Top 5 matchups for Week 4 of the 2024 college football season
5. No. 13 Kansas State vs. BYU – Saturday, 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
Just 43 unbeaten FBS teams remain after three weeks, including Kansas State and BYU. The two programs have played eight times, all coming between 1957-97, with each winning four contests. The Wildcats will return to Provo for the first time since 1977 on Saturday night and enter the contest as touchdown favorites over the Cougars.
The Wildcats have had the look of a potential playoff contender through the first three weeks of the season, dominating UT Martin in Week 1 and Arizona in a matchup of ranked opponents last week, with a gritty road win at Tulane sandwiched in between. K-State still hasn鈥檛 reached its full offensive potential, but young quarterback Avery Johnson has flashed a lot of upside while running back DJ Giddens remains a veteran leader of the unit. Chris Klieman鈥檚 defense playing at the level it did against Arizona will also be key going forward.
Meanwhile, BYU is an undefeated squad as well and could be capable of pulling an upset in its Big 12 opener. Head coach Kalani Sitake always seems to get the most out of his teams and is doing so again in 2024 as the Cougars have already won two road games at SMU and Wyoming. That could give them confidence back in Provo led by their 13th-ranked total defense. The offense has been less consistent, but the Jake Retzlaff-to-Chase Roberts connection has been successful thus far. If BYU can find a way to put up enough points, it鈥檒l have a chance to earn a statement conference victory over a K-State program looking to remain playoff relevant.
