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2012 record: 7-6
2012 Big 12 record: 4-5
Returning starters: Offense: 6; defense: 9; kicker/punter: 2

Top returners: DE Devonte Fields, CB Jason Verrett, WR Brandon Carter, S Sam Carter, S Elisha Olabode, RB Waymon James, K Jaden Oberkrom, RB B.J. Catalon

Key losses: WR Josh Boyce, LB Kenny Cain, DE Stansly Maponga, C James Fry, OG Blaize Foltz, RB Matthew Tucker, WR Skye Dawson

2012 statistical leaders (*returners)

Passing: Trevone Boykin* (2,054 yards)
Rushing: B.J. Catalon* (584 yards)
Receiving: Josh Boyce (891 yards)
Tackles: Kenny Cain (86)
Sacks: Devonte Fields* (10)
Interceptions: Jason Verrett* (6)

Spring answers

1. Offensive line getting straightened out. James Fry and Blaize Foltz were big losses on the interior of the offensive line, and replacing them was a big concern for the Frogs' quiet spring. The spring ended with senior Eric Tausch atop the depth chart at center and sophomore Jamelle Naff winning the right guard job to replace Foltz. Tausch started at left guard last season and moved over, but sophomore Joey Hunt slid up to replace him. Neither Naff nor Hunt have much experience (Hunt earned his lone career start in a loss to Iowa State), but they'll be leaned on this season.

2. New targets acquired. Josh Boyce and Skye Dawson took their talents to the next level, leaving the Frogs in search of a pair of new starters. LaDarius Brown and Brandon Carter were sure things, but strong springs helped fellow juniors Cam White and David Porter win starting jobs at receiver. There aren't many open gigs for a team returning 15 starters, but that's one that will have a big impact.

3. Mallet dropping the hammer. Junior Marcus Mallet emerged late last season and finished with five tackles for loss and a forced fumble among his 18 stops. Now, he looks like the likely candidate to replace departed Kenny Cain and a possible breakout talent on a loaded TCU defense. The 6-foot-1, 216-pounder finished atop the depth chart after a good spring.

Fall questions

1. Is Casey Pachall back to his old self? It's probably safe to operate under the assumption that Pachall will win his job back in fall camp, but beating out Trevone Boykin isn't the same as leading the Big 12 in passing efficiency, like he was last year before his DUI arrest that ended his season. You don't win a Big 12 title with average quarterback play, which brings me to my next question.

2. Can TCU really handle a Big 12 schedule? TCU was competitive last year, sure, and only had one game that it wasn't competitive in. But TCU's not trying to be competitive. It didn't come to the Big 12 to do that. It came to win, and it's proven exactly nothing in that realm just yet. Managing a difficult week-to-week schedule is one thing. Winning just about every week is another. Ask K-State's 2012 team and Oklahoma State's 2011 squad how easy that is.

3. Is the defense for real? On paper, this unit should be absolutely dominant after finishing No. 1 in the Big 12 in total defense and returning nine starters, including Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Devonte Fields at defensive end. That sounds like Texas' defense from last year, who fell off the map and allowed more rushing yards than any team in school history. Sometimes, you just never really know. This is a new season and last year means nothing. Prove it again.

We'll take a look at some of the Big 12's breakout stars this spring, but we'll move forward with a series looking at guys who will be stepping into bigger roles this season and what they have to provide. Some are going from being role players to starters. Some are going from starter to star. Some from stars to bona fide superstars.

Let's move on with TCU.

TCU's spring steps forward: WR Brandon Carter

I do feel bad for great receivers who get stuck with inaccurate or inexperienced quarterbacks. That was the case for Carter and Josh Boyce a year ago when Casey Pachall left the team and the Frogs had no choice but to turn to Trevone Boykin, who was more suited to make plays with his feet than string together bunches of completions and move the chains consistently.

Pachall is back, but Boyce is gone, and that means opportunity for Carter. TCU's running game is solid, but you've got to be able to sling it in the Big 12 to light up scoreboards and, consequently, win with consistency. Carter showed big-play ability last year, and the ability to snag one-handed catches in unlikely situations. He's got to be even more for TCU's offense this year after catching 36 balls for 590 yards and six scores. He needs to step forward this spring and prove his worth as a big-time receiver. If TCU doesn't have a 1,000-1,500-yard receiver this season, it's not going to win a Big 12 title. LaDarius Brown is a solid player, and so is Cam White, but Carter's third year on the field awaits this fall, and the time is now for him to make good on the potential he's shown over the first half of his career at TCU. He's the guy in TCU's passing game next year -- if only because he has to be. If Boyce had returned for his senior season, the Frogs offense had the potential to look very scary. For now, it's just very good. Without Carter stepping up and crossing quadruple digits in receiving next season, it'll be tough to call TCU's offense anything close to very good.

See more Big 12 spring steps forward.

We're back again looking at a different Big 12 team with title aspirations next fall. The Frogs limped (literally) through their first season in the Big 12, dealing with more injuries and personnel losses than any team in the Big 12, but still managed to finish 7-6 and earn a whole bunch of respect in its first season as a team in a BCS automatic qualifier conference.

So what happens in Year 2? Do you buy that a Big 12 title is in reach? Vote in our poll whether you believe TCU has a real chance or not. With Casey Pachall back on the field and back in practice, hopes are certainly high, but the Frogs' biggest asset is the Big 12's No. 1 offense from 2012 that returns nine starters.

Pachall still has to officially beat out Trevone Boykin, who was streaky but showed some promise filling in for Pachall over the last 2/3 of the 2012 season.

Defensive end Devonte Fields, the AP's Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, highlights the Frogs' hyped defense alongside cornerback Jason Verrett, the league's top shutdown corner from a year ago who led the league with six interceptions and 16 pass breakups. Great secondary play is a must-have in the Big 12, and TCU's got it.

The Frogs have to deal with the loss of receiver Josh Boyce, but the position is still strong with Brandon Carter returning and LaDarius Brown looking ready for an increased role after catching 27 passes for 385 yards and five scores last season.

The running backs will be a strength for the Frogs next season with Waymon James returning from a knee injury and B.J. Catalon and Nebraska transfer Aaron Green providing depth and variety to James' powerful running style.

Will it be enough to truly contend for a Big 12 title for the first time ever? Or are the Frogs a paper tiger bound for disappointment in 2013? Cast your vote. We'll revisit the results later.

We wrapped up our postseason list of the Big 12's top 25 players, and included a few guys who just missed.

What about next year's list? Here's a few guys you can probably expect to see on next year's postseason list who didn't make the 2012 version.

Brandon Carter, WR, TCU: Josh Boyce has been the headliner for TCU's receivers in each of the past two years, but Carter is a big talent with great hands (and a penchant for one-handed grabs) who'll be assuming a bigger role in TCU's offense this season. He's a balanced receiver who's shown great route-running talent and great straight-line speed. He caught just 36 passes for 590 yards and six scores, but without Boyce and Skye Dawson, look for Carter to top 1,000 yards as a junior next year with Casey Pachall set to return to the Frogs.

Jeremy Smith, RB, Oklahoma State: Smith has a ton of experience, but with Joseph Randle emerging the past two seasons, he hasn't had a lot of opportunity. He's a 208-pound bruiser who plays like he's a whole lot heavier, while still possessing great speed. OSU is still going to be a pass-first team, but Smith is going to earn more than just the 70 carries he got a year ago. A midseason injury was part of the reason, but he still scored eight times and rushed for 371 yards. He averaged better than seven yards a carry in 2011, but I'd be shocked if he didn't have 1,000 yards rushing in 2013 as a senior.

Karl Joseph, S, West Virginia: Joseph was a bright spot as a true freshman for a struggling defense this season, but with the amount that defense struggled, it's hard to put anyone in the top 25. Can that change under new playcaller Keith Patterson next year? Joseph showed an ability to be a playmaker with 102 tackles, seven tackles for loss, two interceptions, six pass breakups and three forced fumbles. With another year in the system and in college football, you figure that will grow.

Mike Davis, WR, Texas: Davis quietly earned a reputation as a big-time deep threat for an inconsistent Texas passing offense last year, and flirted with 1,000 yards receiving. He also flirted with leaving for the NFL, but he may emerge as one of the Big 12's best receivers next season. He needed just 57 catches to amass 939 yards and caught 11 passes longer than 30 yards, tied for third-most in the Big 12.

Corey Nelson, LB, Oklahoma: Nelson was a one-time super recruit who has been solid for the Sooners, but could definitely emerge as a superstar next season. He and Aaron Colvin are the only two players Mike Stoops knows he can for sure count on next season, and the third-year starter should be a bedrock of a transition Oklahoma defense next year after making 45 stops and 3.5 tackles for loss in 2012.

Signing day has come and gone, but we'll have plenty of coverage looking more closely at each Big 12 team's class. This morning, we're looking at how each team filled its needs. We ran down the top of the Big 12 alphabet earlier today. Here's the second half:

OKLAHOMA STATE COWBOYS

Needs filled: The Cowboys once again lost both starters at defensive end, and junior-college transfer Sam Wren could have an immediate impact. ESPN 300 member Vincent Taylor is a big presence and might contribute early, too. In all, OSU signed six defensive linemen. In this offense, you can never have too many receivers, especially gifted ones. Marcell Ateman and Ra'Shaad Samples will have some fun in Stillwater.

Holes remaining: The Pokes lost one starter at linebacker and will have two seniors on next season's team, but didn't sign a linebacker in this class. We'll see if they can make up for that with development and recruiting in 2014.

TEXAS LONGHORNS

Needs filled: Texas is getting some big upgrades on the offensive line, headlined by the nation's No. 1 center, Darius James. Kent Perkins and Jake Raulerson are also top-10 tackles nationally and guard Rami Hammad and juco tackle Desmond Harrison fill out the class, which was one-third offensive linemen.

Holes remaining: Texas kept striking out with defensive linemen and ended up signing zero, despite losing Alex Okafor and Brandon Moore, and with Jackson Jeffcoat a rising senior. That could be a problem soon, but the Longhorns lost Daeshon Hall and missed out on Andrew Billings, who went to Baylor.

TCU HORNED FROGS

Needs filled: The running backs were drained after last season, but the Frogs had one of the league's best hauls at the position, grabbing ESPN 300 member Kyle Hicks and Trevorris Johnson, two of the best backs in Texas. The Frogs are also loading up on 6-foot, 200-pound linebackers who'll be able to cover in the open field. Paul Whitmill headlines that group, but the Frogs signed three linebackers with that profile.

Holes remaining: Josh Boyce and Skye Dawson are gone, and though LaDarius Brown and Brandon Carter will be there for 2013, you need a lot more big-time receivers than that to win in the Big 12. TCU signed four athletes, but no pure receivers in this class.

TEXAS TECH RED RAIDERS

Needs filled: Receivers are always a must in this offense, and Tech got a pair of good ones in Dylan Cantrell and Justis Nelson. After Seth Doege graduated and Scotty Young transferred, Tech needed a quarterback to follow Michael Brewer and Davis Webb, the nation's No. 24 pro-style passer, could be that guy.

Holes remaining: The Red Raiders might be a little thin at defensive tackle after signing just one in this class. Kerry Hyder will be a senior and Leon Mackey graduated. Tech will have to develop that position and maybe put some weight on some defensive ends -- a position where Texas Tech is well-stocked.

WEST VIRGINIA MOUNTAINEERS

Needs filled: Defense, defense, defense. West Virginia needs some talent upgrades all over the field, and landed linebacker Al-Rasheed Benton and ESPN 300 member Darrien Howard. Hodari Christian is another talented linebacking prospect and Dontrill Hyman will try to have an immediate impact as a pass-rusher out of junior college. WVU signed four outside linebackers and two defensive ends.

Holes remaining: Where are the cover guys? WVU needs help in the secondary and got it in safeties Malik Greaves and Jeremy Tyler, but didn't sign a pure cornerback in this class.

Every year, there's lots of turnover and change for every college program. What do the Big 12 teams need to do before next fall? Let's continue our look with the Frogs here in Fort Worth.

1. See what Casey Pachall has to offer and make a decision. Pachall is back with the team, but we won't get a real feel for how good or bad he is until the spring when the team can begin practicing as a unit with coaches. In the meantime, this job is Trevone Boykin's to lose. The spring will be a showcase for Pachall, and we'll have a good idea of whether TCU is a real Big 12 title contender. I don't believe in the Frogs unless Boykin looks like a new man in 2013, but if Pachall returns to his 2011 and early 2012 form, TCU is legitimate.

2. Don't pay attention to stuff off the practice field. In that same vein, there's going to be some unprecedented preseason hype around this team. Pachall or not, this young team is likely to be one of the Big 12 favorites by the media at large around the league and some nationally. It showed promise in last year's 7-6 team, but the surest way to not win the Big 12 title is to believe you can win it without working for it. Read enough news clippings or believe all the nice things people say on campus, and that poisonous mindset might seep in.

3. Grow up. In that same vein, most of those predictions will be predicated upon the presupposition that next year's team will do a whole lot of improving this offseason. This team doesn't lose very much from the 2012 version. Six players on offense and a rousing nine (from arguably the Big 12's best defense) will return in 2013. This team will know its identity (balanced offense with big-play potential and a stingy defense with strengths in perfect places in the Big 12 -- pass rush and the secondary) and know what it wants to do next year. Teams across the league will spend the entire offseason trying to figure out how to beat guys like Devonte Fields and Jason Verrett and shut down Brandon Carter. Those guys have to get better at what they do best and add new facets to their games by next fall that makes life even harder for opponents.

More offseason to-do lists:

• Texas
• Texas Tech
• West Virginia

We're grading each Big 12 team's season right now, and we'll move on to the next team on the list: The TCU Horned Frogs.

OFFENSE: You have to wonder what could have been for TCU in Year 1 in the Big 12 if Casey Pachall had stayed on the team, Ed Wesley hadn't left in May and Waymon James' knee had remained healthy more than a couple games into the season. Ifs and buts, candy and nuts, etc., but that wasn't the case. The early season was plagued by turnovers and missed opportunities in the red zone even with Pachall, and that's factored into this grade. The toughest thing for this offense to swallow was how strong its receivers were, but Pachall's replacement, Trevone Boykin, couldn't get Josh Boyce and Brandon Carter the ball consistently enough to make this an offense good enough to hang in the upper half of the Big 12. Boykin played gutsy ball and used his legs well, and had an ability to hit the big play when TCU often needed it, and clearly grew throughout the season. After TCU got blasted at home by Iowa State, I all but eulogized TCU's season. A bowl game was out. And then it wasn't. Against K-State, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, the offense looked really, really rough, and let winnable games slip out of reach. The Frogs had a really impressive season, but the post-Pachall offense wasn't the reason why it happened. GRADE: C

DEFENSE: The Frogs got my vote as the Big 12's best defense. Stansly Maponga was a bit underwhelming on the defensive line, but Devonte Fields was better than anyone could have ever thought, winning the league's Defensive Player of the Year honors as a true freshman who only started to begin the season because DE Ross Forrest missed the season with a shoulder injury. Jason Verrett emerged as the league's best shutdown corner, a far cry from his awful outing to begin 2011 when RG3 torched Verrett and the Frogs. Elisha Olabode and Sam Carter filled out a strong secondary that forced 32 turnovers, tied for the most in the Big 12. Joel Hasley and Kenny Cain played well for an underrated linebacking corps that was gutted by the loss of Tanner Brock before the season and rising star Deryck Gildon being ruled ineligible and leaving for junior college. Nobody dealt with losses as heavy as TCU, and they happened on both sides of the ball. Gary Patterson strung together an amazing defense, despite it all, and led the league in total defense and yards per play. The Frogs gave up just 4.92 yards per play, nearly half a yard per play fewer than any other team in the Big 12. GRADE: A+

OVERALL: It's tough to grade the Frogs, whose seven-win season felt like a 10-win season, considering the circumstances. The offense had to play with one hand tied behind its back at times, without basically its entire offensive backfield. The defense lost almost as much, but filled in the holes at linebacker and Fields was a breakout star. Every win down the stretch was emotional, but you can't ignore there were only two of them in the final seven games of the year. TCU's impact on the Big 12 in Year 1 was bigger than its number in the win total. It showed a lot of toughness and to some degree, answered the "depth" question. Still, 7-6 is 7-6. GRADE: B-

TCU coach Gary Patterson knew the Big 12 would be full of new challenges. Chief among them: close games.

The last time TCU had more than one conference game decided by one possession was 2008. That season, it was only two. Since then, the Horned Frogs have coasted through the Mountain West with three consecutive league titles and only three total conference games decided by seven points or fewer.

In the Big 12, it has been a whole new ballgame for the Frogs. Two of the past three games for TCU have gone to overtime, one in the Frogs' favor against West Virginia on Saturday and the other tipped toward their in-state rival Texas Tech two weeks ago.

"It just depends on whether you win or lose. After the Texas Tech game, nobody felt good," Patterson said. TCU led 14-9 against Oklahoma State in the week between the two close games and Patterson harped on his team to finish. It didn't, dropping a 36-14 decision to the reigning Big 12 champs.

He gave the team Sunday off to rest, and it paid off with a comeback victory against the Mountaineers in which the Frogs played their best ball late in the fourth quarter and in overtime.

That rest allowed TCU to get offensive lineman Blaize Foltz and receiver Brandon Carter back on the field, as well as defensive end Stansly Maponga. Even banged-up back Matthew Tucker returned to the field.

"He still wasn’t where we needed him to be last week, but we’ll need all of our bullets to have a chance against Kansas State because they’re a really good football team," Patterson said.

A 9-0 football team, to be exact. Still, the lesson was learned for TCU, which is still getting used to needing all its bullets every week in the Big 12.

"I feel like it helped us last Saturday at West Virginia. Both players and coaches, how do you manage the season? I think that’s one thing we’ve talked about," Patterson said. "To get ready for Kansas State you’ve got to be doing the same thing. You’ve got to be able to run and be able to get the soreness out of your body because they’ll make you play for three hours."

That's nothing new for the Cats, the reigning masters of the tight decisions. Since 2011, the Wildcats are 10-1 in games decided by one possession. Only two of those wins came outside Big 12 play and the only team to notch a win against K-State in one of those games won a Big 12 title in 2011.

"I’m probably like all coaches. Regardless of what the score is, they’re all tight games," Wildcats coach Bill Snyder said. "It’s never over until it’s over, and I think we’re all that way, but I can’t tell you in all honesty that there’s any great difference in how I am during the course of a ballgame. I don’t think it really has been all that different for me."

The Wildcats have shown the poise of an experienced team even when they didn't necessarily have that experience a year ago. The execution late in games provided them opportunities to consistently erase deficits and notch 10 victories. A year later, tight wins against Oklahoma and Iowa State on the road have the Wildcats right in the thick of the national championship race.

Can TCU give its players opportunities in practice to simulate the tight situations that haven't existed on the field with this kind of frequency in a long time around Fort Worth?

"We’re always trying to create adversity to get things ready to go," Patterson said. "When you’re in a conference where the competition level is so close, you’re going to have to get ready for those kinds of games. For as young a football team as we have, I think we’re building valuable experience, especially going on the road."

All three of TCU's Big 12 victories have been on the road this season, including last week's close victory at West Virginia -- the latest of many lessons for the Horned Frogs in 2012.

"There’s a lot of things that are being learned at this point by coaches and players. I don’t think it’s just the players," Patterson said. "The coaches, we’re trying to learn about our kids and how they play and how they handle things and we’ve got to do a better job on our side of getting them ready."

Time for a few superlatives from the week that was in the Big 12:

Best offensive performance: Brennan Clay, RB, Oklahoma. No huge standouts this week, but I'm going with Clay narrowly ahead of a few other deserving folks. Iowa State has a pretty good defense, but Clay nearly topped his career high by more than 100 yards. Clay carried the ball 24 times for 157 yards and a touchdown, easily surpassing his previous career high of 64 yards.

Best defensive performance: Allen Chapman, CB, Kansas State. Only seven Big 12 players had at least three interceptions all season. Chapman nabbed three from two different quarterbacks in one game on Saturday night. He returned one 29 yards for a score and sealed the win with his final pick of the night. He also added five tackles and two pass breakups.

Best game: TCU 39, West Virginia 38 (2OT). What more could you ask for here? The Frogs' 94-yard touchdown pass from Trevone Boykin to Josh Boyce that forced overtime was mostly thanks to terrible defense from WVU, but the double-overtime gambles from the Frogs? That was all execution on a reverse pass that fooled the Mountaineers and a pretty rollout play that resulted in a tough scoop for Boyce to clinch the win. The Frogs are playing the role of drama queens these days. Only two Big 12 games have gone to overtime this year. TCU has been involved in both.

Best team performance: Texas. Tough pick here, but I'll go with the Longhorns, who went on the road and soundly beat a ranked Texas Tech team badly in need of a win. Texas asserted some dominance and grabbed the inside track to a Cotton Bowl berth in the process.

Best play: WR Brandon Carter and TE Corey Fuller, TCU. Carter, a former high school quarterback, took a pitch on the reverse and hit a wide-open Fuller who had sneaked out behind the WVU defense and caught the ball for a 25-yard touchdown on the first play of double overtime. That's a play Fuller, a senior, will never forget. The senior tight end had two catches for 1 yard this season entering Saturday's game.

Second-best play: Tavon Austin, PR, West Virginia. Austin's 76-yard return should have been enough and should have won the game for West Virginia. Alas, a good day for the defense came crashing down with a few late mistakes. After breaking loose and setting the crowd off on what seemed to be the game winner, the defense let TCU get back in the game with a costly mistake. Which brings me to the next award ...

Worst play: West Virginia's defense. I was in awe of this one. West Virginia got a huge sack and pinned TCU on its own 6-yard line with under two minutes to play and a seven-point lead. It should be a simple task for the safeties, regardless of the coverage: Stay deeper than the deepest. Do not get beat over the top. WVU lost track of Josh Boyce, TCU's best receiver, and let him get -- you guessed it -- over the top for a 94-yard score on a broken play.

Best decision: Gary Patterson, TCU. Patterson had been there before, and decided to go back to the well. "I'm one of those people who believes when you play someone on the road, you have to go take ballgames," Patterson told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. TCU scored on a reverse pass from Brandon Carter to Corey Fuller to get within 38-37, and like he did against Boise State last year on the road, Patterson went for two. The Frogs ran the exact same play and it worked. Welcome to bowl eligibility in Year 1 of the Big 12, Frogs.

Best quote: Boyce, on going for two to win the game. "I already knew what the play was going to be," he said. Awesome.

Time to hand out some hardware for a job well done in the Big 12 on Saturday. Your stickers are in the mail, boys.

Big 12:

Gary Patterson, coach, TCU: Hey, the players are the ones who do it on the field, but Patterson went with a pair of gutsy gambles in double overtime to help the Frogs rally for a 39-38 victory at West Virginia. TCU got a touchdown on a reverse pass from Brandon Carter to Corey Fuller, and got the two-point conversion on a rollout play that was a mirror of the play that beat Boise State last season. Patterson doesn't necessarily call those plays, but he had the guts to sign off on them. Few other coaches would. Those were game-changing decisions and now TCU is bowl-eligible, despite a mountain of losses.

Allen Chapman, CB, Kansas State: What a night for the senior cornerback. He got it off to a great start when he returned his first interception 29 yards for a touchdown late in the first half of Kansas State's 44-30 win over Oklahoma State. He picked off another late on a play in which Cowboys quarterback Wes Lunt suffered an apparent head injury, and his final pick of the night sealed the game for the Wildcats and allowed the K-State faithful to breathe a sigh of relief when he came up with the ball in the end zone on a Clint Chelf toss that would have made the game very, very interesting. He finished with five tackles, three picks and two pass breakups. My hat is off, sir.

Brennan Clay, RB, Oklahoma: Landry Jones is a strong candidate here, but I'm going with Clay because of Jones' two interceptions in the second quarter. Clay's previous career high was just 64 yards rushing, but with injuries to the Sooners' backs, Clay came up big in relief of Damien Williams. He carried the ball 24 times for 157 yards and broke an impressive 18-yard touchdown run for his only score of the day as Oklahoma beat Iowa State 35-20. He also caught a pair of passes for 12 yards.

Mike Davis, WR, Texas: "Magic Mike" was money on Saturday for the Horns. He only caught four passes, but he made 'em count in the Longhorns' 31-22 win over Texas Tech. He caught touchdowns of 75 and 25 yards from David Ash and finished with four grabs for 165 yards. The Horns needed some explosiveness on offense. Davis provided it.

Baylor's offensive line: Can't hand it to just one guy here, but the big uglies up front got it done against the Jayhawks. Baylor's Nick Florence wasn't sacked and threw for 367 yards and three touchdowns in a much-needed, turnover-free performance. Meanwhile, running backs Glasco Martin and Lache Seastrunk combined for 260 yards on just 28 carries, an average of 9.3 yards a carry, in the 41-14 romp. Big time.

SEC:

Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M: Real shocker to find Johnny Football back on this list. He hurt Mississippi State running and throwing in the Aggies' blowout 38-13 win in Starkville, Miss. He completed 30 of his 36 pass attempts for 311 yards and ran the ball 21 times for 129 yards and two touchdowns. He really sucked the life out of the Bulldogs' defense early in the second quarter when he zigged and zagged his way through the defense for a 37-yard touchdown run that put the Aggies up 21-0. -- Edward Aschoff

TCU was going to go down fighting, one way or the other.

The Horned Frogs trailed by seven after WVU took just one play to score in double overtime, but TCU had plans to do the same.

Receiver Brandon Carter, a former high school quarterback, grabbed the ball off a reverse and found a wide-open Corey Fuller, who rumbled in for the touchdown.

TCU coach Gary Patterson wasn't done. Taking a page from last season's regulation victory at Boise State, Patterson went for two on the road with what looked like the exact same play. Trevone Boykin found Josh Boyce, who hauled in a low toss to clinch the 39-38 win and set off a raucous Frogs celebration.

A review upheld the call.

Overtime only happened because Boykin found Boyce wide open for a 94-yard touchdown pass with 1:24 to play after Tavon Austin raced 76 yards on a punt return for a go-ahead touchdown for the Mountaineers.

Somebody's two-game losing streak had to come to an end. TCU played to win and made the plays to make it happen. It takes a whole lot of guts to do what Patterson did, and it paid off.

Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads tried a similar maneuver in 2010 versus Nebraska, but that failed. Its biggest win of the season pushed TCU to 6-3 overall (3-3 in the Big 12) and made it bowl-eligible.

The Frogs are banged-up and depleted, but this win will taste very, very sweet. Next week, the Frogs get a shot at Big 12 front-runner Kansas State.

Meanwhile, another crushing loss for West Virginia. The offense struggled again and Geno Smith finished just 32-of-54 for 260 yards, three touchdowns and a terrible interception on a badly underthrown deep ball that drew an animated reaction from coach Dana Holgorsen.

Austin tried his best to rescue the Mountaineers (5-3, 2-3) with the late punt return and a crazy 43-yard touchdown on a short catch in the second quarter, but it wasn't enough.

West Virginia is left searching while the Frogs moved up the Big 12 standings.

It's been a spooky season in the Big 12 this year. To commemorate Halloween on the blog, we're letting you know what to keep an eye on.

Jason Voorhies (team that refuses to die): TCU. The Frogs have taken their licks. Casey Pachall is gone. The team's top two running backs are gone. Receiver Brandon Carter is hurt now, and defensive end Stansly Maponga is banged up. Still, TCU keeps playing, despite losing more than 20 players from this year's team since the end of last season. The Frogs are 5-3 and playing tough in their first year in the Big 12.

Thrillers: Texas. The Longhorns can't stop playing heart stoppers. They converted huge fourth downs on game-winning drives in the final minutes to beat Oklahoma State earlier this season and Kansas last week. They came up short in a dramatic loss at home to West Virginia and hung on late for a six-point win over Baylor.

In the graveyard: Baylor's post-RG3 world. There was plenty of talk about this not being the "same old Baylor" despite losing the best player in the program's history, Robert Griffin III. It's not, and the Bears have been largely competitive, but you can't hide from the record. Baylor is 0-4 in Big 12 play, and that record doesn't look much different than pre-Art Briles Baylor, though the team on the field does. Will we see a second-half revival and a return to the postseason for the third consecutive season?

Frightful sight: Kansas State. Beware of the Wildcats and their ageless coach, Bill Snyder. Who has the highest scoring offense in the Big 12? It's not Oklahoma. It's not Oklahoma State. It's not West Virginia or Baylor. It's the Wildcats and their "slow, meandering offense." The Wildcats have had just two of seven games decided by fewer than two touchdowns this year.

Cursed: Oklahoma State. The Cowboys can't get away from costly injuries to quarterbacks this year. Wes Lunt suffered an ugly knee injury early on and missed more than a month while J.W. Walsh racked up impressive numbers. Then last week, Walsh suffered a knee injury and forced Lunt back into duty. Did someone on the team sell their soul for last year's Big 12 title? It's been a cursed season for QBs in Stillwater.

Haunted house: Owen Field. It's usually a house of horrors for opposing teams. Before this year, Bob Stoops was 77-3 at home. This season, the Sooners are just 2-2, with wins over Florida A&M and Kansas. Meanwhile, top three teams Notre Dame and Kansas State entered Oklahoma as double-digit underdogs and knocked off the Sooners anyway.

Time for a few Halloween costume suggestions:

• West Virginia's entire team:Two-Face from the Batman series. Obvious reasons, I'd say. Juggernauts one week. Getting blown out the next.
• Collin Klein: I mean ... what else could he be?
• Bill Snyder:Richard from LOST. Hasn't aged a day in decades.
• Texas Tech DC Art Kaufman:MacGyver. He's taken a group of jucos and signees with varying levels of experience and turned them into the bomb.
• Terrance Williams: Vacuum cleaner. Throw something in his area code. It gets sucked in.
• Charlie Weis: Sisyphus. The character from Greek mythology was once a king who believed he was more clever than Zeus. The gods punished him by making him push an enormous boulder up an endless mountain for eternity.
• Art Briles: Eric Taylor. He climbed his way up the high school ranks, and he's as Texan as they come. Take state, y'all!
• Arthur Brown: Predator. Once he's locked his radar in on you, you're going down, buddy.
• Bob Bowlsby: President Andrew Johnson. His predecessor held together that which nearly crumbled under his term. Now, it's up to the new guy to begin building a brand-new country, er, conference.

I also asked those of you who follow me on Twitter for some suggestions. Here's the best of what you came up with (the ones that weren't too mean, anyway. Man, some of you were brutal):

• David Ash: Sunshine from Remember the Titans. It's all in the hair, I suppose. (via @zmoney_hookem)
• Jake Knott: Chuck Norris. Both indestructible. Sort of, anyway. (via @crucydr)
• Iowa State DC Wally Burnham: Gandalf the Grey. Wally the Wizard has worked his magic all season long with the ISU defense. (via @_gmackey_)

And a couple costumes that just need to be seen:

• Baby Dana Holgorsen
• Bill Sny the Football Guy (via @Jake_Wittkop)
• KU Jayhawk as John Brown

Here's what I learned after five Big 12 games in Week 8:

K-State is the unquestioned leader for the Big 12 title. Any questions? Kansas State has three road victories against Top 25 teams this year and walked into Oklahoma and West Virginia and handed both Big 12 contenders humbling losses. Coach Bill Snyder has this team playing up to its potential, doing the same things it did last year ... just better.

Baylor has work to do to get into the postseason. The Bears are stuck in a three-game losing streak and are slumming at the bottom of the Big 12 standings at 0-3, just ahead of Kansas at 0-4. Baylor is a pretty good team, but the Big 12 is deep, and somebody has to get swallowed up. Baylor has four ranked teams left on its schedule and stands at just three wins overall. With Iowa State, Kansas and Oklahoma State left, the opportunities will be there for the Bears, but only KU looks like a gimme, and the Jayhawks nearly beat Baylor last year, even with RG3.

TCU is playing gutsy, gutsy football. The Horned Frogs have lost more players than anybody in the Big 12, but they keep chugging along and nearly grabbed a huge win against Texas Tech. Trailing by double digits with three minutes to play, Trevone Boykin hit LaDarius Brown for a 60-yard score to get the Frogs back in it. TCU played without Brandon Carter for much of the game, and its best offensive lineman, Blaize Foltz, was missing, too. Preseason All-Big 12 DE Stansly Maponga was out, and the team's top two backs after spring football, Ed Wesley (left team) and Waymon James (knee), are gone this season. Boykin is playing only because of the Casey Pachall mess earlier this fall, but TCU keeps hanging on. Saturday would have been one of the most emotional wins in a long time for the Frogs, but this team is still good and will be scary in 2013.

Texas Tech is a force to be reckoned with. The Red Raiders have one bad loss to a very good team in Oklahoma and eked out a triple-overtime, comeback win on the road against a good TCU team. How good are the Red Raiders? Well, they're one of just three teams (K-State, Oklahoma State) to control their fate in the Big 12 title race, so we'll find out exactly how good next week when they travel to Manhattan, Kan. The Red Raiders look legit, but in case you weren't watching on Saturday night, so did K-State, and significantly more so.

There is still hope for Oklahoma State. Beating Iowa State by three touchdowns isn't easy, even if the Cyclones' offense is struggling. Oklahoma State did it, and did it with its backup quarterback, J.W. Walsh. I generally think the quarterback "controversy" is a joke. This offense is built to run with Wes Lunt commanding things, and it will be his when he comes back, but when will that be? Oklahoma State is crazy if it hasn't had a frank conversation about a medical redshirt at this point. The Cowboys have just one Big 12 loss but a whole lot to prove with five more ranked teams on the schedule in the next five weeks. OSU still hasn't really beaten anybody, but it'll have plenty of chances.

West Virginia has hit rock bottom ... I think. Geno Smith said it after the game, and he's right: This is a terrible, terrible time for a bye week. The Mountaineers have two weeks to do some soul searching before hosting a young but improving TCU team. Those offensive issues last week against Texas Tech may have been a sign of things to come, and TCU knows a thing or two about playing some defense. Coach Gary Patterson learned a lot from these past two games, I'm sure. We know the WVU defense can't stop anybody, but will the offense regain its form? We won't know for another couple of weeks.

TCU

Record: 5-1, 2-1 Big 12

The Frogs' season feels a lot more traumatic than it's actually been. In four days, TCU lost its best player and its first game, and it felt much like the sky was falling. After last week's 49-21 win over Baylor, things are looking up in Fort Worth.

Casey Pachall's DWI arrest and disenrollment from the university to seek treatment for drug and alcohol addiction was the biggest story of the season for the Frogs, and Iowa State came into the new Amon G. Carter Stadium and ruined the first Big 12 game ever in the Frogs' new pond. Trevone Boykin struggled and turned the ball over four times.

Last week, with a full week to practice at QB after playing just one day at QB the week before, he threw four touchdowns. The Frogs are second in the Big 12 and 14th nationally in total defense. The team's best running back, Waymon James, is out for the year with a knee injury and Matthew Tucker's been banged up, too. He sat out the loss to Iowa State. That was a big loss, and with no QB and a running game left to B.J. Catalon and Aundre Dean, the Frogs looked pretty average. That defense leads the nation in turnovers forced, though, and will keep the Frogs in plenty of games down the stretch. The final six games of the schedule will be brutal and truly tell us just how good TCU can be.

Offensive MVP: Brandon Carter and Josh Boyce, WRs. I'm not going to put Pachall on here, though he's the clear candidate. He's gone. Carter and Boyce have been outstanding and produced similar output in the passing game. They've combined for 56 catches, 806 yards and eight touchdowns over the first half of the season, which included a rain-soaked night against SMU, too.

Defensive MVP: Devonte Fields, DE. Fields is my defensive player of the year in the entire Big 12, and the true freshman has been the breakout star of the entire league, even though he hasn't gotten much press on a national level. He leads the Big 12 with 6.5 sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss, two more than any player in the Big 12.

As expected, we've got a big shake-up in the Big 12 Power Rankings after Kansas State's upset. The Big 12 race is even more wide open now, but we've got a brand-new squad at No. 1.

Without further ado, get your Wabash Cannonballs on, folks.

1. Kansas State (4-0, 1-0, last week: 4) The Wildcats take over the No. 1 spot and have the best two wins of any team in the Big 12. K-State edged Oklahoma in Norman on Saturday and blew out Miami. When K-State plays like that, it's nearly impossible to beat. Controlled game plan. No big mistakes.

2. West Virginia (3-0, last week: 1) Don't fret, West Virginia. The 'Eers are much flashier than K-State, but are they better? The truth is we have no idea, and we'll find out in the weeks to come. Still, for now, there's no debate: Kansas State has beaten better teams than West Virginia and looked pretty good doing it. WVU is prepping for a hyped home game versus Baylor to start the Big 12 era.

3. Texas (3-0, last week: 3) Texas was idle this week, but the Longhorns get to spend the next week waiting to see which Oklahoma State quarterback they'll see. In the meantime, they've got plenty to work on in Austin. Can David Ash keep it up, and can the defense fix its out-of-character tackling woes?

4. Oklahoma (2-1, 0-1, last week: 2) The overreaction in Oklahoma is on. Yes, Oklahoma didn't look very good. Yes, Landry Jones made a lot of big mistakes. But hey, Kansas State is pretty good, and the Wildcats won by five in a game that came down pretty close to the wire. With a late defensive stop, this could have ended very differently. The mood in Soonerville is somber, but the Big 12 race is still wide open. You can't count OU out because of one game just yet. Like coaches always say: "It's never as good as you think, and it's never as bad as you think." That goes for K-State, too.

5. TCU (3-0, 1-0, last week: 6) Virginia's just OK, but if TCU can fix its red zone turnover issues, it'll be a force. The defense has already exceeded expectations, giving up a garbage-time touchdown as its first of the season. The offense is banged up in the running game, but Brandon Carter is the league's breakout star so far this season. For now, give me the Frogs back over the Bears.

6. Baylor (3-0, last week: 5) You can look at that Monroe win in one of two ways: Did Baylor have any business going down two touchdowns? Were you more impressed by Baylor's poise in the comeback, unfazed by a hyped crowd and a pretty good team? Either way, the Bears are undefeated and we'll get a good idea of just how good they are next week in Morgantown.

7. Oklahoma State (2-1, last week: 7) OSU's already got a loss, and Arizona lost a bit of its sheen with a 49-0 loss at Oregon. That's bad news for the Pokes' fortunes. Still, they get a big chance to get back on the national radar with a prime-time game against Texas this week, the first time Texas has visited Stillwater since 2009.

8. Texas Tech (3-0, last week: 8) Texas Tech blew out three bad teams to start its season. The wins looked good, but we still have no idea how good this team is. The Red Raiders got a week off to prepare for Iowa State, but a win there would be a good start toward proving Tech is back. Tommy Tuberville is 0-2 against the Cyclones, including a 41-7 embarrassment in Lubbock a year ago.

9. Iowa State (3-0, last week: 9) Iowa State is doing it ugly, but 3-0 is 3-0, and that doesn't happen very often in Ames. Iowa State is knocking on the door of the top 25, and gets to host Texas Tech next week, a team it's proven it can beat. Will the Cyclones do it again?

10. Kansas (1-3, 0-1, last week: 10) KU blew yet another fourth-quarter lead, and could still easily be 3-1. As the Big 12 tide rises and the nine teams above the Jayhawks play better and better ball, KU looks like it's spinning its wheels a little bit. Somehow, the gap between KU and the rest of the Big 12 seems to be widening a bit. We'll see in conference play. KU is off this week before traveling to Manhattan for a rivalry game against the red-hot Wildcats.