Oklahoma
What are realistic expectations for Oklahoma Sooners in 2023?
Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Lastly, let’s look at the schedule. I keep hearing people talk about how poor the schedule is on paper. While I agree, on paper, it is poor. However, people forget how meaningless preseason polls are. We know some teams will exceed expectations, and others won’t live up to them.
Look at last season, Baylor Bears was picked to win the Big 12 in the preseason, they went 6-7. TCU Horned Frogs were picked to finish 7th, and they went 13-2 and played for a national championship. Oklahoma was picked second and went 6-7, and the Kansas State Wildcats were picked fifth, went 10-4, and won the conference.
The point is you just never know how teams are going to finish. So looking at it as an “easy schedule” in August doesn’t make sense.
What if the UCF Knights, BYU Cougars, Kansas Jayhawks, Oklahoma State Cowboys or Cincinnati Bearcats surprise people and become a real threat?
Strength of schedule is something to look at at the end of the season, not at the beginning. It’s not until December that we understand how good teams are.