A full Big 12 slate awaits your television this weekend. Here is how I plan to prioritize the conference’s 10 games:

Must watch

1. No. 23 Louisiana at No. 21 Texas (3:30 p.m., FOX): The Steve Sarkisian era begins in Austin on Saturday. For all the hype around the program that ditched Tom Herman for a Nick Saban assistant, this is not a game Texas can mess around in. The Ragin’ Cajuns stunned Iowa State last year, and if their AP Top 25 ranking is any indication, it shouldn’t shock anyone to see them do it to another Big 12 opponent.

2. West Virginia at Maryland (2:30 p.m., ESPN): It felt like the Mountaineers were close to being a problem in the Big 12 last season, so can coach Neal Brown keep building on that in 2021? Seeing how a talented West Virginia defense handles Maryland’s offense ought to tell plenty about the program’s progress.

3. Tulane at Oklahoma (11 a.m., ABC): I expect this game to be over at halftime, not that I’ll be complaining to overanalyze Caleb Williams’ second-half performance.

Some interest

4. Northern Iowa at No. 7 Iowa State (3:30 p.m., ESPN+): I don’t want to come off as an Iowa State doubter, because I’m not. But the top-10 label next to the Cyclones’ name is significant. It implies Iowa State is likely good enough to beat just about every team in the country and should beat inferior teams by a lot. Iowa State has struggled in these spots, so a convincing victory might go a long way in easing some of my hesitation with Iowa State, stemming from its recent struggles in putting away opponents.

5. Stanford vs. Kansas State (11 a.m., FS1) in Arlington, Texas: The Wildcats are a bit of a mystery. I can see them finishing anywhere between third in the conference to seventh.

6. Texas Tech vs. Houston (6 p.m., ESPN) at NRG Stadium: The Red Raiders are projected to finish near the bottom of the conference. Quarterback play has been a struggle around Lubbock as of late but incoming Oregon transfer Tyler Shough might be the solution. How he performs early should dictate where this season goes.

7. Baylor at Texas State (6 p.m., ESPN+): Coach Dave Aranda had a difficult job navigating Year 1 with a program during a global pandemic. I thought Aranda schemed OU really well in the Sooners’ regular-season finale last December, giving me plenty of reason to think the Bears might be back to conference relevancy soon. I still have very little interest in this Baylor contest.

No. Just no.

8. Missouri State at Oklahoma State (6 p.m., ESPN+)

9. Duquesne at TCU (7 p.m., ESPN+)

10. South Dakota at Kansas (7 p.m., ESPN+) on Friday