Another exciting season of Big 12 Football is upon us, and with that comes a preview that will reveal a fairly balanced conference this season, with two teams appearing to stand head and shoulders above the rest.

NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS

The defending National Champion Nebraska Cornhuskers will once again be very solid. Although the Huskers did lose some key personnel, including QB Scott Frost, RB Ahman Green, and DE Grant Wistrom, the expression “Nebraska doesn’t rebuild, it reloads” looks to be fitting once again.

They replace Frost with the incredibly versatile and athletic Bobby Newcombe. RB DeAngelo Evans, who missed last year with an injury, is hoping to regain the form he showed in his freshman season, when he rushed for over 1,000 yards.

Meanwhile, the offensive line lost four of the five starters from last year. However, before you Husker bashers get too happy, realize that the newcomers average 6’3 and 300 pounds.

On defense, the story is much the same as NU suffered some losses, but figures again to be near the top of the nation.

KANSAS STATE WILDCATS

A new force that has recently emerged in the Big 12 is the Kansas State Wildcats. The Wildcats, under long-time Iowa assistant coach Bill Snyder, have seen a turnaround of epic proportions in the program.

Snyder’s teams have gone from 1-10 in his initial campaign in 1989 to 7-4 two years later and have seen five consecutive years with at least nine wins and a bowl appearance.

The Wildcats believe that this could be their year to shine. The fate of KSU rests primarily on the shoulders of one man: QB Michael Bishop. The versatile signal-caller leads an experienced squad that has nine starters back on both sides of the ball returning as well as a highly regarded recruiting class making its way to Manhattan.

Bishop and Running Back Eric Hickson, who rushed for 750 yards, lead the offense, while 1st team all Big 12 Linebackers Jeff Kelly and Mark Simoneau return to spearhead the Wildcat efforts on the defensive side of the ball.

MISSOURI TIGERS

After the top two spots in the conference’s North division, there is a noticeable drop-off, although there are some quality teams. The “second division” figures to be lead by the Missouri Tigers, who feature another multi-talented QB in Senior Corby Jones.

Jones was named 1st team all-Big 12 after finishing 2nd in the conference in both passing efficiency and total offense. Jones also has his two leading weapons, senior TE Eddie Brooks and junior WR Kent Layman, back.

Defensively, however, Missouri was 9th in the Big 12 in defense and lost five of their 11 starters.

COLORADO BUFFALOES

The Colorado Buffaloes’ swift fall from grace under Rick Neuheisel looks to continue as even the QB situation, formerly a Colorado trademark, is up in the air.

Jeremy Weisinger figures to battle with Adam Bledsoe for the top spot. Whoever ends up piloting the Buffs will be happy to have big play WR’s Darrin Chiaverni and Marcus Stiggers to throw the ball to.

The Buffs, who finished 6th in the conference in defense, will have five starters back, including 3rd team all-Big 12 DE Hannibal Navies.

KANSAS JAYHAWKS

The Jayhawks, under second year coach Terry Allen, hope to avoid the bad finish that plagued them a year ago. They started out strong at 3-0, but finished the year a disappointing 2-6.

The Hawks return all 11 starters on offense, the only team in the conference to do so. The stars there figure to be QB Zac Wegner and RB David Winbush.

Defensively, KU returns only four of the 11 starters, and there they will almost certainly struggle.

IOWA STATE CYCLONES

The Iowa State squad looks to be improved under 4th year coach Dan McCarney.

The Cyclones will be led on offense by QB Todd Bandhauer, who is coming off the 2nd best single season performance in ISU history, and Darren Davis, who rushed for over 1,000 yards in an injury-plagued season.

It was on defense that Iowa State had the majority of its problems last year, and this unit should be improved. The combination of additional experience and junior college transfers should lead to better results.

TEXAS LONGHORNS

The South Division of the Big 12 resembles the North in one key way. There are two teams that will compete for the title, while the others will look to come out of the campaign with their heads above water, and hopefully in line for a bowl bid.

The favorite of this half of the conference figures to be the Longhorns of Texas, despite their 4-7 season a year ago.

Heisman Trophy candidate Ricky Williams surprised and elated ‘Horns fans by electing to stay for his senior season. The big, bruising RB led the nation in rushing and figures to do the same this year.

Defensively, Texas returns nine of 11 starters to a unit that really struggled last year, finishing 10th in the conference. Also, Texas has a new lease on life with the hiring of highly regarded coach Mack Brown, formerly of North Carolina.

TEXAS A&M AGGIES

Texas A&M is looking to repeat as champions of the South division, and they are once again looking solid.

They return eight starters to an offense that was ranked 2nd in the league. The leaders on “O” include QB Branndon Stewart and RB’s Dante Hall and Sirr Parker.

The Aggie defense was also good last year, finishing 4th in the Big 12. They return LB Dat Nguyen, who is a candidate for the Butkus Award, annually given out to the nation’s top linebacker. With a solid overall club, the Aggies could definitely contend for the title.

OKLAHOMA STATE COWBOYS

Oklahoma State was the surprise team of the Big 12 last year, going 8-4 and heading to the Alamo Bowl

The Cowboys have 16 starters returning, including 1997’s Freshman of the Year, QB Tony Lindsay. He has plenty of weapons around, including the top five returning rushers and five of the top six receivers.

The defense has eight starters back, with the strengths being the linebackers and the weakness coming in the inexperienced secondary.

OKLAHOMA SOONERS

Oklahoma looks to return to past glory under coach John Blake.

They are restoring their past in one way by going back to the option attack, which will be led by QB Brandon Daniels. Demond Parker will combine with Daniels to give the Sooners a vaunted running attack.

Defensively, the Sooners will most likely struggle, as they finished 8th last year and are implementing an entirely new scheme.

TEXAS TECH RED RAIDERS

Texas Tech is dealing with a lot of question marks but should again field a competitive team.

For the first time in four years, the Red Raiders will not have Zebby Lethridge as their starting QB. Instead, they will go with junior Rob Peters, who saw backup action in a number of games last year.

Another Ricky Williams was a solid runner last year, and this one totes the rock for the Red Raiders. Williams rushed for 894 yards in replacing Byron Hanspard.

The defense, which gave up the fewest points in the league last year, returns 5 starters and looks to dominate again.

BAYLOR BEARS

Second-year coach Dave Roberts is looking for a big improvement from his squad that last year had a record of 2-9. However, don’t count on a big season from the Bears this year, as Roberts has already had to suspend four key players from last year. They also don’t have an established man behind center.

Combined with a defense that is currently in a state of flux and a tough non-conference schedule that includes NC State and Notre Dame, this year could be a long one for the Bears and their fans.

It should be a fun year to be a Big 12 football fan. Both the North and South divisions of the conference will be fought out by heavyweights, while bowl aspirations abound throughout the conference. Let the games begin!