Things to watch this week in the Big 12 Conference:
No. 7 BYU (7-1, 4-1 Big 12, No. 9 CFP) at No. 3 Utah (8-0, 5-0, No. 3 CFP), Saturday, noon ET (ABC)
An early riser in Utah for a Holy War game that could have significant implications on who makes the Big 12 championship game and College Football Playoff. Kickoff is at 10 a.m. local time for the first meeting between the schools with both in the AP top 10.
Utah has a 14-game winning streak since losing 24-21 to BYU last season. That was BYU's third win in a row against its instate rival — their football stadiums are only about 45 miles apart — after the Utes won nine in a row before that. Utah leads the series, which dates to 1895, 52-31-4.
The Utes, who last reached 9-0 in their undefeated 2008 season, are the lone remaining undefeated team in the Big 12. The conference's last undefeated team was Texas for its 2005 national championship.
Devon Dampier is 18-2 as Utah's starting quarterback. BYU sophomore Bear Bachmeier is 19-3.
TCU (4-4, 2-3) at No. 24 Arizona (6-2, 3-2), Friday, 10:15 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Wildcats receiver Isaiah Mizell has three consecutive 100-yard receiving games (21 catches for 499 yards) while quarterback Noah Fifita is the FBS active career leader with 11,664 yards passing and 92 touchdowns. Fifita's streak of 21 consecutive conference games with a TD pass is the longest active FBS streak.
Arizona had its five-game winning streak snapped last week at No. 13 Texas Tech. The Wildcats' other loss was at Utah.
The Horned Frogs have the Big 12's top defense allowing 14.1 points and 287.6 total yards per game. They just beat Kansas 22-16, their highest-scoring game against a Power Four opponent this season.
— In Baylor's first game after coach Dave Aranda was fired, quarterback DJ Lagway threw for 319 yards on 16 completions. One of his career high-matching four TDs passing was a 77-yarder in the 41-9 win at UCF. The Bears (5-3, 3-2) host Iowa State (4-4, 2-3).
— Iowa State's Aiden Flora is the Big 12 leader with 117.1 yards rushing per game. The former walk-on ran for 221 yards with TDs of 75 and 29 yards in a 51-49 win over Oklahoma State last week. He has the Big 12's top three rushing games this season, also running for 212 and 194 yards.
— Colorado linebacker Gideon ESPN Lampron had a career-high 15 tackles when the Buffaloes ended a nine-game conference losing streak with a 27-24 overtime win over Kansas State. Lampron is the Big 12 leader with 80 tackles (10 per game). The Buffs (3-5, 1-4) play at Arizona State (4-4, 2-3).
West Virginia is the only Big 12 team other than Utah currently with multiple wins in a row. The Mountaineers (5-3, 2-3) go for their third consecutive win Saturday night at No. 13 Texas Tech (7-1, 4-1, No. 15 CFP). The Red Raiders last week tied a school record with their 13th consecutive home win. … Houston (6-2, 3-2, No. 17 CFP) has scored a Big 12-high 49 points off takeaways this season. … Cincinnati (5-3, 2-3) is at Houston, its third Top 25 opponent in a row. The Bearcats split home games against Texas Tech and Utah. … The Big 12 has five ranked teams for the sixth week in a row, the first time that has happened since 2014.
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