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What to Watch: Week 5 in College Football (Part I)

Thursday

7:30 PM ET ESPN: Texas A&M 3-0 @ Oklahoma State 3-0 (-3) - With two of the top ten offenses in the nation, this game has all the makings of a shootout.  Junior Cowboys QB Brandon Weeden is third in the nation in passing yards per game (325), fifth in completion percentage (73.3|PERCENT|), and second in passing TDs (11).  Catching the majority of his passes is sophomore WR Justin Blackmon, who leads the nation in receiving yards per game (143.7) and in TDs (8).  On the ground, senior RB Kendall Hunter is second in the nation in rushing yards per game (157.67) and eighth in TDs (6).  This is the team's first season running the Texas Tech "Air Raid" style offense under OC Dana Holgorsen.  The Aggies have their own passing weapon in senior QB Jerrod Johnson, who was the pre-season Big 12 offensive player of the year.  He's 15th in the nation in passing yards per game (288.3), but 78th in completion percentage (58.7|PERCENT|) with 7 TDs and 4 INTs.  Junior WR Jeff Fuller is averaging 93.3 yards receiving with 3 TDs, while sophomore RB Christine Michael is averaging 110.33 yards rushing with 3 TDs.  Both rank 18th in the nation in yards per game at their respective positions.  The "Wrecking Crew" defense has been gone for some time, but this season the defense is averaging 255.7 total yards per game allowed, which is 10th best in the nation.  Other things to watch for are OK State's special teams and love for penalties.  They're 5th to last in yards per kick return (16.8), 9th in net punt yards (46.9), and 7th in yards penalized per game (78).  Despite losing the last two, A&M leads this series all-time 17-8.  The under/over for this game is 66.5 points, which is tied for the highest of any games this week, so get ready for a high scoring affair. 

Friday

8:00 PM ET ESPN: BYU 1-3 (-5) @ Utah State 1-3 - This game is for the coveted "Beehive Boot."  BYU comes in with junior RB JJ Di Luigi their main weapon on offense.  He leads or is tied for the team lead in rushing yards (332), rushing TDs (2), receiving yards (200), and receiving TDs (1).  Di Luigi is 13th nationally in yards from scrimmage per game (133).  Frosh QB Jake Heaps has 122.2 passing yards per game.  Junior Riley Nelson is out for the year with shoulder surgery.  They don't do anything particularly well on defense, but they did hold Nevada to 27 points last week, so that's something (they average 44.8 ppg).  Utah State is led by their senior QB Diondre Borel, who is averaging 208 passing yards per game with 4 passing TDs and 2 rushing TDs.  They have two seniors at RB, Derrvin Speight (55.2 rushing yards per game) and Michael Smith (51 ypg).  Sophomore WR Dontel Watkins leads the team in catches with 18 for 242 yards and 2 TDs.  BYU has won 10 straight against Utah State. 

Week 4 Leaders

Passing:

1. Bryant Moniz (Hawaii) - 19/27, 395 yards, 6 TDs, 2 INTs vs Charleston Southern
2. Ryan Colburn (Fresno State) - 32/42, 390 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs vs Ole Miss
3. Steven Street (Arizona State) - 30/53, 387 yards, 3 TDs, 4 INTs vs Oregon
4. Pete Thomas (Colorado State) - 29/37, 386 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT vs Idaho
5. Adam Weber (Minnesota) - 31/46, 373 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT vs Northern Illinois
6. Bryan Ellis (UAB) - 29/55, 373 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT vs Tennessee
7. Landry Jones (Oklahoma) - 36/51, 370 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT vs Cincinnati
8. Russell Wilson (NC State) - 28/41, 368 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT vs Georgia Tech
9. Ryan Lindley (San Diego State) - 17/24, 362 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT vs Utah State
10. Ryan Mallett (Arkansas) - 25/38, 357 yards, 1 TD, 3 INTs vs Alabama

Rushing:

1. Brandon Bolden (Ole Miss) - 19 carries, 228 yards, 2 TDs vs Fresno State
2. Chad Spann (Northern Illinois) - 15 carries, 223 yards, 2 TDs vs Minnesota
3. Evan Royster (Penn State) - 26 carries, 187 yards, 0 TDs vs Temple
4. Cam Newton (Auburn) - 25 carries, 176 yards, 3 TDs vs South Carolina
5. Delone Carter (Syracuse) - 14 carries, 172 yards, 4 TDs vs Colgate
6. Isaiah Pead (CIncinnati) - 21 carries, 169 yards, 0 TDs vs Oklahoma
7. Mark Ingram (Alabama) - 24 carries, 157 yards, 2 TDs vs Arkansas
8. James White (Wisconsin) - 11 carries, 145 yards, 4 TDs vs Austin Peay
9. Zach Line (SMU) - 17 carries, 139 yards, 1 TD vs TCU
10. Doug Martin (Boise State) - 19 carries, 138 yards, 0 TDs vs Oregon State

Receiving:

1. Jerrel Jernigan (Troy) - 10 catches, 209 yards, 1 TD vs Arkansas State
2. Alshon Jeffery (South Carolina) - 8 catches, 192 yards, 2 TDs vs Auburn
3. Vincent Brown (San Diego State) - 5 catches, 177 yards, 2 TDs vs Utah State
4. D.J. Woods (Cincinnati) - 7 catches, 171 yards, 1 TD vs Oklahoma
5. Torrey Smith (Maryland) - 8 catches, 159 yards, 1 TD vs Florida International
6. Michael Johnson (UNLV) - 8 catches, 138 yards, 3 TDs vs New Mexico
7. Titus Young (Boise State) - 5 catches, 136 yards, 1 TD vs Oregon State
8. Jarius Wright (Arkansas) - 6 catches, 131 yards, 0 TDs vs Alabama
9. Greg Salas (Hawaii) - 7 catches, 131 yards, 2 TDs vs Charleston State
10. Michael Smith (UConn) - 4 catches, 130 yards, 1 TD vs Buffalo