Big 12 thankful for Tulane’s stumble against Memphis

The sighs of relief registered in the hours after a Thanksgiving feast in locales such as Tempe, Ames, Provo, the Little Apple and Boulder were the result of double-digit underdog Memphis picking up a double-digit victory (34-24) at Tulane on Thursday night .

With the Green Wave having squandered its chance to make the playoffs, what happens next week at home or at West Point against Army in the American Conference championship game — the Black Knights will host if they get past UTSA on Saturday — will have no impact on the common fisheries policy. As no. 17 ranked Tulane ahead of Iowa State, BYU, Kansas State and Colorado. Only no. 16 at Arizona State was ahead of Jon Sumrall’s team. That, of course, will change when Tuesday night’s penultimate playoff standings.

Now, the Big 12 might not have a team in the top 12 in the rankings when all is said and done after next week’s championship games. It doesn’t matter, as the conference champion would be ranked No. 12 with Tulane out of the picture.

With the chances of the Green Wave joining Boise State’s No. 11 in having two Group of Five championships that make the playoffs hot as a roast turkey, the 12 slept soundly Thursday night knowing they have a clear path to the playoffs instead of being left out. (Remember, it’s the five highest-ranked conference champions making the field. Not the highest-ranked Power Four conference champions plus one from the Group of Five.)

Nine teams still have a chance to win the Big 12. Here’s a look at the five that entered the holiday weekend, ranked in the CFP top 25.

No. 16 Arizona State (9-2/6-2 Big 12) | at Arizona (4-7/2-6 Big 12) | Saturday 3:30 ET | FOX

The Sun Devils are in the driver’s seat. Defeat Arizona in the Territorial Cup game on Saturday and they’ll head to Arlington for the Big 12 Championship. Lose and they could still reach the conference title game, but would need help that would come from the crowd tiebreaker scenarios. Kenny Dillingham’s team shot up five spots after holding on against BYU last week.

No. 18 Iowa State (9-2/6-2 Big 12) | vs. no. 24 Kansas State (8-3/5-3 Big 12) | Saturday 7:30 ET | FOX

The Cyclones are in a similar position to Arizona State, in that a win over No. 24 Kansas State in “Farmageddon” means a berth in Arlington. Lose, and there’s still a chance to play for the conference title given the multiple scenarios mentioned above with the Sun Devils. Iowa State was unranked after back-to-back losses to Texas Tech and at Kansas. They have bounced back with wins against Cincinnati and at Utah.

No. 19 BYU (9-2/6-2 Big 12) vs. Houston (4-7/3-5 Big 12) | Saturday 10:15 a.m. ET | ESPN

The Cougars were 9-0 and the no. 6 in the CFP before plummeting 13 spots after losing at home to Kansas and Arizona State. BYU needs to defeat visiting Houston on Saturday and otherwise hope for a lucky development elsewhere. Especially losses to the teams ahead of them, Arizona State and Iowa State.

No. 24 Kansas State (8-3/5-3 Big 12) at No. 18 Iowa State (9-2/6-2 Big 12) | Saturday 7:30 ET | FOX

The Wildcats kept their championship hopes alive by defeating Cincinnati last week. The win followed back-to-back losses at Houston and against visiting Arizona State. At least Kansas State is playing a ranked team Saturday. That could help, as a win over the Cyclones and losses to three of the four two-loss teams in the conference could pave the way.

No. 25 Colorado (8-3/6-2 Big 12) vs. Oklahoma State (3-8/0-8 Big 12) | Friday noon ET | ABC

The Buffaloes overcame a midseason loss to Kansas State by rattling off four straight wins to climb to the No. 16 and solid among the playoff bubble teams. A loss last week at Kansas nearly burst that bubble. Still, they have a chance to go to Arlington if they take care of business at home against an Oklahoma State team that is winless in conference play and receiving help in the form of two losses among Arizona State, Iowa State and BYU.