With the 2015 season arriving in the not-too-distant future, we'll be breaking down the schedules for every Big 12 team.

We start up this series with the Baylor Bears:

Nonconference opponents (with 2014 record):

Sept. 4: at SMU (1-11)

Sept. 12: Lamar (8-4)

Sept. 26: Rice (8-5)

Big 12 home games

Oct. 17: West Virginia

Oct. 24: Iowa State

Nov. 14: Oklahoma

Dec. 5: Texas

Big 12 road games

Oct. 10: at Kansas

Nov. 5: at Kansas State

Nov. 21: at Oklahoma State

Nov. 27: at TCU

Big 12 neutral site games

Oct. 3: Texas Tech (Arlington, Texas)

Gut-check time:A brutal six-day turnaround from Oklahoma State to TCU highlights a brutal four-week stretch that also includes Oklahoma and Texas. The Bears will be heavily favored in every game before they face Oklahoma on Nov. 14. But the final month will define their season and ultimately determine whether they defend their Big 12 title and advance into the playoff. The silver lining for Baylor is that TCU also faces a difficult turnaround before the Revivalry, with a road trip to Norman. Still, winning in both Stillwater and Fort Worth in less than a week will be a monumental task for Art Briles' bunch.

Trap game: A Nov. 5 visit to Kansas State could prove to be tricky. A short-handed K-State squad hung tough the last time Baylor made the trip to Manhattan, which is one of the more difficult places to win in the Big 12 -- especially at night. Probably even more so on a Thursday. K-State won't have the same offensive firepower it took to Waco last season, but Bill Snyder will have a game plan to slow the tempo down, which could frustrate the fast-break Bears. Baylor could also get caught looking ahead to the aforementioned four-game gauntlet to follow.

Snoozer: Basically the entire nonconference slate, and certainly the first two weeks. The kicking off of the Chad Morris era at SMU will be moderately interesting, though the Mustangs are light years away from adequately sharing the same field as a team with as much talent as Baylor. Lamar is an average FCS program. Rice at least has a pulse.

Final analysis: Among preseason playoff contenders, Baylor could have the most manageable slate in the country through the first two months. The rest of the way it will have to bring its best, especially for that grueling, Stillwater-to-Fort Worth, six-day ricochet. Still, if the Bears can survive both Oklahoma State and TCU in that span, it's difficult to see a scenario in which they don't win the Big 12 -- and don't seriously contend for a playoff spot, as well.