Two quarterback matchups took the Big 12 by storm in Week 9 .
The first intriguing battle was a matchup of opposites in No. 13 Texas Tech's 34-26 win against No. 22 Arizona. Noah Fifita threw for over 400 yards on the Red Raiders, but it was Thomas Castellanos and the option attack that won the game for Texas Tech.
The second and most surprising duel of signal-callers was in Iowa State's win 51-49 win over No. 24 Oklahoma State. Drew Mestemaker unsurprisingly carved up the the Cyclones' secondary, but Jaylen Raynor finished the night with a season-high 309 yards and three touchdowns through the air, and he added 48 yards and another score on the ground.
Injuries forced changes at quarterback for multiple Big 12 teams in Week 9. Cole Ballard started in place of Isaiah Marshall in Kansas' loss at TCU, and Alonza Barnett III received playing time after Keyone Jenkins suffered an injury in the second half of UCF's loss to Baylor.
Kansas State is in the worst spot of any Big 12 team with quarterback injuries. Starter Avery Johnson is out indefinitely for the Wildcats , and backup Jacob Knuth has been ruled out for the game against Oklahoma State.
Week 10 begins with a late Friday night matchup between TCU and No. 22 Arizona. Noah Fifita has been a commodity for years at Arizona, but Jaden Craig is flying under the Big 12's radar; he's thrown for 2,207 yards through eight games with the Horned Frogs, the third-most in the conference.
Saturday begins with a late-morning local time kickoff for No. 9 BYU and No. 3 Utah. The Holy War once again features a duel between Bear Bachmeier and Devon Dampier, two of the most capable dual-threat starters the Big 12 has to offer.
The nightcap between West Virginia and No. 15 Texas Tech involves a less conventional quarterback duel. As opposed to fielding gunslingers, the Mountaineers and Red Raiders start fast, mobile signal-callers in Michael Hawkins Jr. and Thomas Castellanos.
Below, we power rank the eight best Big 12 quarterbacks ahead of Week 10 of the 2026 college football season.
It's a small sample size, but Castellanos may be the key for Texas Tech's offense going forward. He finished 11-of-24 for 144 yards and two touchdowns against Arizona, but similar to Michael Hawkins Jr. at West Virginia, his ability as a runner takes some of the defense's attention away from J'Koby Williams and Cameron Dickey.
On the note of Hawkins Jr., the Red Raiders host West Virginia this weekend (9:30 p.m. EST, ESPN). The Mountaineers have been suspect against run-heavy offenses, allowing over 200 yards in games against Oklahoma State, Iowa State and Cincinnati.
Oct 30, 2026; Orlando, Florida, USA; Baylor Bears quarterback DJ Lagway (2) throws a pass during the first quarter against the Central Florida Knights at Acrisure Bounce House. Mandatory Credit: Mike Watters-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Maybe it was just an interim bump, but Lagway threw for 319 yards and four touchdowns in Baylor's 41-9 trouncing of UCF. His most impressive throws weren't the touchdowns either; he fit passes into tight coverage to Dre'lon Miller and Jayden McGowan toward the end of the first half, both of which went for gains of over 20 yards.
After two weeks on the road, Baylor returns to McLane Stadium to face Iowa State (Noon EST, FS1). The Cyclones haven't given up fewer than 300 passing yards in a game in over a month, dating back to their 45-42 survival of West Virginia.
Week 9 was a bye for Hawkins Jr. and West Virginia. In the Mountaineers' first eight contests, Hawkins Jr. threw for 1,598 yards, 11 touchdowns and two interceptions and ran for 836 yards and 16 more touchdowns.
West Virginia heads to Texas Tech for its first ranked road test of 2026 (9:30 p.m. EST, ESPN). Aside from their loss at Cincinnati, the Red Raiders have consistently held Big 12 opponents under 100 yards on the ground.
Oct 24, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Houston Cougars quarterback Conner Weigman (1) throws a pass during the fourth quarter against the Utah Utes at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Weigman was one of two idle Big 12 quarterbacks in Week 9. His 2,053 passing yards are the fourth-most in the Big 12, and his 20 touchdown passes slot him behind only Drew Mestemaker in that category.
Houston hosts Cincinnati for its first game of November (3:30 p.m. EST, Fox). The Bearcats couldn't slow down Devon Dampier and Utah last week, allowing over 500 total yards for the third time in Big 12 play.
Bachmeier's best work in BYU's 27-20 win against Arizona State was on its penultimate first half possession. He fit passes through triple coverage twice on the drive: first for a 14-yard pickup from Legend Glasker, and second for a 13-yard touchdown to Kyler Kasper . Incompletions aside, his lone blemish was an interception on the ensuing drive.
The Holy War is the first ranked test for BYU in Big 12 play (Noon EST, ABC). Opposing quarterbacks have been able to air the ball out on the Utes, although some of that is out of necessity because of deficits like the one Cincinnati was in last week.
Utah quarterback Devon Dampier (4) throws pass in the second quarter of the Big 12 game between Cincinnati Bearcats and Utah Utes at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati on Saturday, October 31, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Dampier threw a pick six in the second half against Cincinnati, but Utah held an untouchable 42-6 lead at the time thanks to his work in the first half. He was 15-of-16 passing with two touchdowns at the break, and he added a 59-yard touchdown pass to Hunter Andrews in the second half.
The Utes return to Rice-Eccles Stadium for a ranked matchup with BYU (Noon EST, ABC). The Cougars kept three of their October opponents under 300 yards of offense, but they didn't face an offense with a dual-threat quarterback like Utah.
Mestemaker's only real mistake in Oklahoma State's loss at Iowa State was an interception on a throw across his body where he failed to locate a linebacker reading his eyes. He ended the night with 323 yards and five touchdowns in the air, the last of which gave the Cowboys the lead with less than a minute to play.
Oklahoma State remains on the road for a matchup with Kansas State to kick off November (Noon EST, TNT). The Wildcats faced second-string quarterbacks taking over for benched starters in their last two games, both of which they lost.
Oct 31, 2026; Lubbock, Texas, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Noah Fifita (1) passes against the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the first half at Galaxy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael C. Johnson-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Arizona was over-reliant on Noah Fifita in its loss at Texas Tech. He finished the afternoon with a season-high 417 passing yards; his most impressive throw of the day was an off-script throw down the sideline to Isaiah Mizell which resulted in a 94-yard touchdown pass .
The Wildcats return home for a Friday night bout with TCU (10:15 p.m. EST, ESPN). The Horned Frogs surrendered a season-high 451 yards in their win against Kansas, and they have yet to allow an opposing quarterback to throw for over 300 yards.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/fannation/college/cfb-hq as Big 12 QB Rankings Week 10: Castellanos Joins Top 8 After Defeat of Arizona .
