ZouDave's official picks for the Big 12 season

I've done fairly well with my picks over the last 2 seasons, but I think part of that is because the last 2 seasons have been pretty easy to pick.  I got the order of the Big XII North exactly right last year, and only had Texas and Texas Tech transposed in the South last year so I lost that one by tie-breaker (I did correctly pick Tech to beat Texas, at least).

So, to officially put myself up against the likes of Phil Steele, here's how I see the Big XII season going (after the jump, of course).

Big XII North

1. kansas (9-3, 5-3)
2. Missouri (9-3, 5-3)
3. Nebraska (7-5, 4-4)
4. Kansas State (6-6, 3-5)
5. Colorado (5-7, 2-6)
6. Iowa State (3-9, 0-8)

Big XII South

1. Oklahoma (12-0, 8-0)
2. Texas (11-1, 7-1)
3. Oklahoma State (10-2, 6-2)
4. Texas Tech (8-4, 4-4)
5. Baylor (7-5, 3-5)
6. Texas A&M (4-8, 1-7)

I feel violently ill after officially putting this in writing, as I'm picking kansas to beat Missouri and win the North.  This will be their first North title and the first time that Mangino has ever finished ahead of Missouri in the standings.  I am going to puke.

I don't really think I believe Oklahoma is a 12-0 type of team, but I just don't see them losing at home to OSU and I don't see them losing 2 in a row to Texas.  I certainly don't see any other B12 teams beating them.  So, there you go.  I think Oklahoma will rail kansas in the B12 Championship Game and get yet another shot at a BCS title.

Texas will once again get an at-large bid into a BCS bowl, deservedly so.  OSU will show well in the Cotton Bowl, and kansas fans will scream bloody murder that they've been skipped for the Cotton despite winning their division.  The Holiday Bowl will snag kansas.  The Gator Bowl has taken B12 teams 2 years in a row (Texas Tech and Nebraska) and will likely be passing on the B12 this year, so the Sun Bowl will be taking a B12 team this year.  The last B12 team to play in the Sun Bowl was Missouri in 2006, and they will have the choice of selecting us or taking Texas Tech.  Texas Tech is located about 800 miles closer to El Paso, and a bowl game in Texas would be quite stupid to pass on a Texas team so expect the Sun Bowl to jump on the Red Raiders.  The Alamo Bowl is unlikely to take Missouri 2 seasons in a row, so they'll select Nebraska.  That means the 9-3 Missouri Tigers will fall all the way to the Insight Bowl and face someone like Wisconsin.  The Big XII has been pretty dominant in Insight Bowl history, going 8-3 in our appearances (including a Missouri win over West Virginia in 1998), and this will be a good example of why because we're likely sending a 9-3 team to face a middle-of-the-road Big Ten team.

I will expect Missouri to beat our Big Ten opponent in the Insight Bowl to grab our 3rd consecutive 10-win season.