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BYU opens as 17.5-point favorite in Week 3 matchup at Colorado State
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- BYU opens as 17.5-point favorite in Week 3 matchup at Colorado State
(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
The 11th-ranked BYU Cougars hit the road for the first time in the 2026 football season.
Being able to start off 2-0 before heading to Fort Collins for a meeting with the Colorado State Rams. The old WAC/Mountain West foe will definitely spark up nostalgia as a blast from the past. BYU's first trip to FOCO in nearly two decades will be interesting. The Cougars come into the game as an early 17.5-point favorite, according to FanDuel .
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Not surprising considering the history between the Cougars and Rams. CSU has lost 27 straight games against AP Top 25 ranked opponents with the last win against No. 7 Colorado at Mile High Stadium on Aug. 31, 2002. The last time a ranked BYU team was upset by CSU came in 1994 in Provo.
Nevertheless, Colorado State isn't expected to be much of a threat for BYU on both sides of the ball. They've looked great against Wyoming and Southern Utah, but will have to find ways to try and beat the Cougars starting in the trenches. A tall order considering how Kalani Sitake's team dominated Arizona on Saturday. One of the most significant Colorado State football games in years in front of a national TV audience.
This will also be BYU's first time visiting Canvas Stadium in Fort Collins. Opened in 2017, the state-of-the-art venue replaced Hughes Stadium to bring football back to the heart of the main campus. The move was roughly five miles away from the foot of the Flatirons. CSU traded a scenic atmosphere for downtown accessibility. What is unknown is how many BYU fans will make the trip across the Front Range for the Week 3 matchup.
Former TCU and Oklahoma State QB Hauss Henjny is the signal-caller for the Rams and is a dual-threat. Through two games, Hejny has thrown for 539 yards, nine touchdowns and an interception. He'll go head-to-head with BYU QB Bear Bachmeier , who has played outstanding to start the season. The sophomore accounted for all four touchdowns in the Cougars' 28-14 win over Arizona.
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Former NFL head coach Jim Mora Jr. is in his first season at Colorado State after four seasons at UConn . He's back in the state he grew up in while his dad, Jim Sr., was an assistant for Colorado football legend Eddie Crowder in Boulder. This will be Mora's first meeting with Sitake.
Canvas Stadium will be electric for this matchup. This is the first meeting in the series since 2010, with BYU looking for an eighth-straight win since 2003. Kickoff will be at 7:30 p.m. ET on CBS.
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