With kickoff right around the corner, what better way to get into the football mood than a little preseason series? Over the last few days, I told you which three teams are the best, worst, and underrated heading into the season. Today, I will share my three most overrated Big 12 teams in 2024.
Kansas Jayhawks
Make no mistake about it, Jalon Daniels is arguably the best quarterback in the entire Big 12. Back in 2022, Daniels led the Jayhawks to their first bowl game since 2009 and their best finish in conference play since 2008. He even set a Liberty Bowl record throwing for a whopping 544 yards in a 55-53 triple overtime loss to Arkansas. While all that is great, the problem has been Jalon’s health. Last season, Daniels played in just three games due to a back injury. Sure, Kansas still ended up with an 8-4 record and a bowl win, but the team wasn’t the same without Jalon leading the way.
Along with some health concerns, I worry about the defense for the Jayhawks. Last season, they took a step forward they still weren’t on par with the offense. Kansas had the worst red zone defense in the Big 12 and were tenth in opponent third-down conversions at 41.6%. Now this defense has to replace most of their front seven including their two best defensive linemen. Between the defense and the concerns about Jalon’s health, I worry that Kansas may end up being overrated.
Arizona Wildcats
Offensively, Arizona has a chance to be one of the best offenses in the Big 12. Quarterback Noah Fifita is a rising superstar in college football and Tetairoa McMillan is one of the best receivers in the conference. They may even end up being better up front on the offensive line even without Jordan Morgan who was a first-round pick in the NFL Draft.
But much like Kansas, I wonder how their defense is going to hold up in the new look Big 12. Outside of the secondary, which returns nearly everyone, they lost a ton of production on the defensive line and at linebacker. While leading tackler Jacon Manu returns, there will be some new faces around him. My biggest concern is the depth of this Arizona team. In this conference, you have to have depth because injuries will happen especially with the schedule they are playing this year as they will have to face six of the top ten teams in the Big 12.
Colorado Buffaloes
I know that Colorado was picked outside the preseason Top 10 in the Big 12 but they also have the most bets to win the Big 12 in Vegas. While I personally will not be betting in Colorado, let me explain why.
Shedeur Sanders is an extremely talented quarterback and Travis Hunter may be the best pound-for-pound player in the conference, but there are just too many question marks around them. Pat Shurmur is taking over the offense and is a pro-style guy which is going to be interesting to see. But who is going to block for Sanders and these backs? Last season, Colorado had one of the worst offensive lines in the country and they struggled opening up any lanes for the running backs as they averaged just 68.9 yards per game on the ground. Now they have five fresh faces up front and I just don’t believe that you can throw five guys together from the portal and make it work in such a short amount of time.
Defensively, this team has a lot to improve on. They were allowing over 450 yards of offense per game as well as 34.8 points per game. Both of those ranked in the bottom ten nationally. Colorado has some talent in certain areas but overall, I don’t think that this 2024 team is going to be a Big 12 title contender at all. Save you money folks.
