In a battle of two teams that like to run the football, Coach Smith Jonathan and the Oregon State Beavers (+24) are taking the field against their conference rival Colorado Buffaloes at Folsom Field. The opening kickoff for this game is set for 3:00 p.m. ET and Pac-12 Networks is scheduled to televise the action.
Oregon State Beavers at Colorado Buffaloes Betting Preview
Colorado has been tabbed as the heavy favorite and is currently giving up 24 points to Oregon State. Oddsmakers have determined the over/under (O/U) to be 63.5 points, and there ought to be be some solid live betting possibilities for the game.
The opening line was -24. The game’s O/U has not changed after it was initially posted at 63.5.
The Beavers are 2-5 against the spread (ATS) and have lost 3.0 units so far. The team’s posted an O/U record of 5-2. The surprising Buffaloes have gained 2.4 units this season. The team is 5-2 ATS and has an O/U record of 0-6.
The Beavers have gone 1-6 straight up (SU), including 0-4 SU against Pac-12 opponents. The Buffaloes are 5-2 SU overall and 2-2 SU in conference play.
The Beavers may be showing signs of mailing it in following a 42-point loss to California last week where the Beavers completed 17-of-33 passes for 146 yards and two interceptions. Jack Colletto went 11-for-20 for 104 yards and one interception while Conor Blount completed six-of-13 for 42 yards and one interception. Artavis Pierce (only 44 rushing yards on 13 attempts) and B.J. Baylor (18 yards on 10 carries) led the running attack while Pierce (five receptions, 72 yards) and Trevon Bradford (three catches, 34 yards) manned the receiving duties in the defeat.
Colorado just suffered a 27-13 loss to Washington. The team’s defense allowed the Huskies to run for 201 yards on 40 rush attempts, including two rush TDs. Salvon Ahmed put up a productive showing in the win for Washington, accounting for 73 rushing yards and a score on nine attempts. For Colorado, Steven Montez completed 17-of-28 passes for 144 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Travon McMillian (86 yards on 25 rush attempts) led the running game while K.D. Nixon (four receptions, 36 yards) and Brady Russell (four catches, 23 yards) led the pass-catching corps in the loss.
Oregon State has run the ball on 58.6 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Colorado has a rush percentage of 55.4 percent. The Beavers have rushed for 195 yards per game (including 182 per game versus Pac-12 opponents) and have 18 scores on the ground this year. The Buffaloes are averaging 172 rush yards per game (147 in conference) and have 16 total rushing TDs.
It appears that the Buffaloes could hold an edge in the trenches, as their offensive line has yielded just 16 sacks while the D-line has logged 17 sacks. The Beavers O-line has given up 30 sacks and their defense has sacked opposing signal-callerss on just six occasions.
The Beavers offensive scheme has averaged 228 yards through the air overall (163 per game versus conference opposition) and has eight passing scores so far. The Buffaloes have put up 254 pass yards per contest (227.5 in the Pac-12) and have 12 total pass TDs.
Defensively, Oregon State has let opponents run for an average of 275 yards and pass for 266 yards per game. The Colorado defense has given up 205.4 yards per game to opposing passers and 146.0 yards per game on the ground. The Buffaloes are giving up an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of just 5.29 to opposing QBs, while the Beavers have allowed a staggering 9.36 ANY/A.
Offensively, Blount is up to 887 passing yards this season, and has completed 63 percent of his 120 attempts with seven scores through the air and only two interceptions. He’s got a 5.91 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number is 3.10 over the past two outings.
We’re looking for Beavers to maintain tempo by feeding their running backs early and often. Jermar Jefferson (761 rush yards, eight rush TDs) and Artavis Pierce (303 rush yards, three rush TDs, 119 receiving yards) have brought significant production to the offensive game scripts for Oregon State.
On the other sideline, Steven Montez has completed 132-of-181 passes for 1,564 yards, 12 TDs and three INTs. Montez’s ANY/A sits at 8.35 for the year and 2.51 over his past two games.
The Buffaloes will also try to dictate the game’s pace by turning to their backfield. In addition to Travon McMillian (18 receiving yards), Laviska Shenault Jr. (87 rush yards, five rush TDs, 780 receiving yards, six receiving TDs) and K.D. Nixon (-5 rush yards, 326 receiving yards, one TD) have seen plenty of looks recently.
These two programs faced off a year ago with the final outcome being a 36-33 victory for Colorado.
RELATED: Week 9 College Football Betting Odds and Predictions
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Notes
Team Betting Trends
The Beavers offense has created six pass plays of 40 or more yards, while the Buffaloes have accounted for eight such plays.
The Oregon State defense has allowed six pass plays of 40 yards or more, while Colorado has given up five such plays.
The Oregon State offense has created 19 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while Colorado has created 10 such runs.
The Beavers defense has allowed 23 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while the Buffaloes have given up eight such runs.
The Colorado defensive unit has sacked opposing quarterbacks 17 times this season. Oregon State has registered just six sacks.
As a team, Oregon State has produced 4.4 yards per carry across its last three contests and 4.1 over its last two.
Colorado has averaged 3.2 yards per carry over its last three games and 3.0 over its past two.
In its last three contests, Colorado is 2-1 ATS and the under cashed in each of those three.
The O/U for Oregon State’s previous game was 56.5. The under cashed in the team’s 49-7 defeat to California.
In its last three matchups, Oregon State is 0-3 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
The Over/Under for Colorado’s last outing was 49.5. The under cashed in the 27-13 defeat to Washington.
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