Things to watch this week in the Big 12 Conference:
Iowa State (3-2, 1-1 Big 12) at No. 8 BYU (4-0, 2-0), Friday, 10:15 p.m. ET (ESPN)
BYU is 4-0 for the third season in a row, a first in school history. The Cougars are coming off a gritty 17-10 win at TCU on a rainy night when running back LJ Martin and starting linebacker Isaiah Glasker both got hurt in the first half. Coach Kalani Sitake has called them doubtful to play this week.
Both Iowa State losses are to ranked teams, at Iowa and home against Utah. The Cyclones last year lost for the first time in six meetings against BYU in a series that began in 1968. Martin missed most of that game with a shoulder injury, though he had an early 4-yard TD in BYU's 41-27 win.
Cyclones running back Aiden Flora ran for 212 yards with three touchdowns and threw two TDs in a wild 45-42 win over West Virginia last week.
No. 22 Houston (4-1, 1-1) at Kansas State (3-1, 0-1), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (Fox)
Houston's only loss was in its Big 12 opener on the road, when the Cougars missed by inches on a 2-point conversion in the final minute of a 28-26 loss at then-No. 11 Texas Tech. The Cougars' most lopsided loss in their four Big 12 seasons was 41-0 at Kansas State in 2023, but they beat the Wildcats at home in 2024.
Kansas State, coming off an open date, is the nation's top passing defense (106.3 yards per game). The Wildcats are one of eight FBS teams ranked top 25 in total offense, total defense, scoring offense and scoring defense.
— Oklahoma State running back Caleb Hawkins has at least 180 yards rushing in five of his last 10 games. He had a season-high 180 yards at West Virginia on Sept. 26 before an open date for the No. 18 Cowboys (3-1, 1-0), who play Saturday at UCF (3-2, 1-1).
— Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita has thrown a touchdown pass in 15 consecutive games. His school-record 86 career TD passes are the most among active FBS QBs, as are his 10,598 yards passing. The Wildcats (4-1, 1-1) go to West Virginia (3-2, 0-2) for the first time. The Mountaineers are last in the Big 12 in allowing 11 TD passes and 288 yards passing per game.
Arizona State's Reed Harris has three 100-yard receiving games and leads the Big 12 with his 124.8 yards per game and five TD catches. The Sun Devils host Hawaii. ... Kansas (2-2, 0-1) last week set a single-game school record with 706 total yards. The Jayhawks allowed only 136 in a 55-0 win over Middle Tennessee, their first shutout win since 2008. ... No. 12 Utah (4-0, 1-0), which takes a 10-game winning streak to Kansas, is the Big 12 leader averaging 43.3 points a game while allowing 10.3, the league low.
There are only six games involving Big 12 teams, the fewest in any weekend this regular season. No. 11 Texas Tech (5-0, 2-0), Baylor (4-1, 2-0), Cincinnati (4-1, 1-1), TCU (2-3, 0-2) and Colorado (2-3, 0-2) all have open dates.
Five teams still have open dates. Arizona, UCF and Iowa State get a break Oct. 17, with Houston and West Virginia are off Oct. 31.
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