The Washington State Cougars bounced back from a tough loss to the Arizona Wildcats with a big win over the Stanford Cardinal to remain in the top-25. Now they will look to keep on rolling in the second of back-to-back road games against Pac-12 opponents to close out the year. Washington State can’t afford to get caught looking too far ahead with a looming showdown against the rival Washington Huskies in their season finale. The Cougars have made some major noise this season but they still have a lot of work to do if they are going to reach their ultimate goal in the Pac-12.
As of this moment, they are second in the Pac-12 North, with one more loss than Washington. However, they will play the Huskies in their final game. That means that if they win out, they could still go to the Pac-12 Championship Game. A week ago, this would have been a likely win for Wazzu as the Utes had lost four straight. However, they are rejuvenated following a blowout win over the UCLA Bruins last Friday. Can they keep their momentum going and upend the No. 19 team in the country this Saturday?
Details
Odds: Washington State -1
Date & Time: Saturday November 11th, 2017 – 5:30 PM ET
Location: Rice-Eccles Stadium, Salt Lake City, Utah
Broadcast: Pac-12 Network
Reasons To Bet On The Washington State Cougars
Cougars quarterback Luke Falk led an inspiring drive at the end of last week’s win over Stanford. The senior passer threw for 337 yards and three touchdowns to become the Pac-12’s career passing yards leader in a big win over a tough conference opponent. At 8-2, Washington State can’t be overlooked in the conference but they will need to take down both Utah and Washington to reach 10 wins. The Cougars will once again lean heavily on a pass offense that has averaged 381.7 yards per game so far this season. If Falk can effectively move the football without turning the ball over then Washington State will be tough to beat on the road this week.
Reasons To Bet On The Utah Utes
Utah had dropped four in a row in the month of October before turning the page with a big win over UCLA to begin November. The Utes are still in a bad spot however with games against Washington State, Washington and Colorado to close out the year. Head coach Kyle Whittingham credited the team’s win over the Bruins as playing with a chip on their shoulders and they will need that same attitude to defend their stadium on Saturday. Quarterback Tyler Huntley threw for 327 yards and four touchdowns against UCLA. He will need another big performance under the bright lights at home this week in order to upset a ranked opponent in the Cougars.
Outlook
The Washington State Cougars opened up as a one-point favorite and that’s where the line sits right now. However, we have seen that line bounce around as the Utah Utes were a one-point favorite at one point but now the line has shifted back. While bettors seem indecisive on that front, the total has moved in one way. Since opening up at 51.5, the total has inched up to 52.
The outlook heading in to this game looked a lot differently before Utah came out of nowhere to blow away the Bruins at home last week. However, this is the same Utes team that dropped four in a row in October and we aren’t sold that they have what it takes to win two in a row. Washington State is rolling right now and as long as Falk is healthy and performing at a high level they are going to be tough to beat. The Cougars can’t afford to underestimate Utah in a potential trap game this week. As long as they remain focused they should have no problem extending their win streak heading in to the highly anticipated showdown with Washington to close out the season.
Pick: Washington State -1
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