Big 12 Report Week 8

It all comes down to tomorrow, with lots of questions left to be answered...

Who will win the conference? Texas
Who will earn the other byes? KU, KSU and Baylor
Will anyone play spoiler on the final day? I don't think so

One thing you don't have to wait until tomorrow for? The Week 8 Big 12 Power Poll...

1. Texas (25-5, 12-3) Just a home victory away from clinching the #1 seed in the Big 12 tourney. In my opinion, just 4 wins away from a #1 seed in the Big Dance.
2. Kansas (27-3, 12-3) Still needing help, likely not going to get it. I guess they can call themselves co champs, whatever that is worth.
3. Kansas State (19-10, 9-6) The slide finally ended against Colorado...now that Cats need a win over lowly Iowa State to (in my opinion) clinch a birth in the tourney.
4. Texas A&M (22-8, 8-7) Who would have guess the Aggies would need a win over Kansas just to finish over .500 in conference? Can the Aggies get in the dance with an 8-8 conference record?
5. Baylor (20-9, 8-7) Surprise of the year in the conference needs a road win at Tech to solidify tourney hopes...and maybe one win in Kansas City to seal them. Scott Drew is at least a finalist for Coach of the Year.
6. Oklahoma (20-10, 8-7) Huge win over OSU kept their tourney hopes alive. Surely they'll handle Mizzou at home...right?
7. Oklahoma State (16-13, 7-8) Cowboys run has ended...but I doubt anyone wants to play them in Kansas City. Did Sutton do enough to save his job?
8. Texas Tech (16-13, 7-8) I challenge anyone to show me a more astonishing week than: 98-54 loss at A&M, 83-80 win vs Texas, 109-51 loss at Kansas...incredible.
9. Nebraska (17-11, 6-9) I predicted Sadler as the Coach of the Year...he may have went the other way. No way this team shouldn't still be in the hunt for the dance. Why aren't they? Start with a 55-51 loss to Colorado. Losing three out of four to Mizzou and Iowa State didn't help anything either.
10. Missouri (16-14, 6-9) Pretty much right where we all (except for the most optimistic of Tiger fans) expected them. Anderson brings in a lot of fresh meat next season and they need to be improved very quickly. It's the Show Me State and Anderson needs to show something next season.
11. Iowa State (14-16, 4-11) Cyclones have lost 10 of 12 since starting the season 2-1. McDermott may be right behind Sadler and Anderson on the hot seat next year...which seemed unfathomable when he was hired.
12. Colorado (11-18, 3-12) Terrible season from a terrible team. They won one more game than I expected, and still have one left. As much as I disliked Ricardo Patton, he may have been the only thing keeping this program afloat.

Next week I'll present the year end awards, project the Big 12 tourney and analyze how terrible my preseason picks were. For now, I'll tell you the finalists...

Player of the Year
Michael Beasley

Coach of the Year
Rick Barnes
Frank Martin
Scott Drew
Jeff Capel

Biggest Surprise
Baylor
Kansas State

Biggest Disappointment
Texas A&M
Texas Tech
Nebraska

Biggest Story
Bob Knight retires
K-State end the streak
Athenagate at Mizzou
Baylor gets a bye

Think I forgot a category, or a nominee? Let me know in the comments...

Postseason Projections

Kansas - #1 seed
Texas- #2 seed
K- State- #7 seed
Baylor- #9 seed
Oklahoma- #10 seed
A&M- #12 seed