Weekend Watch Guide: An Oklahoma State Fan’s Guide to Week 13 of the College Football Season

The college football season is nearing its end, but there’s still a lot of intrigue in conference title races and the College Football Playoff.

Not the greatest of slate’s this weekend, but that’s usually when something nobody saw coming happens. Here’s a look around the Big 12 and the nation as a whole at some of this weekend’s best games.

Big 12 Schedule

Kansas (5-5) at Iowa State (6-4) — 11 a.m. Saturday on FS1
Baylor (5-5) at Arizona (7-3) — 12 p.m. Saturday on TNT
Oklahoma State (1-9) at UCF (4-6) — 3 p.m. Saturday on ESPN+
Kansas State (5-5) at No. 12 Utah (8-2) — 3 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2
TCU (6-4) at No. 23 Houston (8-2) — 3 p.m. Saturday on FOX
No. 11 BYU (9-1) at Cincinnati (7-3) — 7 p.m. Saturday on FOX
No. 25 Arizona State (7-3) at Colorado (3-7) — 7 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2

BYU-Cincy: BYU has being toeing the College Football Playoff line for weeks seemingly, waiting on someone ahead to slip up. The Cougars’ destiny is still in their own hands, as they’d be in the Big 12 title game should they win out, but this trip to Cincy will be tricky.

The Bearcats, though, have dropped two straight after starting the year 7-1.

The Fight for Bowl Eligibility: Although the conference title race is down to a few teams, many more are fighting to extend their seasons.

Kansas, Baylor and Kansas State all enter the weekend a win away from bowl eligibility, while UCF could also still get there if it beats OSU then goes to Provo and wins to close the season.

All of those five-win teams are on the road this week with KU going to Iowa State, Baylor going to Arizona and K-State traveling to Salt Lake City. A road win would ease some nerves entering the final week, but none of those games will be easy.

Other Games to Watch

No. 22 Missouri (7-3) at No. 8 Oklahoma (8-2) — 11 a.m. Saturday on ABC
Louisville (7-3) at SMU (7-3) — 11 a.m. Saturday on ESPN2
No. 15 USC (8-2) at No. 7 Oregon (9-1) — 2:30 p.m. Saturday on CBS
No. 20 Tennessee (7-3) at Florida (3-7) — 6:30 p.m. Saturday on ABC

This is one of those weekends where most of the SEC is playing a directional FCS school, so the matchups aren’t quite as juicy nationally, but there are still some fun games.

Mizzou-OU: An old Big Eight/Big 12 rivalry is renewed in the SEC, and it’s a big game as it pertains to the Sooners and the college football playoff. OU looked dead and buried after a stretch that saw the Sooners go 1-2 with losses to Texas and Ole Miss, but OU rebounded with road wins against Tennessee and Alabama to push right back into the playoff picture. It still won’t be easy, though, with home games against Missouri and LSU remaining.

The Tigers have been beaten up in SEC play, but for what it’s worth, all of their losses came to teams that were in the top 10 when the game was played.

USC-Oregon: The Ducks don’t have a big win (for some reason, the committee doesn’t see beating Oklahoma State as a big deal right now). Their best W is an 18-16 win against Iowa. For that reason, there’s a world where a tw0-loss Oregon team gets left out of the College Football Playoff.

USC, meanwhile, might need some help elsewhere, but the Trojans don’t appear fully out of contention either. A big win in Eugene would big a boost to their resume.