Big 12 falls short in “Power 4 Step Up” in Week 2
Week 2 of the college football season saw the Big 12 conference go toe to toe with other Power 4 conferences, with three matchups against the SEC, two against the Big Ten, and one with the ACC. Arizona State hung tough with No. 10 ranked Texas A&M for three quarters, but a nightmarish final 15 minutes resulted in a 48-20 final. Here’s how the rest of the conference fared in this weekend’s action.
No. 23 Missouri 38 | Kansas 21 (Friday)
The Jayhawks struck first and traded scores in the first half against the Tigers, but the second half of the Border War was more of a skirmish as Missouri forced two of the Jayhawks’ three turnovers in the third quarter, finding the end zone on both. Special teams excitement came in the middle of the second quarter thanks to a blocked field goal returned 88 yards for a touchdown by Kansas’ Austin Alexander for the first points of the game.
Oklahoma State 39 | No. 6 Oregon 31
After a less than impressive 34-27 win over Boise State in Week 1, the Ducks fell to the Cowboys in Stillwater, giving Oklahoma State their first win against an FBS opponent since September 14, 2024 against Tulsa. Drew Mestemaker overcame two interceptions and produced 426 total yards along with 3 total touchdowns. Credit to the Oklahoma State defense for holding Oregon to just 11 plays after their go-ahead touchdown early in the 4th quarter, giving Eric Morris his first win with the Cowboys.
No. 13 Texas Tech 35 | Oregon State 24
The Red Raiders nearly fell victim to the ranked trap that is Corvallis, pulling out a narrow road win after coming in as 26.5 favorites. The ground game did most of the heavy lifting for Texas Tech, getting touchdowns from J’Koby Williams, Cameron Dickey, and Thomas Castellanos, but it was Will Hammond’s 32 yard pass to Coy Eakin that put the Red Raiders up for good, avoiding the Reser Stadium disappointment that Sun Devil fans know all too well.
No. 15 BYU 28 | Arizona 17
Saturday had the potential to spell double disappointment for Sun Devil fans, as their rivals took a 17-14 lead into the halftime break in the Big 12 opener in Provo. Bear Bachmeier accounted for all four touchdowns for the Cougars, throwing for 217 yards and 3 TDs with 37 rushing yards and a TD as BYU scored in each quarter to take the first notch in the road to the Big 12 Championship Game.
No. 20 Utah 43 | Arkansas 10
The only win for the Big 12 against the SEC this weekend, it was the Devon Dampier Show in Salt Lake City for the Utes. Accounting for 4 total touchdowns, Utah slammed on the gas and never let up, scoring all of their points unanswered after Arkansas recorded a field goal on their opening drive.
No. 21 Iowa 16 | Iowa State 13
It took until the second quarter, but things looked to be turning up in the Cyclones favor as they jumped out to a 10-0 lead midway through the second. Iowa played their classic death by a thousand cuts style, capping off the performance on a 9 play, 31 yard drive that took 4:13 off the clock before Caden Buhr hit his third field goal of the day to secure the win with 15 seconds to play.
No. 22 Houston 77 | Southern 6
Conner Weigman completed 9 of his 12 passes for 120 yards, 3 of those finding the end zone, as Houston scored the first 70 points of the game before Southern got their only score on a 79 yard pass from Wyatt McCauley to Wydell Clark Jr. Six different Cougars scored on the ground in this one, putting up a collective 388 rushing yards in the lopsided win.
Kansas State 34 | Washington State 7
Avery Johnson put up a rather pedestrian 192 yards with 3 touchdowns to three different receivers as the Cougars never truly had a chance in this Battle of the Cats. Washington State’s only score of the game came on defense, thanks to a 50 yard interception return for touchdown by Jaylen Thomas as time expired in the first half.
West Virginia 52 | UT-Martin 7
Michael Hawkins made quick work of the Skyhawks in his short outing, scoring 4 total touchdowns and tallying 251 total yards in the rout in Morgantown.
Colorado 52 | Weber State 21
Julian Lewis racked up 366 passing yards and 4 first half touchdowns, tying the Colorado record for most touchdowns in any half, and the first to do so in an opening half. Credit to Weber State for giving it their all with 372 yards of total offense in the losing effort.
Pittsburgh 12 | UCF 7
This power conference matchup flew under the radar as the Panthers took a 12-0 lead into the half and held out for the duration in a game that featured a combined 14 punts, 4 turnovers on downs, and a safety. The biggest piece of offensive excitement came on a 19 yard touchdown pass from Alonza Barnett III to Waden Charles to bring the Knights to within 5 points.
Cincinnati 62 | Western Carolina 10
The Bearcats ran for 418 yards and 7 total touchdowns, led by Gi’Bran Payne’s 102 yards and. 2 TDs. JC French IV missed on only three pass attempts, throwing for 245 yards and 2 TDs before being pulled late in the 3rd quarter with a 39 point lead.
TCU 63 | Grambling State 7
TCU came back stateside and overpowered the Tigers after a Week 0 loss to North Carolina in Ireland. Jaden Craig threw for a career-high 391 yards with 4 TDs while the Horned Frogs put up 285 combined rushing yards to get their first win of the season.
Baylor 44 | Prairie View A&M 3
Backup quarterback Nate Bennett got the call for the Bears and answered with 301 yards and 2 TDs and got 232 yards on the ground from the running back room as the defense held the Panthers to 110 yards of total offense.
Week 3 Look Ahead
All 16 teams will be in action next weekend with two conference matchups on tap. All times listed in Arizona time.
Friday, September 18th
No. 22 Houston (2-0) at No. 13 Texas Tech (2-0) | 5pm | FOX
Saturday, September 20th
Arizona State (1-1) vs. Kansas (1-1) | Union Jack Classic from Wembley Stadium, London | 9am | FS1
Tulane (1-1) at Kansas State (2-0) | 9am | ESPN2
Bowling Green (0-2) at Iowa State (1-1) | 9am | ESPNU
Utah State (0-2) at No. 20 Utah (2-0) | 12:30pm | FOX
Miami OH (1-1) at Cincinnati (2-0) | 12:30pm | ESPN+
Louisiana Tech (1-1) at Baylor (1-1) | 1pm | ESPNU
Georgia State (2-0) at UCF (1-1) | 4pm | ESPN+
Murray State (1-2) at Oklahoma State (1-1) | 4pm |ESPN+
No. 15 BYU (2-0) at Colorado State (2-0) | 4:30pm | CBS
West Virginia (2-0) vs. No. 25 Virginia (2-0) | Duke’s Mayo Classic, Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC | 4:30pm | ACC Network
Colorado (2-0) at Northwestern (1-0) | 4:30pm | TBD
Arkansas State (1-1) at TCU (1-1) | 5pm | ESPNU
Northern Illinois (0-2) at Arizona (1-1) | 7:30pm | TNT
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