Oklahoma State fans cheer next to Oklahoma fans during a Bedlam college football game between the Oklahoma State University Cowboys (OSU) and the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla., Saturday, Nov. 4, 2023.

The Big 12 clarified its tiebreaker rules Tuesday, to the delight of many Oklahoma State fans. Most Sooner fans didn’t care for it. (Sarah Phipps/The Oklahoman/ USA TODAY Network)

What they’re saying about the Big 12 football tiebreaker decision

What they’re saying about the Big 12 football tiebreaker decision

Some interpret this as the Big 12’s latest attempt to sabotage OU’s final season in the conference. Others say it was the fair thing to do. The opinions tend to (surprise) break along Bedlam lines.

Ben Hutchens

By Ben Hutchens

| Nov 15, 2023, 11:17am CST

Ben Hutchens

By Ben Hutchens

Nov 15, 2023, 11:17am CST

The Big 12 clarified its tiebreaker proceedings on Tuesday, as Sellout Crowd’s Berry Tramel first reported.  

Now, if Oklahoma State, Kansas State and Oklahoma are tied for second at the end of the season, it’s clear that the Cowboys would reach the Big 12 Championship game on the strength of their victories over the Sooners and Wildcats.

The “multiple-team ties” section of the conference tiebreaker procedures is worded so awkwardly that it leaves open to interpretation whether the fact OU and Kansas State haven’t played means a potential OSU-OU-KSU tie would be broken by each team’s record against the next highest-placed common opponent.

If all three win the remainder of their games, that opponent could be Iowa State, which KSU would have beaten, OU defeated on Sept. 30 and OSU lost to on Sept. 23 in Ames.

Based on the reaction on social media, some fans interpret this as the Big 12’s latest attempt to sabotage OU’s final season in the conference while others say it was the fair thing to do. Here is a sampling of the reaction:

 

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Ben Hutchens and his twin brother Sam cover Oklahoma State for the Sellout Crowd. After a decade of living in the state, Ben finally feels justified in calling himself an Oklahoman. It is in Oklahoma where he turned an obsession with sports into a career. He collected bylines on all 16 Oklahoma State varsity sports during his time as a student writing for The O’Colly. He interned at the Stillwater News Press and covered high school football for the Tulsa World. Ben has won some storytelling awards but doesn’t remember them nearly as well as the people who have been impacted by his stories. You can reach him at [email protected] and continue the dialogue @Ben Hutchens_ on social media.

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