Texas Football: 5 overreactions from nailbiting win over the stingy Baylor Bears

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AUSTIN, TX – OCTOBER 13: Collin Johnson #9 of the Texas Longhorns and Breckyn Hager #44 celebrate after the game against the Baylor Bears at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

1. Big 12 is now the Longhorns for the taking

In what amounted to be the most upset-filled week of the 2018 campaign so far, Texas football survived a scare from an in-state conference rival in Baylor. Yet, the teams that fell around the Horns helped make a jump in the AP Poll to No. 7. A loss could’ve dropped Texas out of the top 15, or even the top 20.

A few key losses for other top 10 teams included the West Virginia Mountaineers, Penn State Nittany Lions, Washington Huskies, and Georgia Bulldogs. West Virginia fell short against a resurgent Iowa State Cyclones at a dangerous place to play in Jack Trice Stadium in Ames. Previously, West Virginia was the top ranked team nationally out of the Big 12.

Meanwhile, Georgia was upended by the LSU Tigers in a dominant effort at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge. LSU did jump the Horns in the AP Poll even though Georgia dropped below both teams. That offset any gain the Horns would’ve had in the rankings as a result. Another impactful game where a team surpassed the Horns in the rankings was the No. 6 Michigan Wolverines thoroughly handling the No. 23 Wisconsin Badgers at home.

Next. Midseason report card at every position for the Longhorns. dark

Oklahoma is still hanging tough around Texas, and a rematch of the Red River Showdown looks likely at this point with both teams now ranked in the top 10. With the Texas win over Oklahoma in Week 6, it owns the edge in terms of the favorite to win the Big 12 now. A rematch would be great for the Big 12 given both Texas and Oklahoma win out this year.

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