With the Big 12 wide open, one matchup will shift the weight of Big 12 football in the 2020 season Saturday.

No. 6 Oklahoma State hosts No. 17 Iowa State in a game between two red-hot and undefeated teams atop the Big 12 Conference.

“You talk about the talent that’s involved in the game,” Head Coach Matt Campbell said. “I think [it’s] a great game as a fan to watch.”

The Cowboys and Cyclones are undefeated in the Big 12 with Iowa State having the only loss on the season in a nonconference affair with the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns.

The battle will hold implications that stretch through the season as the Big 12 has seen some parity this season.

Last year’s champion, the Oklahoma Sooners, have fallen to 1-2 and are unranked after making it to the College Football Playoff last season. Texas has been a contender in the conference most seasons, but the Longhorns have also started 1-2 in conference play.

The conference currently belongs to the two teams battling in Stillwater, Oklahoma, on Saturday.

“They have guys all across the board,” redshirt senior defensive back Lawrence White said. “Great O-line and they’re just a well-rounded football team, so it’s gonna be exciting on Saturday.”

The showdown will have plenty of star power with both teams bringing some big talent to the forefront. All eyes will be on the offenses, specifically, the running backs.

Cowboy running back Chuba Hubbard was one of the best running backs and overall playmakers in college football in 2019, amassing 2,094 yards on the ground, 198 yards as a receiver and 21 total touchdowns, all rushing.

Hubbard was efficient too, with 6.4 yards per carry, but Hubbard has cooled off a bit in 2020.

The redshirt junior is only averaging 4.9 yards per carry and has only four touchdowns so far — a stat line that doesn’t stack up to his counterpart on the Cyclones, Breece Hall.

The sophomore has racked up 531 yards and eight touchdowns through just four games, averaging 5.7 yards per carry.

In a year where junior quarterback Brock Purdy hasn’t been performing as well as he has in the past, Hall has been in the driver’s seat of the Cyclone offense.

For Purdy however, this will be a sort of homecoming to his first career game in 2018. Purdy led the Cyclones to a 48-42 win over the Cowboys in a game where he replaced quarterback Zeb Noland and went 18-23 passing for 318 yards and four touchdowns and also ran for 84 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.

Purdy has been the starting quarterback ever since for Iowa State, cementing his name as one of the top quarterbacks in program history.

“When coach told me ‘hey you’re gonna play this game,’ I was really excited,” Purdy said. “I was like ‘OK, I’m gonna show my teammates and everybody what I’m about.'”

Purdy will be looking to repeat his performance Saturday in the same place he started.

On the other side of the field, the defenses have been solid — a change for the old Big 12 narrative of teams lacking defense.

The Big 12 is usually known for its high-flying offenses and pretty poor defenses, but this season has been different for the Cyclones and Cowboys.

For Iowa State, its main strength on defense is its defensive line, especially its depth.

JaQuan Bailey returned this season and while he’s been somewhat quiet after his monster performance against TCU, the redshirt senior is a force on the edge. Bailey is flanked by a number of talented pass rushers and run stuffers including dynamic players like Will McDonald IV and Latrell Bankston, along with consistent glue guys like Eyioma Uwazurike and Zach Petersen.

“I think in a shortened season with the shortened camps, I think the ability to run and be able to play defense certainly gives you the ability to get off to a good start,” Campbell said.

While Iowa State’s defense has impressed, Oklahoma State’s is on another level.

The Cowboys are second in the football bowl subdivision in points allowed per game (9.0). The schedule has been somewhat lackluster, but Oklahoma State has dominated on the defensive side of the ball.

More than Iowa State perhaps, the Cowboys have been able to limit big plays and scoring threats. The Cyclones have been dynamic, but have let some big plays and bad decisions cloud what would’ve looked like a positive performance.

The Cowboys and Cyclones are two teams that aren’t always at the top, but recently Campbell and Oklahoma State Head Coach Mike Gundy have had their teams knocking on the door to a spot at the top of the Big 12.

Now, with the teams in prime position and Purdy returning to the scene of his breakout performance that led him on this path, Iowa State and Oklahoma State will play in one of the most important college football games of the season.