Week 4 shook up the Big 12 passing race, and Oklahoma State’s Drew Mestemaker now sits alone at the top of the yardage chart.
Mestemaker put together a huge day in the Cowboys’ 41-24 win over West Virginia, throwing for nearly 400 yards and three touchdowns. That performance pushed him to 1,271 passing yards, the best mark in the league after four weeks.
Arizona’s Noah Fifita kept pace in his own way. He threw for 297 yards and four touchdowns, and that four-score outing moved him into a tie with Mestemaker for the Big 12 lead in passing touchdowns.
Houston’s Conner Weigman is right there too. He added four passing touchdowns against Georgia Southern and continues to put together a strong season for the Cougars. Weigman now shares the touchdown lead with Mestemaker and Fifita at 11.
The top tier is crowded after that. TCU’s Jaden Craig remains near the front of the yardage race with 1,213 yards, while Texas Tech’s Will Hammond has 968 and Kansas State’s Avery Johnson has 910. Utah’s Devon Dampier is also in the mix at 896, followed by Cincinnati’s JC French at 796.
Arizona State’s Cutter Boley and Colorado’s Julian Lewis are still showing up in both categories even with different kinds of weeks. Boley remains in the top 10 in passing yards and touchdowns despite the Sun Devils being on a bye. Lewis is also still inside both top-10 lists even after getting benched following the first half of Colorado’s loss to Baylor.
Craig’s season has still been productive overall, even with TCU’s two losses. But his Week 4 outing against UCF was a rough one: no passing touchdowns and two interceptions, after he had only one pick in the first three games.
Here’s where the Big 12 quarterback race stands after Week 4:
Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State - 1,271 yards
Jaden Craig, TCU - 1,213
Noah Fifita, Arizona - 1,131
Will Hammond, Texas Tech - 968
Conner Weigman, Houston - 947
Avery Johnson, Kansas State - 910
Devon Dampier, Utah - 896
JC French, Cincinnati - 796
Cutter Boley, Arizona State - 736
Julian Lewis - 733
Passing touchdowns:
Conner Weigman, Houston - 11
Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State - 11
Noah Fifita, Arizona - 11
Cutter Boley, Arizona State - 9
Devon Dampier, Utah - 9
Avery Johnson, Kansas State - 7
Jaden Craig, TCU - 7
Bear Bachmeier, BYU - 6
JC French, Cincinnati - 6
Julian Lewis, Colorado - 6
Nate Bennett, Baylor - 6
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Colorado Heads Into Brutal Stretch With One Huge QB Question
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Williams also made clear the locker room is prepared to rally around whichever quarterback gets the nod. For a team headed into a tough stretch, that kind of buy-in matters just as much as the depth chart, and it gives Colorado a chance to keep building even as the competition at the game's most important position remains unresolved. [Read more 🡒]