Colorado head coach Deion Sanders takes the field before an NCAA college football game against North Dakota State, Aug. 29 in Boulder, Colo. The Buffaloes defeated the Bison 31-26. (Jack Dempsey/AP Photo)

Staff, Wire Reports

No. 3 Texas (1-0) vs. No. 10 Michigan (1-0)

When: 11 a.m. Saturday.

TV: FOX. Radio: The Team 92.1-FM, Tyler-Longview.

Where: Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

BetMGM College Football Odds: Texas by 7.5.

Series records: Texas 1-0.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

A rare matchup of two of the winningest programs in college football history and two of last season’s playoff teams. The only previous meeting between the Longhorns and Wolverines was the 2005 Rose Bowl. A loss in the SEC-Big Ten bragging rights matchup won’t kill the College Football Playoff hopes for either team in this season’s expanded format, but the winner earns the right to be called a top title contender. The Wolverines are the defending national champions.

KEY MATCHUP

Expect a punishing struggle in the trenches. Texas returned four starters on the offensive line this season and the new starter, right tackle Cameron Williams, was named the SEC’s co-offensive lineman of the week after the first game. That group must protect quarterback Quinn Ewers from a Michigan defensive line with preseason All-American Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant at the point of attack.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Texas: Ewers could make himself a Heisman front-runner with a big game against a Michigan secondary that includes preseason All-American shutdown cornerback Will Johnson. Ewers has played some of his best games in Texas’ biggest games the last two seasons.

Michigan: The Wolverines aren’t nearly so settled at quarterback. Former walk-on Davis Warren started the season opener against Fresno State. Texas native Alex Orji also played. Both threw touchdown passes but struggled to ignite a sluggish offense. One, or both, will have to be sharp against the Longhorns.

FACTS & FIGURES

Michigan was won 23 consecutive home game, the third longest streak in school history and longest since 1969-73. Last season, Texas snapped Alabama’s 21 game home win streak … Texas had 10 receivers catch passes in the first half against Colorado State and Ewers has a touchdown pass in 14 consecutive games … Michigan ranks No. 1 in most college football wins with 1,005. Texas is No. 4 with 949.

—

Arkansas (1-0) vs. No. 16 Oklahoma State (1-0)

When: 11 a.m. Saturday.

TV: ABC.

Where: Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater, Oklahoma.

BetMGM College Football Odds: Oklahoma State by 7.5.

Series record: Arkansas leads 30-15-1.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

Oklahoma State believes reaching the College Football Playoff is a possibility. A win over SEC member Arkansas couldn’t hurt. Oklahoma State is coming off a solid win over South Dakota State, the two-time defending FCS champion that entered the game on a 29-game win streak. Arkansas coach Sam Pittman has acknowledged that he is on the hot seat after a rough 2023 campaign. A road win over a ranked opponent would cool things down a bit and provide hope for restless Razorback fans.

KEY MATCHUP

Oklahoma State RB Ollie Gordon II vs. Arkansas run defense. Gordon won the Doak Walker Award for the nation’s top running back last season and was a first-team AP All-American. He ran for 104 yards on 27 carries in the season opener and scored three touchdowns — two rushing and one receiving. He faces an Arkansas defense that allowed seven yards rushing against UAPB.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Arkansas: QB Taylen Green. The transfer from Boise State passed for two touchdowns and ran for two in the opener. His mobility could create problems for an Oklahoma State defense that tends to be aggressive. He ran for 88 yards on six carries in the opener.

Oklahoma State: QB Alan Bowman. The seventh-year quarterback is the perfect compliment to Gordon. He sprays the ball all over the field and doesn’t try to do too much. He completed 25 of 34 passes for 265 yards and three touchdowns against South Dakota State.

FACTS & FIGURES

Oklahoma State will add defensive end Leslie O’Neal to its Ring of Honor at halftime. … The schools are about 180 miles apart. … Arkansas ran for 279 yards in its season opener. Ja’Quinden Jackson, a transfer from Utah, ran for 101 yards and two scores on just eight carries. … Oklahoma State held South Dakota State to 124 yards rushing. … In the most recent matchup, Arkansas defeated Oklahoma State 33-20 on Sept. 20, 1980, in Little Rock, Arkansas.

___

McNeese St. (1-1) vs. Texas A&M (0-1)

When: 11:45 a.m. Saturday.

TV: SEC Network.

Where: Kyle Field, College Station.

BetMGM College Football Odds: No line.

Series record: Texas A&M leads 1-0.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

The Aggies will try to bounce back after a season-opening 23-13 loss to then-No. 7 Notre Dame last week in coach Mike Elko’s debut when they meet FCS school McNeese State of the Southland Conference. It’s the first time these teams have met since a 38-24 win by Texas A&M in 2001. The Cowboys are 0-5 all-time against the Southeastern Conference and haven’t beaten an FBS school since a win over South Florida in 2013.

KEY MATCHUP

Texas A&M’s run defense wants to improve after allowing 198 yards rushing in the loss to the Fighting Irish. McNeese State ran for 164 yards and three touchdowns in a 21-7 victory over Southern last week.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

McNeese St.: Backup QB Clifton McDowell ran for 65 yards and had two rushing touchdowns in the fourth quarter to lead the Cowboys to the win last week.

Texas A&M: QB Conner Weigman will attempt to clean up his play after throwing for just 100 yards with two interceptions last week. He is back this season after playing just four games in 2023 before sustaining a season-ending foot injury.

FACTS & FIGURES

Former Texas A&M coach R.C. Slocum, who played for the Cowboys, is a graduate of McNeese and is in the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame. … This is the third time in the last four seasons that McNeese has faced a team from the SEC. … McNeese LB Micah Davey has 14 straight games with at least 10 tackles. … DL Stephen Johnson, who transferred from Auburn, was named the Southland special teams player of the week after blocking a field goal against Southern. … Texas A&M LB Taurean York had nine tackles last week. … DB Will Lee III tied a career-high with nine tackles Saturday. … RB Le’Veon Moss had a career-high 20 carries for 67 yards and a touchdown against Notre Dame. … DL Shemar Turner had a career-best seven tackles, including ½ for a loss.

—

Baylor (1-0) vs. No. 11 Utah (1-0)

When: 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

TV: FOX.

Where: Rice-Eccles Stadium, Salt Lake City

BetMGM College Football Odds: Utah by 14.5

Series record: Utah 1-0

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

Utah and Baylor square off in a designated non-conference game between the Big 12 foes. Both the Utes and the Bears earned week one victories against overmatched FCS opponents. This game will offer a measuring stick for Baylor’s progress after struggling last season and a foreshadowing for what Utah can expect to face as the preseason Big 12 title favorite.

KEY MATCHUP

Utah struggled to move the ball against Baylor’s defense last season until a quarterback change spurred a fourth quarter comeback. With Cam Rising and Brant Kuithe back at full strength, will the Bears’ secondary and linebackers be able to contain the Utes’ playmakers? Utah’s re-energized offense will test an improved Baylor defense early and often.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Utah: Fourth string running back Dijon Stanley had a breakout performance in a 49-0 win over Southern Utah. Stanley tallied 150 yards and two touchdowns on three catches and added 34 yards on six carries. Making a similar impact against Baylor will cement him as a vital cog in a revived Utes’ offense.

Baylor: Grad transfer Dequan Finn has the perfect skill set as a dual-threat quarterback to revitalize Baylor’s offense. Finn threw for more than 2,000 yards and rushed for more than 500 yards in three consecutive seasons at Toledo before transferring to the Bears. He threw for 192 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for a 39-yard touchdown, in his Baylor debut.

FACTS & FIGURES

Utah is 22-0 at home in regular season non-conference games since 2011. … Baylor has lost eight straight games against AP Top 25 opponents. … Utah QB Cam Rising needs just 22 rushing yards to reach 1,000 for his career. … Baylor has ranked first or second in fewest penalty yards per game among Big 12 teams each of the last two seasons. … Utah’s offensive line has combined for 221 career games played, ranking third in the Big 12. … Freshmen played a total of 4,505 snaps on offense and defense for Baylor in 2023 – the most of any Big 12 team.

—

Sam Houston State (1-0) vs. Central Florida (1-0)

When: 5:30 p.m. Saturday.

TV: ESPN+

Where: FBC Mortgage Stadium, Orlando, Florida.

Line: UCF by 21 1/2, according to BetMGM Sportsbook

Series record: First meeting.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

UCF should get a tougher challenge against Sam Houston State than they did during a season-opening 57-3 rout of FCS opponent New Hampshire. Sam Houston State began with a 34-14 win over Rice, dominating the Owls on the road. The Knights want to continue fine-tuning their game as they prepare for Big 12 play.

KEY MATCHUP

UCF’s rushing attack vs. Sam Houston’s defense. UCF is all about the ground game, bringing back most of the key components from an offense that was fifth in the nation last year in rushing yards per game (228.2). The Knights opened the season with a 454-yard rushing performance, finishing seven yards shy of the school record. RJ Harvey ran for 142 yards on 11 carries and Peny Boone rushed for 81 on seven attempts, including a 59-yard run in the second half. Sam Houston State allowed just 48 yards rushing against Rice. Slowing the Knights will be a more difficult task.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Sam Houston State: QB Hunter Watson had a field day against Rice’s defense, throwing for 229 yards on 16-of-27 passing with two touchdowns and running for another 57 yards. That helped him earn Conference USA Player of the Week honors. Watson led Iowa Western to a junior college national championship before transferring to Sam Houston State this year.

UCF: CB Braeden Marshall was among several standout defenders who helped UCF shut down New Hampshire, finishing with four tackles, two tackles for a loss and a pass breakup.

FACTS & FIGURES

QB KJ Jefferson struggled some in his much-anticipated debut for UCF after transferring from Arkansas in the winter. He threw for 164 yards on 7-for-14 passing with two touchdowns and an interception in the opener. Sam Houston State started 0-8 last year efore winning three of their last four games to close their first season in FBS. … A UCF win would be the program’s 200th victory since joining the FBS in 1996.

—

Colorado (1-0) vs. Nebraska (1-0)

When: 6:30 p.m. Saturday.

TV: NBC.

Where: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska.

BetMGM College Football Odds: Nebraska by 7.

Series record: Nebraska leads 41-29-2.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

Colorado’s Deion Sanders and Nebraska’s Matt Rhule both are in their second seasons, and both are tasked with bringing their programs back to prominence. This will be a good test to check the progress of the old Big Eight/Big 12 rivals. Nebraska fans have been anticipating this game since the Buffaloes won in Boulder last year. Memorial Stadium will be juiced.

KEY MATCHUP

Offensive lines vs. defensive lines. It would be premature to say Colorado’s offensive line, which gave up 52 sacks last season, is much improved. North Dakota State of the FCS had Shedeur Sanders on the run last week but sacked him just once. The Huskers’ pass rushers have the speed to get home. Chunk plays have been a problem for the Buffs’ defense and its pass-rush is middling. Nebraska’s offensive line clears the way for a running back stable that runs four-deep and Dylan Raiola was kept clean against UTEP except for one sack.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Colorado: Two-way star Travis Hunter will be on the field for most, if not all, of the game. As a receiver, he proved too much to handle for NDSU. He will test Nebraska’s secondary as a potential top-five NFL draft pick, but he won’t be able to impose his physicality like he did against North Dakota State. As a cornerback, Hunter will be dealing with bigger and stronger Nebraska receivers.

Nebraska: Raiola was really good in his college debut. He threw a pretty ball and was on point with his decision-making. But that was in a blowout against UTEP. Let’s see how he responds if he finds himself in a high-scoring and close game.

FACTS & FIGURES

This game ends a four-game, home-and-home series. The Buffs won the first three games — 33-28 in Lincoln in 2018, 34-31 in overtime in Boulder in 2019 and 36-14 in Boulder last year. Colorado has never won four in a row in the series. Nebraska last beat the Buffs in Lincoln in 2010, a 45-17 victory that clinched a spot in the Big 12 championship game in the Huskers’ final year in the conference. … Shedeur Sanders threw for 445 yards and averaged 17 yards per completion against NDSU. He threw for 393 yards but was sacked seven times by Nebraska last year. … Huskers’ 33-point win over UTEP was its most lopsided in three years.

—

Houston (0-1) vs. No. 15 Oklahoma (1-0)

When: 6:45 p.m. Saturday.

TV: SEC Network.

Where: Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, Norman, Oklahoma.

BetMGM College Football Odds: Oklahoma by 29 1/2.

Series record: Oklahoma leads 3-1.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

Oklahoma’s defense was disruptive in a 51-3 home win over Temple, forcing six turnovers to go with six sacks and nine tackles for loss. Sophomore quarterback Jackson Arnold threw four touchdown passes, including three to Purdue transfer Deion Burks. Houston needs a bounce-back performance after playing poorly on both lines of scrimmage in a 27-7 home loss to UNLV. The Cougars gave up 195 yards rushing and six sacks in Willie Fritz’s first game as coach.

KEY MATCHUP

Oklahoma defensive line vs. Houston offensive line. The Sooners were dominant against Temple, limiting the Owls to 1.9 yards per carry. Can they find the same success against Houston, which rushed for 38 yards against UNLV and struggled to protect the quarterback?

“We may move some guys to different spots, but we’ll keep experimenting with rotations until we find the right one,” Fritz said.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Houston: The quarterbacks. Look for Houston to play two and possibly three players at this position. Starter Donovan Smith and backup Uli Ale both played against UNLV, and Louisiana transfer Zeon Chriss could see playing time as well.

Oklahoma: RB Taylor Tatum. The true freshman from Longview made the most of his four carries against Temple, averaging 16.5 yards per carry. Tatum reeled off runs of 19 yards and 35 yards in the fourth quarter before scoring his first career TD on an 8-yard rush.

“He did well with his opportunity and will earn more of an opportunity,” Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said.

FACTS & FIGURES

Fritz, who coached Tulane for eight years before taking over at Houston, is 10-0 in true road games the past two years … Oklahoma players will wear throwback uniforms similar to those worn by teams that Bud Wilkinson’s coached to national championships in 1950, 1955 and and 1956. … Two former Sooners, DB Latrell McCutchin Sr. and LB Jamal Morris, started for Houston against UNLV. Morris led the Cougars with seven tackles, including a tackle for loss. McCutchin had three tackles.

___

LIU (0-1) vs. TCU (1-0)

When: 7 p.m. Saturday.

TV: ESPN+

Where: Amon G. Carter Stadium, Fort Worth.

BetMGM College Football Odds: No line.

Series record: First meeting.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

TCU plays its home opener, and the only game on its schedule this season that is not against Power Four opponent. The Frogs opened last week on the road with a 34-27 win at Stanford, the former Pac-12 team that is now in the ACC. Long Island University, a sixth-year FCS team, has twice before played a Big 12 team. The Sharks lost 30-7 at Baylor last year and 66-0 at West Virginia in 2021.

KEY MATCHUP

LIU running Ludovick Choquette against the TCU defense. Choquette, a graduate transfer from Western Illinois, ran for a career high 128 yards on 15 carries and had four catches for 22 yards and a touchdown in his debut with the Sharks. In their first game with Andy Avalos as defensive coordinator, the Frogs held Stanford to 286 total yards (121 rushing and 165 passing) had four sacks and 10 tackles for loss.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

LIU: QB Luca Stanzani completed 20 of 31 passes for 179 yards and three touchdowns despite rain showers in a 27-21 loss at Albany in the season opener. The Sharks led 21-17 after Stanzani’s 11-yard TD pass to Choquette early in the third quarter.

TCU: The receiving trio of Savion Williams, Jack Bech and JP Richardson, who combined for 331 of TCU’s 353 passing yards in the opener against Stanford, marked the first time in school history they had three receivers with at least 85 yards in the same game. Williams, the fifth-year Frog, tied a career high with 11 catches for 165 yards. Former Oklahoma State transfer Richardson had his second 100-yard game since joining the Frogs and former LSU transfer Bech had a career-best 139 yards, including catches of 43 and 46 yards.

FACTS & FIGURES

The Sharks are 12-35 overall since Long Island University merged its two athletic programs: Division I non-football LIU Brooklyn and Division II football-sponsoring LIU Post. They are coming off back-to-back 4-7 seasons. … Josh Hoover is the first TCU quarterback since at least 2005 to have at least 300 yards passing in six of his first seven career starts. … Frogs safety Jamel Johnson has 11 tackles in the season opener, a year after he had 19 tackles while playing in 10 games as a freshman.

—

Texas Tech (1-0) vs. Washington State (1-0)

When: 9 p.m. Saturday.

TV: FOX. Radio: KTBB 97.5-FM, 600-AM, Tyler.

Where: Martin Stadium, Pullman, Washington.

BetMGM College Football Odds: Washington State by 2.5.

Series record: Texas Tech leads 2-0.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

A pair of high-scoring offenses meet on the Palouse in a late-night showdown. Washington State reached the 70-point plateau for the first time since 1997 in its 70-30 win over Portland State in the opener. Texas Tech needed overtime to dispatch FCS Abilene Christian 52-51 in its opener. More than the actual game is the undertones of a matchup between two teams that were previously coached by the late Mike Leach.

KEY MATCHUP

Texas Tech running back Tahj Brooks rushed for 153 yards and a touchdown in the opener, and will face a Washington State defense that surrendered 215 yards rushing to Portland State. Brooks posted his 13th career 100-yard game in the opener and could leave Tech as the school’s all-time leader in yards rushing. But Brooks was listed as questionable on the Red Raiders injury report this week leaving his availability in doubt against a Washington State defense that gave up 150.8 yards per game on the ground last season.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Texas Tech: WR Josh Kelly had 61 catches for 923 yards and eight touchdowns last season for Washington State. But he was one of the few players the Cougars lost to the transfer portal and Kelly made a quick impression on the Red Raiders with 156 yards receiving in the opener.

Washington State: QB John Mateer looked every bit capable of being Cam Ward’s replacement for the Cougars. Mateer struggled to start, but quickly rebounded to throw for 352 yards and five touchdowns on just 11 completions. Mateer also brings the running element to the Cougars offense and had a 40-yard TD run in the opener.

FACTS & FIGURES

First meeting between the schools since 1964. … Leach is among five people that will be inducted into the WSU Athletic Hall of Fame this weekend. … Texas Tech was the only team in the country to have a 300-yard passer (Behren Morton), 150-yard rusher (Brooks) and 150-yard receiver (Kelly) in Week 1. … Washington State freshman RB Wayshawn Parker had a 54-yard touchdown run and a 52-yard touchdown catch in the opener. It was the longest TD run for the Cougars since 2021.