In this week's Big 12 roundtable, we break down our top 25 Big 12 player ranking from earlier in the week:
What stood out to you most?
Max Olson: We had 16 offensive players in our preseason top 25 Big 12 player rankings and 12 of them ultimately made our end-of-season top 25. You knew there were going to be lots of elite playmakers in the Big 12 this season, and the emergence of Oklahoma's Dede Westbrook and Texas' D'Onta Foreman made the list of stars even more impressive. I don't think we're wrong with our final assessment that eight of the league's 10 best played offense. It was just that kind of a season.
Mitch Sherman: The dominance of two teams. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State players account for 10 of the top 17 spots. Clearly, Bedlam featured the top two teams in the league again this year. But this list accentuates just how dominant they were -- in case you weren't impressed by their 18-point average margin of victory in four wins against the third- and fourth-best teams in the conference.
Jake Trotter: Where's the D? Only two defensive players in the top 11 and none in the top six. Last year was a banner year for defensive players in the Big 12 with the likes of Oklahoma State's Emmanuel Ogbah and Baylor's Andrew Billings. That was not the case this year. If Oklahoma State DT Vincent Taylor goes pro, there won't be a single top 15 player coming back in 2017 from the defensive side.
Who was the toughest omission?
Olson: It wasn't easy to exclude Texas Tech WR Jonathan Giles, who was one of the most productive wideouts in the conference for most of the season after scoring 11 touchdowns over his first seven games. The go-to guy for Patrick Mahomes II had a great breakout season and was one player who merited some serious consideration for a spot in the top 25 yet came up just short.
Sherman: It's gotta be an offensive guy, right? Because, really, the competition is so much greater in the Big 12 on that side of the ball. I'm partial to West Virginia's Shelton Gibson as a fifth wideout among the top 25 players. He led the league and ranked third nationally with a 23.2-yard average on 40 catches. I'm not advocating that Gibson bump teammate Justin Crawford, who landed 25th, but the junior receiver shined in an offense not necessarily geared to his strength.
Trotter: We actually debated the 25th player on this list as much as anything else. We ultimately went with Crawford, which I believe was the right decision. Crawford was a big part of West Virginia's emergence this year, and had some really great games. For me, leaving out Giles and Oklahoma linebacker Jordan Evans were the toughest omissions. They were certainly on the cusp.
What was most surprising?
Olson: Texas LB Malik Jefferson and Iowa State RB Mike Warren were two guys we had very high expectations for going into 2016. Both were top-10 guys in our preseason top 25 player rankings. After sophomore slumps, neither one ended up even making honorable mention All-Big 12 by the league's coaches. Jefferson had some bright moments but struggled with consistency and injuries. Warren wasn't even the Cyclones' leading rusher this year. I definitely did not expect those sophomore slumps.
Sherman: I'm surprised, thinking back to the preseason, to see a defensive player from Kansas on this list. Sophomore defensive end Dorance Armstrong easily deserves the recognition, though, for his 10 sacks and 20 tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Consider that the Jayhawks in 2015, hardly played anything that resembled defense, surrendering 560.8 yards per game. It was much improved this fall, in large part because of Armstrong.
Trotter: I think Max is right. Jefferson was a guy that we collectively voted preseason Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year. I'm not sure he was one of the top 50 or even top 75 players in the league this season.