1. NIJEL: It's a surprise at this point if he misses a shot in the first half. He owns that frame of basketball games. Nijel Pack is in flamethrower mode and scorching hot and he's carried the team on his back and onto the bubble.

2. TECH: The environment in Lubbock when they welcomed Chris Beard back to the arena with a loss was marvelous. Well done, Red Raiders.

3. PARRISH: The blueshirt tag was stripped and he's just a regular signee for Kansas State. The Olathe North athlete received heavy interest late from a variety of Power Five programs.

4. THAD WARD: He's the new K-State receivers coach. Thad Ward is back in the Power Five.

5. BEEBE FAMILY: A second Beebe son has committed to the Wildcats. Camden Beebe was the first of his class to do so, just like his older brother Cooper Beebe.

1. WVU: That's seven losses in a row for the Mountaineers. Woof.

2. HARSIN: The situation at Auburn is beginning to look untenable. He's been at odds with the administration a few different times, and the recent baggage applies to his personal life, though I am not sure it has been confirmed to any extent. Bryan Harsin also already had to fire a coordinator just a month after hiring him as well.

3. HARBAUGH: The Michigan head coach may be returning to Ann Arbor after saying no to the Minnesota Vikings, but Jim Harbaugh now has to replace both of his coordinators.

4. CYCLONES: It was a rough week for TJ Otzelberger and Iowa State. They're beginning to trend a bit downward. They're now 3-7 in the conference and have lost four of their last five within the league. That included being knocked off at home by Kansas without Ochai Agbaji and being blown out by Texas in Austin. They just can't score. They've scored 60 points or less four times against Big 12 opponents.

5. OKLAHOMA FOOTBALL: Not that it was still up in the air, but Caleb Williams is officially gone and headed to USC and remain with head coach Lincoln Riley. The knife keeps getting twisted on the Sooners. They'll still have enough talent to win the Big 12 in perhaps their final year as a member of the conference, but it will be the toughest odds they've faced in a while. Could they go two years in a row without a trip to Arlington?

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