IRVING, Texas -- Oklahoma has been picked to win its eighth Big 12 championship in the 2012 Big 12 Football Preseason Poll, voted on by media representatives who cover the Conference.
Thursday's announcement from the conference marks the third straight year that OU has been tabbed as the preseason favorite.
The Sooners received 32 of 41 first-place votes and totaled 396 points. West Virginia was chosen second with 339 points and garnered seven first-place tallies. Texas was picked third, followed by Oklahoma State in fourth.
TCU and Kansas State each received a first-place vote and finished fifth and sixth, respectively. Baylor, Iowa State, Texas Tech and Kansas rounded out the poll.
West Virginia and TCU will begin their inaugural season of Big 12 competition after joining the league on July 1. Both won their previous conferences' titles last year (West Virginia in the Big East and TCU in the Mountain West).
Oklahoma leads the Big 12 with its seven Conference championships (2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010) while Texas is the next closest with three Big 12 crowns.
Prior to the current format of the Big 12, the Sooners were picked first in the South division eight times in previous media preseason polls and finished the season at the top in six of those years.
2012 Big 12 Football Media Preseason Poll1. Oklahoma (32) 396
2. West Virginia (7) 339
3. Texas 291
4. Oklahoma State 267
5. TCU (1) 260
6. Kansas State (1) 257
7. Baylor 162
8. Iowa State 121
9. Texas Tech 116
10. Kansas 46
first-place votes in parentheses
/// SoonerSports PR