Big 12 Football: Week 4 Matchups and Predictions

Three conference games are on the slate, along with Sonny Dykes returning to the Hilltop

© John Gutierrez-USA TODAY Sports

Week 4 has three conference games on the schedule for the Big 12 while TCU, Kansas, and West Virginia wrap up the non-conference part of the season. Oklahoma State has a bye week before they head to Waco next week to avenge the 2021 Big 12 Championship game.

TCU travels across the Metroplex to take on the SMU Mustangs in the Battle for the Iron Skillet, and head coach Sonny Dykes returns to the stadium, where he was the head guy for the last four seasons. The other non-conference games feature Duke at Kansas in a battle of undefeated teams and West Virginia at Virginia Tech.

The conference games include Kansas State at Oklahoma, Texas at Texas Tech, and Baylor at Iowa State.

2022 Results

We are 24-4 in our weekly Big 12 predictions through the season's first three weeks. The first two losses were West Virginia losing to Pittsburgh in the Week 1 Backyard Brawl and Week 2 to Kansas. Kansas again spoiled our record in Week 3 with their dominant win over Houston.

Week 1 – 9-1

Week 2 – 8-1

Week 3 7-2

Week 4 Matchups and Predictions

Here’s a look at this week’s slate of league games:
All times listed are Central Time.

West Virginia (1-2) at Virginia Tech (2-1)

Thursday, 6:30 p.m., ESPN [Live Stream: fuboTV (Start your free trial)]

The Mountaineers finally put one in the win column last week after having no problem with their FCS team. But that overtime loss to Kansas in Week 2 still burns. Virginia Tech lost to Old Dominion to start the season but then had an impressive win over conference foe Boston College and another over FCS Wofford. This will be the first close game of the weekend for the Big 12, but it won’t be the last. We are torn on this pick. WVU has let us down twice – that’s 50% of our total losses this season. Until we see something different this season, we must go against them.

Pick: Virginia Tech

TCU (2-0) at SMU (2-1)

Saturday, 11 a.m., ESPNU [Live Stream: fuboTV (Start your free trial)]

This game is a Pick Em. Both sides are revved up for this rivalry game. SMU has had the edge lately, winning the last two matchups. For the previous four seasons, Sonny Dykes was the head coach on the Hilltop. Now he’s moved to Fort Worth, and those fans in Dallas aren’t so happy with the move. Look for this one to be another nail-biting game, with TCU getting a late break to win by a small margin.

Pick: TCU

Iowa State (3-0) vs. #17 Baylor (2-1)

Saturday, 11 a.m., ESPN2 [Live Stream: fuboTV (Start your free trial)]

This season, Baylor has proven good on defense, only allowing 43 points in three games. They lost a close game to BYU on the road in double overtime and had no problem with their other two games. New quarterback Blake Shapen has had a decent start, but not necessarily a spectacular game yet. Iowa State has started 3-0 for the first time since 2012. A win this week and a 4-0 start would be the first since 2000. Hunter Dekkers has settled into his role now as the quarterback. This one will be another close one but look for the Cyclones to get the win at home.

Pick: Iowa State

Kansas (3-0) vs. Duke (3-0)

Saturday, 11 a.m., FS1 [Live Stream: fuboTV (Start your free trial)]

It must be March, right? Both undefeated teams meeting in nonconference action must mean it’s March Madness and time for basketball. Believe it or not, these basketball bluebloods are both 3-0 on the gridiron this year. For Kansas, it’s the first time since 2009 that they’re 3-0. The Jayhawks can score – having scored at least 48 points in each game. Jalon Daniels accounted for five touchdowns last week (three passing; two rushing) and is the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week. Shocking to say, but Kansas should have no problem getting to 4-0. And look for them to be ranked next week.

Pick: Kansas

Texas Tech (2-1) vs. #22 Texas (2-1)

Saturday, 2:30 p.m., ESPN [Live Stream: fuboTV (Start your free trial)]

Last season, Tech traveled into Austin, and the Longhorns hung 70 points on them. This year, Tech has a new coach, and the fans on the South Plains are pumped for a season to exceed expectations. The Texas defense looked hot two weeks ago against Alabama. The team got the win last week over UTSA, but it wasn’t pretty, at least for the first half. The Longhorns are still having injury issues at quarterback. That could lead to the Red Raiders at least staying close in this game. But look for Texas to repeat what they did last week – remain close until halftime, then put the pedal to the metal in the second half and get the win.

Pick: Texas

#6 Oklahoma (3-0) vs. Kansas State (2-1)

Saturday, 7 p.m., Fox [Live Stream: fuboTV (Start your free trial)]

Kansas State seems to always to have Oklahoma’s number. The Wildcats won in 2019 and 2020 and came within a touchdown last season. We had been saying they were a dark horse to watch this season. Then they lost at home to Tulane in Week 3. That’s the only loss this season for the entire Big 12 against an unranked nonconference foe. It doesn’t look like KSU is that dark horse we were anticipating. Look for the Sooners to have no problem this time around.

Pick: Oklahoma

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