams at the top have tumbled, and a few surprises have crept up to the top. The Sun Devils have fallen victim to some lousy injury luck, which hasn’t helped matters in Tempe, and the Wildcats suffered a gut-wrenching double overtime loss to a team near the top of the standings.

There’s a lot to break down, so let’s take a peek at this week’s matchups first, and then dive in from there:

Saturday, Oct. 18

1 - No. 7 Texas Tech (6-0, 3-0 Big 12): The Red Raiders continue to roll, and though a trip to Tempe may not seem as daunting as it did earlier in the season, Texas Tech has a lot on the line as one of the league’s only remaining unbeaten teams. Its smallest margin of victory this season is 24 (twice), and the Red Raiders look every bit like the juggernaut we thought they were entering the year.
Last Week’s Result: W, 42-17 vs. Kansas
Last Week’s Ranking: 1

2 — No. 15 BYU (6-0, 3-0): The Cougars passed their toughest test of the season in Tucson, rallying for a win over the Wildcats to keep their unblemished record intact. BYU can earn a signature win this weekend in Provo, hosting the No. 23 Utes in a Holy War matchup that could be one for the ages.
Last Week’s Result: W, 33-27 at Arizona (2OT)
Last Week’s Ranking: 3

3 — No. 23 Utah (5-1, 1-1): The Utes make one of the biggest jumps of the week after trouncing Arizona State in Salt Lake City, though there’s still much to prove considering the Sun Devils were quite shorthanded last week. Saturday’s road test against rival BYU will almost assuredly set the stage for the rest of the season.
Last Week’s Result: W, 42-10 vs. Arizona State
Last Week’s Ranking: 6

4 — No. 24 Cincinnati (5-1, 3-0): Who saw this coming at the beginning of the year?! The Bearcats remained undefeated in the conference with a home win over UCF, and are all-but guaranteed a 4-0 start considering their upcoming trip to Stillwater to visit the doormat Cowboys this weekend.
Last Week’s Result: W, 38-30 vs. No. 14 Iowa State
Last Week’s Ranking: 5

5 — Houston (5-1, 2-1): Big leap for Houston, as their only blemish on the season so far is a 35-11 loss to Tech. The Cougars got back on track last week with a win over Oklahoma State, and now hosts Arizona Saturday morning.
Last Week’s Result: W, 39-17 at Oklahoma State
Last Week’s Ranking: 9

6 - Arizona State (4-2, 2-1): Leavitt’s absence on Saturday stung, but Sun Devil fans hoped to at least see a close game in Salt Lake City. That, though, was not meant to be, as the ASU offense struggled throughout the game, notching just a field goal in the first half and one touchdown in the second half. There’s still some runway left, but no room for error remains, and Leavitt’s status for this week remains unclear.
Last Week’s Result: L, 42-10 at Utah
Last Week’s Ranking: 2

7 — Baylor (4-2, 2-1): The Bears’ climb comes courtesy of the schools above them having lost, but they’ll be tested in Fort Worth against TCU this weekend. Baylor will be well-rested coming off a bye, and it can cement itself near the top of the conference with a win.
Last Week’s Result: W, 35-34 vs. Kansas State
Last Week’s Ranking: 8

8 - Iowa State (5-2, 2-2): The Cyclones dropped their second consecutive game, this time in Boulder to the Buffaloes. ISU’s injured defense is becoming painfully evident in Ames, but the offensive struggles have come as a surprise. It doesn’t get any easier, as Iowa State hosts BYU after a bye this weekend.
Last Week’s Result: L, 24-17 at Colorado
Last Week’s Ranking: 4

9 — Arizona (4-2, 1-2): It’s a rarity that a team moves up after a loss, the Wildcats showed some mettle against one of the top teams in the Big 12, even if they ultimately fell. Arizona still needs to notch a good conference win, and it has another opportunity to do so against Houston on the road this weekend.
Last Week’s Result: L, 33-27 vs. BYU (2OT)
Last Week’s Ranking: 10

Best of the Rest:

10 — Kansas State (3-4, 2-2)
Last Week’s Result: W, 41-28 vs. TCU
Last Week’s Ranking: 13

11 — Kansas (4-3, 2-2 )
Last Week’s Result: L, 42-17 at No. 9 Texas Tech
Last Week’s Ranking: 11

12 — Colorado (3-4, 1-3)
Last Week’s Result: W, 24-17 vs. No. 22 Iowa State
Last Week’s Ranking: 14

13 - TCU (4-2, 1-2)
Last Week’s Result: L, 41-28 at Kansas State
Last Week’s Ranking: 7

14 — UCF (3-3, 0-3)
Last Week’s Result: L, 20-11 at Cincinnati
Last Week’s Ranking: 12

15 — West Virginia (2-4 0-3)
Last Week’s Result: Idle
Last Week’s Ranking: 15

16 — Oklahoma State (1-5, 0-3)
Last Week’s Result: L, 39-17 vs. Houston
Last Week’s Ranking: 16

Agree? Disagree? Email me at [email protected] OR by simply responding to this email and sound off!

That Hurts: The Sun Devils got some bad news yesterday, as coach Kenny Dillingham announced OL Ben Coleman and LB Zyrus Fiaseu, both seniors, will miss the remainder of the season with injuries. That marks the end of Coleman’s career, as he is out of eligibility. Fiaseu, though, may qualify for a medical redshirt.

Quarterback Sam Leavitt’s status remains day-to-day

Final Tune-Up: The Suns wrap up their preseason tonight at home against the Lakers (7 pm), offering a final exhibition game before their season opener next week. Phoenix is 2-1 this preseason, and opens the regular season at home against Sacramento next Wednesday before hitting the road for three straight.

Do you agree or disagree?

What it’s felt like in Phoenix lately