It doesn’t take long for a coach to build some real buzz in September, and the Big 12 already has a few names making noise.
BYU’s Kalani Sitake sits near the front of that conversation after the Cougars handled Arizona 28-17 on Saturday at Lavell Edwards Stadium in Provo. In the first real conference test of the season, BYU answered with a clean, confident performance. Sophomore quarterback Bear Bachmeier threw for 217 yards and three touchdowns, with two of those scores going to Kyle Kasper.
That win helped push BYU to the top of Pete Mundo’s Week 2 Big 12 Power Rankings, and it’s easy to see why. The Cougars came out of a season-opening game against Utah Tech with momentum, then backed it up against Noah Fifita and the Wildcats.
Fifita still threw for 230 yards, but BYU’s defense made him uncomfortable all afternoon and then shut Arizona out in the second half. Tausili Akana finished with 2.5 sacks, and the Cougars kept the Wildcats off the board after halftime.
BYU is 2-0 now and heads to Colorado State on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. CT on CBS.
Another coach who picked up a major early-season boost was Eric Morris at Oklahoma State. The Cowboys came into Stillwater with Oregon listed as high as a 23.5-point favorite, and the upset changed the feel around the program fast.
Oklahoma State’s defense was the story, holding Dante Moore and the Ducks to 12 first downs, 5-of-14 on third down and 0-for-3 on third down. Morris also got the kind of game he needed from a team that’s expected to do damage on offense, but the defensive work - including a late Dierre Hill Jr. fumble - stood out most.
Oklahoma State is 1-1 and returns home Saturday to face Murray State. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. CT on ESPN+.
Utah’s Morgan Scalley has also wasted no time making his case. The Utes have opened with two lopsided wins, beating Idaho and Arkansas by a combined 109-24.
Against Arkansas, Devon Dampier completed 18 of 24 passes for 261 yards and two touchdowns. On the other side of the ball, Utah’s defense has been led through two weeks by linebacker Jonathan Hall and tackle Jireh Moe, and it heads into this week’s trip to Utah State looking steady again.
Utah State is 0-2 and hosts Utah on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. CT on FOX.
Then there’s Collin Klein at Kansas State, whose first stretch in charge has started exactly the way the Wildcats wanted. Kansas State has rolled past Nicholls and Washington State to open 2-0, with Avery Johnson, Rodney Fields and Wendell Gregory all delivering early.
The next test comes against Tulane, which owns a 2-1 edge in the all-time series after wins in 1988 and 2022. Klein was still on the Chris Klieman staff the last time the teams met, when Tulane won in New Orleans.
Kansas State took the most recent meeting, winning 34-27 in New Orleans for its first victory in school history.
Tulane is 1-1 and visits Manhattan on Saturday in one of the first games on the schedule. Kickoff is set for 10 a.m. CT on ESPN2.
In Other News...
Mike Gundy Had Another Wild Postgame Story After Oregon Win
After Oklahoma States win over Oregon, Mike Gundy added another off-field tale to his long list of postgame oddities, this one coming on a podcast where he talked about a nuisance on his property that had been tearing up the yard. The Cowboys coach said he first assumed wild hogs were responsible for the damage, only to learn from his yard worker that armadillos were actually the problem.
Gundy said he handled it with an AR-style rifle, and the story only got more surreal from there. It was the second time he had brought up dealing with an armadillo, making the latest version of the anecdote feel like part wildlife management, part Mike Gundy folklore, and just the kind of detail that tends to follow him long after the final whistle. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma States Defense Is Changing Everything Fans Expected This Season
Skyler Cassity arrived at Oklahoma State with a rsum built on the defensive side, including time as a graduate assistant at Texas Tech, and his first season as defensive coordinator under Eric Morris has already given the Cowboys a different look. The unit has been steadier and more disruptive than many expected, a noticeable shift from previous seasons and a big reason the early conversation around this team has changed.
Ethan Wesloski has been part of that surge in the middle of the defense, giving Oklahoma State a senior presence at linebacker and helping set the tone for a group that has found its footing quickly. With the Cowboys continuing to lean on a defense that is outperforming outside expectations, the question now is whether Cassitys group can keep that edge once opponents have more film to study. [Read more 🡒]
Baylors Quarterback Uncertainty Just Got Bigger Entering Week 3
Big 12 quarterback play took another turn in Week 2, and Oklahoma State had one of the leagues most eye-opening answers in Drew Mestemaker. The Cowboys got a big outing from the young passer in a week that also saw injuries reshape the conference picture, with Baylors DJ Lagway and UCFs Alonza Barnett both helping create more uncertainty at the position as Week 3 approaches.
Mestemakers performance will only add to the conversation as conference play keeps tightening up and the top quarterback list gets reshuffled again. Oklahoma State now moves forward with real momentum at the most important spot on the field, while the broader Big 12 picture still feels unsettled enough that every new update could change how the leagues best passers are viewed heading into another round of key matchups. [Read more 🡒]