Things to watch this week in the Big 12 Conference:
Game of the week
No. 20 Oklahoma State (3-1, 0-1 Big 12) at No. 23 Kansas State (3-1, 0-1), Saturday, noon ET (ESPN)
A matchup of Big 12 preseason favorites and a big game already on the last Saturday in September since both teams are coming off losses in their league openers. Oklahoma State lost 22-19 at home to league newcomer Utah. Ollie Gordon II, last year's national rushing leader, has averaged only 46.3 yards per game with one touchdown in three games for the Cowboys against FBS teams. His 64.5 yards rushing average overall is 11th in the Big 12, one spot behind K-State quarterback Avery Johnson (65.3 ypg). The Wildcats have allowed only 83.3 yards rushing, but are coming off a 38-9 loss at undefeated BYU.
The undercard
Former Pac-12 teams Arizona (2-1, 0-0) and No. 10 Utah (4-0, 1-0) meet in their new league for the first time. This series dates to 1924, and Utah's 26-20-2 advantage includes a 7-5 mark when they were in the Pac-12 together the past 13 seasons. The Wildcats are going into their Big 12 opener after an open date, which followed a 31-7 loss at Kansas State that didn't count in the conference standings and ended their nine-game winning streak that was the longest in FBS. Utes sixth-year back Micah Bernard has three consecutive 100-yard rushing games, with a career-best 182 yards last week at Oklahoma State.
Impact players
RJ Harvey, the Big 12's leading rusher and top scorer, has five 100-yard rushing games in a row for UCF (3-0, 1-0), which after an open date hosts Colorado (3-1, 1-0) on Saturday. Harvey averages 149.3 yards a game and has nine touchdowns (Big 12-high eight rushing and one receiving). The fifth-year back ran for 180 yards with two TDs in the second half two weeks ago in the Knights' 35-34 win at TCU, when they overcame a 28-7 deficit to match the biggest comeback in school history. Kobe Hudson had his second 100-yard receiving game in a row, and his second TD against the Horned Frogs was the go-ahead score with 36 seconds left.
Inside the numbers
Texas Tech's Johncarlos Miller II is the only tight end in the country to have a receiving TD in each of his last three games. The last Red Raiders TE to do that was Mickey Peters in 2002. ... Cincinnati (3-1, 1-0), which plays at Texas Tech, is coming off a 34-0 home win over Houston that was the Bearcats' first shutout of a major conference team since 1995 ... Against K-State last week, BYU scored touchdowns on offense, defense (fumble return) and special teams (punt return) for the first time since 1996. ... Kansas hosts TCU in the first of four games the Jayhawks will play at Arrowhead Stadium, home of the NFL's Kansas City Chiefs, during construction on the Lawrence campus.
Campbell and the Cyclones
No. 18 Iowa State goes to Houston for its Big 12 opener with a chance to go 4-0 for the first time since 2000, and make Matt Campbell the school's winningest coach. Campbell is in his ninth season and his 56 wins are tied with Dan McCarney (1995-2006) for the most in school history. The Cyclones have won their last four conference road games. Houston (1-3) is coming off a 34-0 loss at Cincinnati.
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