SB Nation Big 12 Roundtable - 2009 Season - Week 4

This is the fourth installment of the 2009 Big 12 Roundtable, a weekly feature during the season. Each week, an SB Nation Big 12 blogger will host the Roundtable and submit a series of questions to all Big 12 bloggers. This week, the Roundtable is being hosted by Rock M Nation. Listed below are I Am The 12th Man's answers.

1. The game between Texas Tech and texas got the Big 12 in the national eye early in the season. If your team was approached with this opportunity (or for Tech and texas, approached again), would you accept and reap the benefits of the exposure, or decline because of the potential pitfalls of playing a conference foe so early in the season?

Honestly, it depends on who the opponent is and where the game would be played. If we were approached to play Oklahoma early in the season at Kyle Field, I would jump all over it. Having the Oklahoma game permanently scheduled in November puts us at a disadvantage in scheduling, in my opinion, and having them early in the season would fix that issue. If we played Oklahoma in September, the November gauntlet we normally run of Oklahoma - another opponent - then texas would be broken up by getting to play a non-conference game against a team we should beat. Also, the best time to play Oklahoma is early in the season (ask BYU and TCU) before they've figured out what they have.

The national exposure isn't as much of an issue, because we'll get national television coverage for playing in the Southwest Classic against Arkansas; the national media loves BCS Conference vs. BCS Conference non-conference games. If the opponent was Oklahoma State or Baylor, I'd say no to the game; there is nothing to gain from playing them early. If Texas Tech was the opponent, I'd have to think about it. I would also be more amenable to playing in an early conference game in a year where we have an upperclassmen-laden squad; wins against a noted conference opponent like Oklahoma and then a win over Arkansas in Jerryworld would push us to the forefront in the national championship race.

2. Some of the Big 12 teams are starting to become known quantities, but there are still a few teams that most of us can't quite measure. Which team in the Big 12 do you consider the biggest enigma right now?

As strange as it sounds, the biggest enigma in the conference may be Colorado. Are they the two who were drilled in two straight games against Colorado State and Toledo? Or are they the team that may be figuring things out after shutting out Wyoming, 24-0? I think Colorado's defense will be a weak spot because of poor safety play, but if they can get their running game going (45 carries for 151 yds isn't going to cut it), they could become a decent team.

3. What did you learn about your team in Week 3, and what questions has your team failed to answer at this point of the season?

To bastardize Dennis Green, "We are who we thought we were." We have a lot of skill position talent, especially on offense, and we are questionable on the offensive line. The biggest question for us at this point in the season is who will man the left tackle position for us going forward. This is a huge question mark, because the left tackle protects Jerrod Johnson's blindside, and in the no-huddle spread we are currently running, protecting the quarterback is everything.

4. There aren't exactly a whole lot of marquee matchups in Week 4. Which Big 12 game this week not involving your team piques your interest the most?

Actually, I disagree with this premise, as I think Kansas-Southern Mississippi, Missouri-Nevada, and Texas Tech @ Houston all qualify as marquee matchups. I think the Texas Tech-Houston game is especially interesting, because it is an unranked Tech going to play at a ranked Houston team. If Tech wins, technically it should be considered an upset, because it is a ranked team losing to an unranked team. However, since it is BCS vs. non-BCS, the media and punditry may not see it that way. Just watching the media reaction to this game will be interesting. This will be another opportunity for Houston's Case Keenum to make his case for the Heisman. Any chance to see former A&M offensive coordinator Kevin Sumlin in action is a bonus, too.

Looking around the country, I think the game most Big 12 fans need to pay attention to is Miami-Virginia Tech. Miami plays Oklahoma in two weeks, and Oklahoma plays texas two weeks after that, so this game could have an effect on who is ranked where when the BCS rankings begin. If Miami stays undefeated, they will have beaten a ranked Florida State team, a ranked Georgia Tech team, and then a ranked Virginia Tech team to begin the season. Currently sitting at #9 in the AP Poll, this should push Miami into the top 5. If they are able to knock off Oklahoma, they will have a clear claim to being ranked one of the top 2 teams in the nation, just on resume alone. With the ACC not exactly lighting the world on fire this year, Miami could conceivably go undefeated, and push their way intot he national title game, knocking texas or someone else out of the conversation. Also, Miami's win over Oklahoma would mean a lower-ranked OU team would be playing texas on October 17, which ultimately would hurt texas' strength of schedule. With no noteworthy opponents on their non-conference schedule to boost their argument, texas could be on the outside looking in whe the BCS rankings come out. Ultimatel,y this is a really convoluted way of explaining why texas fans should be rooting for the Hokies this Saturday.

5. Give us your Offensive Player of the Week, Defensive Player of the Week, and Surprise (team, individual, coaching decision, etc. Whatever you want it to be...) of the Week.

Offensive Player of the Week: Uzoma Nwachukwu, WR, Texas A&M

Four touches (three receptions, one carry), four touchdowns. One school record. Enough said.

Defensive Player of the Week: Emmanuel Acho, LB, texas

Texas Tech's offense preys on opposing LBs, forcing them to cover WRs in the flat and short middle. To make a difference against Tech as a linebacker is very difficult, unless you are just exceptional in coverage. One of the other ways to make a difference as a linebacker when playing Tech is to keep the balls out of their offense's hands. Acho only had 4 tackles and 1.5 TFL on the game, but more importantly, he forced two fumbles, both of which were recovered by texas. He took the ball out of Tech's hands twice, and that made a difference in the game, especially a game that was a hotly-contested as Tech-texas was last Saturday. For this, Acho is my Defensive Player of the Week.

Surprise coaching decision: Tech's Ruffin McNeill did a masterful job of mixing up his defensive fronts against texas. Playing with virtually no depth at defensive end, McNeill rotated tackles, linebackers, cheerleaders, his grandmother, anyone he could get on the field into the end position to get pressure on texas QB Colt McCoy. This strategy was effective, as McCoy had only 205 yds passing, and threw two interceptions on the night. The rotation actually confused the texas offensive line early, as they had no idea who was coming off the edge from play to play, which just heightened the effectiveness of the scheme. Trying to get pressure out of necessity, McNeill formed a multiple-front attack that kept the texas offensive line on their heels and ineffective most of the night. McNeill's creativity is the reason he gets my Coaching Decision of the Week.

6. Power Poll! Rank the teams from 1-12 based on which team would win on a neutral field.

1. texas longhorns
2. Missouri Tigers
3. Oklahoma Sooners
4. Oklahoma St Cowboys
5. Texas Tech Red Raiders
6. Nebraska Cornhuskers
7. Kansas Jayhawks
8. Texas A&M Aggies
9. Baylor Bears
10. Iowa St Cyclones
11. Kansas St Wildcats
12. Colorado Buffaloes