The (12) TCU Horned Frogs and the (2) Oklahoma Sooners meet up in Jerry’s World to play for the Big-12 Conference crown this weekend. The contest is set to get started on Saturday, December 2nd at 12:30 p.m. EST and can be viewed on FOX. Coming into this title game, oddsmakers have the Sooners as a -7 point favorite and the match’s over/under is now at 63.5.
The 12th-ranked TCU Horned Frogs get a second shot at the 2nd-ranked Oklahoma Sooners in the conference title game Saturday afternoon. TCU earned their way into this game by defeating Baylor 45-22 last Friday. The contest was the Horned Frogs regular-season finale at home. Now, TCU sits at 7-2 in the Big-12 and 10-2 overall.
The Oklahoma Sooners enter into this game with an 8-1 conference record and are 11-1 on the year. Oklahoma claimed its seventh-straight win as they beat down West Virginia 59-31 at home last weekend. This will be the final chance that Oklahoma will get if they hope to compete in the College Football Playoffs to finish out the year.
The Sooners hold a 12-5 overall edge in the all-time series between the two schools. They also have won the last three meetings, including a 38-20 home win back on November 11 of this year.
(12) TCU Horned Frogs (10-2)
The TCU Horned Frogs won their second straight football game and earned their way into this Big-12 title showdown when they knocked off Baylor at home Friday night. TCU led just 21-19 at the half but managed to outscore the Bears 24-3 in the second half to put the game away. The Horned Frogs will try to avenge the loss they took to the Sooners in Norman last month.
TCU is 56th in passing offense in the FBS by putting up 238 yards per game. They also are while 48th in the country by putting up 184 yards a game on the ground. Altogether, the Horned Frogs are ranked 28th in the nation by piling up 34.5 points a game.
Horned Frogs signal-caller Kenny Hill has been consistent throughout his 2017 campaign. The rifleman has hit 215 of 323 passes for 2,604 yards with 19 touchdowns against five interceptions. The athletic player has also added another 215 yards on the ground with four more trips to pay-dirt. He should have plenty of opportunities to move the ball against one of the nation’s worst defenses.
Unfortunately, TCU will be without the services of their leading rusher Darius Anderson. Anderson was sidelined for the season in the last game against the Sooners in November. His 768 rushing yards and eight touchdowns will be sorely missed. Now, tailback Kyle Hicks will have to shoulder the load for TCU. In 2017, the nifty runner has accumulated 565 yards via the ground and four scores.
Wide receiver Desmon White is the Horned Frog’s leading pass-catcher. He has reeled in 33 passes for 362 yards and four trips to the back of the end zone. Teammate John Diarse adds another 28 receptions for a team-high 477 yards plus two scores to the mix. KaVontae Turpin isn’t far behind with 32 grabs and 343 yards with a touchdown. Lastly, Jalen Reagor (26 receptions, 377 yards, team-high six scores) is another reliable target.
The defense has been the backbone of the Horned Frogs 10-2 record since the beginning of the year. TCU stands 8th in the nation by allowing just 15.7 points per contest. Their front seven is sturdy, holding opposing runners to only 90 yards per game (2nd). The secondary does struggle a bit which could really hurt them if they let Baker Mayfield have time to throw. As of now, they sit 73rd in the country, giving up 227 points a contest.
(2) Oklahoma Sooners (11-1)
The Oklahoma Sooners finished the season hot. Their 59-31 win over West Virginia was their seventh in a row. As a result, the Sooners climbed to #2 in the AP poll with the losses by the Crimson Tide and the Miami Hurricane. A win in this title game should lock them in for a spot in the College Football Playoff.
Heisman front-runner Baker Mayfield is having himself quite the season. Because of the play of the Sooner’s defense, he has been asked to carry the load all by himself. So far, he has answered the call with bells on. In 2017, Mayfield has completed 247 of 346 passes for 4,097 yards. Also, the stellar passer has thrown for 37 touchdowns and only five interceptions. He also is good with his legs, adding 245 yards and five scores on the ground.
When Oklahoma looks to move the chains with their ground attack, they call on three different tailbacks to get the job done. Together, the threesome has amassed well over 2,000 yards and 17 trips to the promised land. Rodney Anderson leads the group with 867 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns. Abdul Adams has impressed with his 9.2 yards a carry average and Trey Sermon is solid with 647 more yards and five scores.
Quarterback Baker Mayfield spreads the ball around better than any thrower in the nation. Six wide receivers all have caught a plethora of passes and all have found their way into the end zone on plenty of occasions. Mark Andrews has a team-high 51 catches for 848 yards and six touchdowns. On the other side, Marquise Brown leads the Sooners with 894 yards and has five scores to his credit. CeeDee Lamb is tops on the club with nine touchdowns.
Its been all about the offense in Norman because the defense has continually let the Oklahoma fans down. They have shown a bit of improvement over the last three weeks but still aren’t anything to write home to mom about. Overall, the unit allows schools to score 25 points a game (57th). The secondary has been torched in 2017, surrendering 241 yards through the air (90th).
Prediction
Odds setters have the Oklahoma Sooners as a -7 point favorite for this Big-12 Championship game at AT&T Stadium. Deservedly so because they are scoring points in bunches and have already beaten the Horned Frogs 38-20 back in November. They also have this game’s over/under at 63.5. I believe both of these lines are very playable.
I like the fact that Oklahoma has been improving on defense as the season rolls along. Their front seven isn’t all that bad and the Horned Frogs will not have their leading rusher at their disposal. That doesn’t bode well for a team that needs to put up plenty of points to keep up with Baker Mayfield’s offensive output. Plus, Oklahoma would like to win this one going away to leave the committee no doubt as to who they should include in the final four. For these reasons, I like the Sooners to win this game by 10 points or more.
As for the total, well I still think that the Horned Frogs have enough talent on the offensive side of the ball to put up some points here. I’m guessing they will be good for more than the 20 points they put up the last time they met. I also can see Oklahoma getting to the 38-40 mark once again. For these reasons, I’m going to suggest to the readers that they play the over 63.5. The Sooners win their way into the College Football Playoffs with a 42-28 victory over TCU this Saturday. @EriktheHun
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Trends
The Horned Frogs are 2-8 ATS in their last 10 neutral site games.
The Under is 7-1 in the Horned Frogs last 8 games overall.
The Sooners are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall.
The Over is 24-10-1 in the Sooners last 35 games on field turf.
Under is 6-2 in the last 8 meetings.
