Baylor
Get off the field on Third Down
Following a Big 12 and Sugar Bowl-winning season, Baylor severely regressed and halved their wins in a 6-7 season in 2022. One of the biggest causes for the slide was the Bears’ third-down defense, which gave up a 45.7% conversion rate. This ranked ninth in the Big 12 and was drastically higher than their 34% rate a year prior. Baylor needs a bounce back when their opponents are on third down to try and get back to Dallas.
BYU
Make More Plays on Fourth Down
Fourth downs will make or break your games. The best teams convert and get big stops, while the down can hold other teams back from greatness. BYU’s offense was one of the worst teams in the country on fourth down, finishing tied for 124th nationally and only converting 33.3% of fourth downs. They were better on defense but still not great. The Cougars allowed a 55.5% conversion rate on 4th down, which would have been seventh in the ten-team conference last year. Stiffer Big 12 competition can and will make this problem worse next year if BYU doesn’t figure something out.
Cincinnati
Win the Big Ones
Moving into the 2022 season, the two biggest games for Cincinnati were their week one game in Arkansas and a week nine road battle against UCF. As the season went on, upstart Tulane would become a big home test for the Bearcats, and the bowl game against rival Louisville was also big. Other than the hype leading up to the games, there is another similarity between the four contests: Cincinnati lost them all. In the Big 12 next year, the Bearcats will have a bigger spotlight placed on them, a new coach in Scott Satterfield, and they can’t fold under the pressure.
Houston
Revamp the Team Defense
In the American, Houston had one of the worst defenses in the conference. They finished bottom three in points allowed (32.3 per game), yards allowed (421.6 per game), and passing yards allowed (278.6 per game). SMU even exploded for 642 yards, eleven touchdowns, and seventy-seven points in a win on the Cougar defense. The competition will be even tougher next year, so Houston needs to improve by that much to become better in 2023 on defense.
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Iowa State
Figure Out the Offensive Line
The Cyclones wasted arguably the best defense in the Big 12 by trotting out the worst offense in the conference. Iowa State had the fewest total yards (369.8), rushing yards (108.0), and points (20.2) in the conference. And the biggest reason for these poor numbers was a completely ineffective offensive line. It’s the most pressing issue to address for Matt Campbell as they head into spring.
Kansas
Toughen Up the Run Defense
After making their first bowl game since 2008, led by an explosive offense, Kansas has hype for their program for the first time in a very long time. On defense, however, Kansas still has work to do. They allowed a Big 12 high of 35.5 points per game, 469.3 total yards, including 209.5 rushing yards per game. In a league that doesn’t run the ball too much, that’s an astoundingly high number. The Jayhawks’ defense did improve from 2021, but more work still needs to be done for 2023 if they’re going to take the next step.
Kansas State
Avoid Interceptions in Big Games
The Big 12 Champions played four top-twenty games in the 2022 season, finishing with a 1-3 record. In the one win over TCU in the championship game, they didn’t throw an interception, but in the three other games, Kansas State quarterbacks combined for five picks. For comparison, they only threw one interception in the other ten games. The Wildcats need to keep holding onto the biggest games to win more games next year.
Oklahoma
Stop the Pass on Defense
Brent Venables‘ first year did not go according to plan in Norman, finishing with the first losing season in Norman since 1998. While quarterback Dillon Gabriel led an explosive offense when he was healthy, the pass defense was always electric for the opposing team. Only twelve teams nationally and nobody in the Big 12 allowed more passing yards per game than Oklahoma’s 273.5 yards in 2022. The defense did lead the conference with seventeen interceptions, so there is hope for the pass defense next year if the yards allowed can go down.
Oklahoma State
Stop Turning the Ball Over
After a hot 5-0 start, the Cowboys battled injuries and slipped to a 7-6 record. The players on the field were different due to injuries, and so was their ability to hold onto the football. After the win streak ended, Oklahoma State went from turning the ball over once a game to 2.4 times a game, giving twenty-three total turnovers on the year. Only one Big 12 team turned the ball over more, and extrapolated to a full season, the 2.4 turnovers a game would rank second to last in the country. This is a preventable issue that must be fixed heading into 2023.
TCU
Avoid Big Second-Half Deficits
Part of what made the Horned Frogs National Championship game run so special was their ability to come back in the second half and win close games. However, the media looks for storylines, not what’s in the best interest of teams, and consistently being down double digits is not a good sign. TCU had four regular season games where they were losing in the second half with three double-digit deficits. The Frogs made it through the regular season perfect, but the large deficits also cost TCU in the rematch against Kansas State in the Conference Championship and later in the massacre to Georgia, which no team could come back from.
Texas
Become More Consistent
When Texas played a complete game, they could beat anybody. The problem is they rarely did. In back-to-back Big 12 games, Texas ran the ball for twenty-eight yards on twenty-two carries and no scores in a loss, followed by fifty-seven carries for 427 yards, six touchdowns, and a win. There was another stretch where the Longhorns allowed only thirty-nine yards passing and two interceptions; but gave up 329 yards, two scores, and 69.4 percent of passes were completed the following week. Texas has one of the most talented rosters in the country and have shown flashes of greatness, but it needs to be shown every week.
Texas Tech
Stop Turning the Ball Over
The Red Raiders went 3-0 when they didn’t turn the ball over but were a .500 team otherwise. Overall, they threw a tied-for Big 12 high eighteen interceptions and coughed the ball up an above-average seven more times. Texas Tech proved they have an impressive offense and improving defense, so if they can hold on to the football, a great year could be in store in Lubbock.
UCF
Stop Fumbling the Ball
On offense, the Knights’ rushing game was very difficult to stop, with only eight teams nationally rushing for more than them. There was one way to get the ball back on offense, however: punch the ball out from a UCF player. Gus Malzahn’s team led the American and were tied for 116th nationally in fumbles, given up with twelve. Two fumbles in the American Conference Championship Game cost the Knights a possible trip to the Cotton Bowl, which can’t keep happening in the Big 12 in 2023.
West Virginia
Keep Running the Ball
When rushing for 200 or more yards, West Virginia went 5-0 but lost all of their games below the 200 mark. It is a lofty milestone to reach. Only twenty-four teams averaged that many yards, but it is obtainable for an offense that averaged 171.5 yards on the ground a season before. If West Virginia can hit the milestone more next season, Neil Brown’s seat might cool down, and the Mountaineers will definitely get better.
