MNC Wednesday is in flux right now, of course, after we did our Mythical National Championship series and our Heisman Trophy review series. We’ve been dabbling here and there, but our frustration with the sport’s corruption has all but done us in on the subject matter. Either way, we will tackle this topic today to close the circle on the sequence of short pieces we did earlier and way back when. Welcome to the Big XII!

This is a conference that dates back to 1907, really, when the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association was formed. Eventually, it morphed into the Big Six (1928), the Big Seven (1948), the Big Eight (1960), and then the Big XII (1996). That is quite an evolution, and considering the conference will have 16 teams in 2024, maybe another name change is in order. Only time will tell, but these are its best seasons …

10. 1968

Kansas (of all teams) and Oklahoma tied for the conference title in this season, with the No. 6 Jayhawks losing to No. 3 Penn State in the Orange Bowl by 1 point—and the No. 10 Sooners relegated to the Bluebonnet Bowl, where they lost to No. 20 SMU by a single point as well. The OU motivation must have been low, you know? Missouri joined the bowl parade with a 25-point win over Alabama in the Gator!

9. 2011

This is the only Big XII season on the list; all the other years are Big Eight. Oklahoma State won the conference, but the Cowboys were shafted out of the BCS Championship Game via SEC corruption. They went on to beat Stanford in the Orange Bowl, nonetheless. In total, eight schools reached bowl games, with No. 11 Kansas State reaching the Cotton Bowl, albeit losing. Only 2 teams stayed home (that’s not a typo).

8. 1974

Oklahoma was named the Associated Press MNC, although they were on probation and didn’t play in a bowl game. The Sooners still “won” the conference title, however. No. 8 Nebraska went to the Orange Bowl instead and beat Florida—and dropping in the AP rankings to No. 9 afterward. The Cowboys were the only other school to play in a bowl game, but the overall conference SRS ranking was No. 2 with the No. 1 SOS.

7. 1972

The 1970s were really the heyday of the conference, as we move through this list. Five teams made a bowl game, and three teams finished in the AP Top 16: Oklahoma (2), Nebraska (4), and Colorado (16). The Sooners beat Penn State in the Sugar Bowl, and the Cornhuskers crushed Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl. The Buffaloes, along with Iowa State and Missouri, lost a bowl game, however. Still, an impressive year.

6. 1975

Oklahoma once again won the AP MNC, but it was off probation this time! The No. 3 Sooners beat the No. 5 Michigan Wolverines in the Orange Bowl and rose to No. 1 after the bowl season. Meanwhile, Nebraska lost to Arizona State in the Fiesta Bowl to drop to No. 9 overall, and the Buffaloes dropped to No. 16 after losing the Bluebonnet Bowl to Texas. The only other bowl team was Kansas, which lost the Sun Bowl to Pittsburgh.

5. 1969

Mizzou and Nebraska tied for the conference title, with Colorado joining the Tigers and the Huskers in the bowl parade. Overall, the Big Eight was the top-rated conference in the SRS rankings, thanks to the No. 1 SOS. The Tigers, though, lost the Orange to Penn State, while the Huskers beat Georgia in the Sun, and the Buffaloes beat Alabama in the Liberty. Sooners quarterback Steve Owens undeservedly won the Heisman.

4. 1971

We’re not sure how this season is not atop the list: Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Colorado finished 1-2-3 in the AP poll at the end of the season—an incredible feat, period. Huskers QB Jerry Tagge should have won the Heisman, too, that’s for sure. Nebraska won the Orange; Oklahoma won the Sugar; Colorado won the Bluebonnet. Those schools were joined in bowl season by Iowa State, which lost the Sun. But … hot damn!

3. 1970

Nebraska won the conference championship again; the Huskers also won the AP MNC, even though we disagree with that. Meanwhile, the Sooners tied Alabama in the Bluebonnet Bowl, and Colorado lost the Liberty Bowl. Overall, the conference was No. 1 in the SRS rankings, but the No. 2 SOS factored into our decision to award the MNC to another school. Half the conference finished under .500 on the year. Odd.

2. 1976

A three-way tie atop the standings pushes this season up on our list; Colorado, Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State were the co-champs. Nebraska joined the top trio in bowl season: the Buffs lost the Orange; the Sooners won the Fiesta; the Cowboys won the Tangerine. The Huskers won the Bluebonnet; all four teams finished in the Top 16—with Iowa State also finishing in the Top 20. Only Kansas State had a losing year.

1. 1973

Probation-punished Oklahoma won the conference again, and the Sooners were banned from the postseason again. Three other schools played in bowl games: Nebraska won the Cotton; Missouri won the Sun; Kansas lost the Liberty. The Big Eight was No. 1 in the SRS rankings overall, playing the No. 1 SOS in the process. The league’s .610 winning percentage was bolstered by every team winning at least 4 games.