The Big 12 has developed a reputation based on its talented offenses with several teams that are absolutely loaded on that side of the football. Baker Mayfield led Oklahoma to a Big 12 championship and a spot in the college football playoff and a big part of his success was the talented cast of wide receivers he had at his disposal. The Sooners lost their No. 1 wide receiver from a year ago in Sterling Shepard but it shouldn’t be a surprise that they are still represented on this list. Not only has Shepard moved up to the NFL, so did Josh Doctson (TCU) and Corey Coleman (Baylor), illustrating just how productive this conference has been at churning out NFL pass catchers. Here is a look at the best wide receivers in the Big 12 heading in to the 2016 college football season.
James Washington
Oklahoma State Cowboys
Washington broke out with a pair of monster performances in 2015, recording four catches for 200 yards and two touchdowns in a win over Texas Tech and then registering five catches for 184 yards and three touchdowns in a win over TCU the following week. The 6’1’’, 205-pound receiver finished his sophomore season with 81 catches for 1,543 yards and 16 scores and there is no doubt he has the potential to top those numbers in 2016. Remember that the Pokes quarterback situation was a little bit unsettled to start the year, so he didn’t have a chance to build chemistry until later. That won’t be the case this year as he’s had a full offseason to get tight with Mason Rudolph.
Washington has the elite playmaking skills to be a top-10 receiver. His production in the Oklahoma State offense could elevate him in to the conversation for the Biletnikoff Award as one of the nation’s best receivers this coming season.
K.D. Cannon
Baylor Bears
Cannon will have the opportunity to be the face of “WRU” at Baylor this season where he will showcase his elite combination of speed and elusiveness as the top deep threat in the Bears’ offense. The 6’0’’, 180-pound Cannon is an absolute burner and his numbers should improve with a healthy Seth Russell under quarterback. Remember that he too had to deal with a quarterback change midseason. Several Baylor quarterbacks got hurt, which forced the team deep into their depth charts.
Cannon still finished with 50 catches for 868 yards and six touchdowns despite the rotating set of quarterbacks he was forced to deal with last season. A full year with Russell under center should help maximize his potential in 2016.
KaVontae Turpin
TCU Horned Frogs
The 5’9’’, 153-pound Turpin put on an absolute show with 1,675 all-purpose yards as a wide receiver, rusher and return man as a true freshman in 2015. A matchup nightmare for opposing defenses, Turpin has the potential to take another step forward as a wide receiver with another year of experience and development in the TCU offense. The Horned Frogs will look to put Turpin in position to maximize his elite talent as a versatile threat that can do it all so look for him to thrive both on offense and special teams this coming season.
Allen Lazard
Iowa State Cyclones
The Urbandale, Iowa-native lived up to the hype in his sophomore season with 56 catches for 808 yards and six touchdowns. Now he will get the opportunity to top those numbers as one of the most dominant wide receivers in the Big 12 this coming season. The 6’5’’, 223-pound Lazard is the total package at the wide receiver position and improved quarterback and offensive line play should help translate to even better numbers in 2016.
Dede Westbrook
Oklahoma Sooners
Westbrook earns the final spot on this list after catching 46 passes for 766 yards and five touchdowns as the Sooners’ No. 2 wide receiver behind Shepard in 2015. The 6’4’’, 215-pound Westbrook has the pure size, strength, speed and hands to be an elite No. 1 pass-catching threat and he will get that opportunity this season in the Oklahoma offense. Westbrook will benefit from having one of the best quarterbacks in the Big 12 throwing to him in Mayfield and it shouldn’t shock anybody if he leads the conference in touchdown receptions in 2016.
