The BYU Rooting Guide for the Bye Week

While BYU takes the weekend off, it will be a busy weekend around college football. Six top 25 matchups headline this weekend's college football slate. In this article, we will outline a rooting guide for what an ideal weekend would look like for the BYU football program.

Games Around the Big 12

This section focuses on games that feature at least one Big 12 team. Some games could either help or hurt BYU regardless of outcome. We will highlight the outcome that would help BYU the most.

Iowa State over No. 15 Utah

BYU plays both Iowa State and Utah later in the season. After three games, the Utes have looked like BYU's biggest threat to a Big 12 championship. Given that BYU has to face Utah on the road later in November, it would benefit BYU's conference title hopes if Utah suffers an early loss in conference play.

According to The Rooting Guide, a new tool that weighs the impact of game results on a team's CFP chances, no Big 12 game would increase BYU's CFP hopes more than a Utah loss. A Utah loss would increase BYU's CFP odds by 1.1%, while a Utah win would decrease BYU's CFP odds by (0.9%).

Cincinnati over Kansas State

Kansas State is a threat to steal a spot in the Big 12 title game. The Wildcats somehow avoid the three favorites to win the league: Texas Tech, BYU, and Utah. If Kansas State goes 8-1 in conference play, for example, it would eliminate a lot of wiggle room for the Cougars in conference play.

A Cincinnati win over Kansas State would benefit BYU in two ways: it would benefit the win percentage of BYU's conference opponents (which could impact tiebreakers later in the season) and it would significantly reduct Kansas State's chances to make a run at the Big 12 title game.

Arizona over Washington State

As it stands, Arizona is BYU's best win of the season. It benefits BYU and the entire Big 12 if Arizona takes care of business against former conference for Washington State. According to The Rooting Guide, this game impacts BYU's CFP hopes the most. An Arizona win would increase BYU's CFP hopes by +1.0%, while a Washington State win would reduce BYU's CFP hopes by (1.6%). That's a 2.7% swing based on one outcome.

Baylor over Colorado

The only reason this game impacts BYU is because of the winning percentages of BYU's opponents. Remember, that is used as one of the tiebreaker rules in the Big 12. BYU plays Baylor and it doesn't face Colorado. Therefore, it helps BYU if the Bears beat the Buffs.

Top 25 Games

Cheer for the Unlikely Upsets

There are certain upsets that would really help BYU's CFP chances. Northwestern over no. 5 Indiana, Oklahoma over no. 2 Georgia, Central Michigan over no. 6 Miami, South Carolina over no. 8 Alabama, Illinois over no. 7 Ohio State and Wake Forest over no. 16 Louisville fit that description.

No. 21 Florida over no. 4 Ole Miss

Both Florida and Ole Miss are a threat to BYU's CFP hopes at this point. It will benefit BYU if either team suffers a loss, but since Florida has a slightly more difficult schedule than Ole Miss the rest of the way, we give the slight edge to Florida.

No. 1 Texas over no. 14 Tennessee

Given Texas' win over Ohio State, it's going to be hard for BYU to compete for an at-large spot against the Longhorns. With a Tennessee win, the Volunteers would probably leapfrog BYU in the rankings and, eventually, could steal an at-large spot from the Cougars. This is one of those games that could help or hurt BYU either way, depending on how the rest of the season plays out.

No. 20 Oregon over no. 12 USC

USC and BYU have been jockeying for position in the AP poll. It would not only benefit BYU, but the Big 12 as well, if Oregon wins this game. The Ducks lost to Oklahoma State earlier this season.

Games Around the Country

Colorado State over UTSA

Colorado State is capable of creating some noise in the Pac-12. However, the Rams will likely need quarterback Hauss Hejny to reach their potential in conference play. Hejny is doubtful to play against UTSA. A Colorado State win would benefit BYU's resume.

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