All the tie-breaker talk in the Big 12 has been about the South, but looky here: The North could wind up in its own tangled mess.</p><p>A three-team tie at the top among Missouri, Nebraska and Kansas would happen if the three teams finish 5-3 in league play, and that occurs if:</p><p>&#8226;Missouri beats Iowa State and loses to Kansas.</p><p>&#8226;Nebraska beats Kansas State and Colorado.</p><p>&#8226;Kansas beats Texas and Missouri.</p><p>It&#8217;s unlikely that the Jayhawks will beat the Longhorns, but it could have happened four years ago when the gap between the teams seemed even wider than now. Remember in 2004 when KU lost a controversial game 27-23, and afterward came coach Mark Mangino&#8217;s famous &#8220;dollar signs&#8221; news conference.</p><p>But if the scenario played out, the three-way deadlock could not be resolved through any of the league&#8217;s competitive tie-breaker channels. That is, the teams would have the same records against each other (1-1), in the division (4-1) and against the three other teams in the North (3-0).</p><p>There is no South opponent common to all three, so it gets thrown into the BCS standings. Highest-rated team goes to the Big 12 title game, and at that point, it probably would be Kansas because the Jayhawks would be coming off two victories pollsters and computers would love.</p><p>There is also a scenario in which Colorado would win out and create a four-way tie at 4-4. The key outcomes for that to happen would be the Buffaloes over Oklahoma State and Nebraska, Kansas over Texas and Missouri and Iowa State over the Tigers.</p><p><hr class="infobox-hr-separator" /> <div class="infobox"> <strong><span class="subhead">Ranking the Big 12</span></strong></p><p><span style="line-height:0"><br clear="all" /></span><table border="0" class="story-table"> <tr class="story-table-even-row"><td><strong>Team</strong></td><td><strong>This week</strong></td><td><strong>Comment</strong></td></tr> <tr class="story-table-odd-row"><td>1. Texas Tech (1)</td><td>Open</td><td>Extra week to prepare for Bradford &amp; Co.</td></tr> <tr class="story-table-even-row"><td>2. Texas (2)</td><td>at Kansas</td><td>Can&#8217;t stub toe here</td></tr> <tr class="story-table-odd-row"><td>3. Oklahoma (4)</td><td>Open</td><td>Extra week to prepare for Harrell &amp; Co.</td></tr> <tr class="story-table-even-row"><td>4. Oklahoma State (3)</td><td>at Colorado</td><td>Thin air won&#8217;t gag Denver-native Robinson</td></tr> <tr class="story-table-odd-row"><td>5. Missouri (5)</td><td>at Iowa State</td><td>Tigers closing in on division</td></tr> <tr class="story-table-even-row"><td>6. Nebraska (7)</td><td>at K-State</td><td>Once the North&#8217;s best rivalry</td></tr> <tr class="story-table-odd-row"><td>7. Kansas (6)</td><td>Texas</td><td>Anything left in KU tank?</td></tr> <tr class="story-table-even-row"><td>8. Baylor (8)</td><td>Texas A&amp;M</td><td>A pecking-order game</td></tr> <tr class="story-table-odd-row"><td>9. Texas A&amp;M (9)</td><td>at Baylor</td><td>Good matchup between young QBs</td></tr> <tr class="story-table-even-row"><td>10. Colorado (10)</td><td>Oklahoma State</td><td>Wounded Cowboys defense seeks redemption</td></tr> <tr class="story-table-odd-row"><td>11. Kansas State (11)</td><td>Nebraska</td><td>How much red in the stadium?</td></tr> <tr class="story-table-even-row"><td>12. Iowa State (12)</td><td>Missouri</td><td>Cyclones have given Tigers trouble in Ames</td></tr> </table> Last week&#8217;s rankings are in parentheses</p><p></div> <hr class="infobox-hr-separator" /> <div class="infobox"> <strong><span class="subhead">Two story lines</span></strong></p><p>&#8226;<strong>Missouri can clinch.</strong></p><p>By the time Missouri kicks off Saturday at Iowa State, the Tigers will know if they can clinch the North division with a victory. A Texas victory over Kansas puts Mizzou in the celebration mode with a triumph over the Cyclones.</p><p>&#8226;<strong>Seventy something.</strong></p><p>The team that put 73 on Kansas State last season, Nebraska, visits Manhattan, and the Wildcats hope to being the same revenge motive into this game that the Cornhuskers did last week. Nebraska beat Kansas 45-35 a year after the Jayhawks hung 76 on the Huskers.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Two questions</span></strong></p><p>&#8226;<strong>Any change in the bowl projections?</strong></p><p>Not really. The top four South teams still get the two BCS bowls (eliminate Oklahoma State from that possibility for now), Cotton and Holiday. Put Missouri in the Alamo, Nebraska in the Sun and Kansas in the Insight. If Kansas State or Colorado becomes eligible, the Independence is next.</p><p>&#8226;<strong>Where does Colorado coach Dan Hawkins, who has a vote in the </strong><em>USA Today </em><strong>coaches poll, list Saturday&#8217;s opponent Oklahoma State?</strong></p><p>He didn&#8217;t specify, but the Cowboys are getting plenty of love from coach Dan.</p><p>&#8220;I continue to vote them high,&#8221; Hawkins said. &#8220;They&#8217;re probably a top-five team.&#8221;</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Two quotes</span></strong></p><p>&#8226;&#8220;I think he&#8217;s flown under the radar some. He hasn&#8217;t gotten all the credit he deserves. It&#8217;s pretty obvious he&#8217;s a heck of a player and he can hold his own against any quarterback in this conference.&#8221;</p><p>| Nebraska coach Bo Pelini on his own Joe Ganz</p><p>&#8226;&#8220;It hurts. It hurts like hell. It&#8217;s the one thing we wanted to change this year. We wanted to go to a bowl.&#8221;</p><p>| Baylor safety Jordan Lake after the Bears&#8217; loss to Texas eliminated them from bowl contention</p><p></div>