Ranking Big 12 Football Week Four Games by Competitiveness

The Big 12 Conference won’t be completely in the throes of conference action by the time Week 4 comes around. But it will be closing in on it.

That weekend, which is Sept. 19-20, will feature five teams idle — Arizona, Cincinnati, Houston, Iowa State and Kansas State.

What are fans left with? The Big 12 will feature three conference games, all on Saturday. Oklahoma State gets a matchup against an in-state rival, while BYU makes a trip to the east coast to play a Group of 5 team. North Carolina plays a Big 12 team for the second in a month. And the Iron Skillet game takes center stage again.

Each week at Heartland College Sports I am ranking the schedule for each week of the 2025 football season from least competitive to most competitive. So, let’s dig into Week 4.

All games are Saturday, Sept. 20, unless otherwise noted.

Related: Ranking Big 12 Football Week Three Games by Competitiveness

8. Tulsa at Oklahoma State

When: Friday, Sept. 19, 6 p.m. CT, ESPN

Tulsa was last place in the American Athletic last year and has a new coach in Tre Lamb. I don’t care how bad Oklahoma State was last year, this should be a walk for the Cowboys. And if it’s not it’s gonna be a long season in Stillwater.

7. Wyoming at Colorado

Wyoming went 3-9 last year and by this point will have already played one Big 12 team. The game is in Boulder, the Buffs will be coming off their Big 12 opener against Houston and should walk away with this one.

6. BYU at East Carolina

This could be trouble for BYU. The Cougars are on the road and changing two time zones. ECU was 8-5 last season and looks loaded up to try and contend in the American Athletic. So why do I think the Cougars are going to run away with this relatively speaking?

5. Texas Tech at Utah*

I’m taking the leap that Utah will be better this year and that Texas Tech, at least early, will live up to the talent they’ve lured to Lubbock in the transfer portal. But I could also see this one getting out of hand by the third quarter. The game being in Provo helps Utah.

4. North Carolina at UCF

By this point the bloom will probably be off the rose a bit with UNC. By this point, UCF should look a little better than everyone expected. Throw in a likely prime-time game because of Bill Belichick and a humid night in Space City and you’ve got an entertaining game.

3. West Virginia at Kansas*

I’m not sure what to think of either of these teams. I think WVU will be better. I’m not sure about Kansas, even with a healthy Jalon Daniels at quarterback. That should make this game just competitive enough to appreciate before someone pulls away late.

2. SMU at TCU

This may be the final Iron Skillet game. It’s not on the schedule past this year and TCU doesn’t appear to want to continue playing it (for now). This game is usually a wild one when it’s in Fort Worth. Watch for plenty of offense. Should be tons of fun.

1. Arizona State at Baylor*

Expect this to be a late-afternoon or prime time game, especially if both are undefeated going into the matchup. It’s certainly possible and it could be an early signal as to which one of these teams are true contenders. This should be the most competitive game of the weekend.