It’s a Big-12 showdown when the 12th-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys pick a fight with the 22nd-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers at High Noon this Saturday. The rivalry game is set to take place on Saturday, October 28th at 12 p.m. EST. The contest can be seen on the ABC Network for your early football entertainment. Oddsmakers have the Cowboys as a -7.5 point favorite on the road. They also have the over/under set at a lofty 73.5 points.
The Oklahoma State Cowboys ride into this Big-12 battle after escaping with a 13-10 overtime victory over the Texas Longhorns. The victory was the Cowboys third in a row. In fact, this is the second time this season that they have put together a three-game winning streak. Their last one ended at the hands of the TCU Horned Frogs on September 23rd.
The West Virginia Mountaineers return back home after a hard-fought 38-36 win over the Baylor Bears in Waco. Fortunately, their defense was able to keep the Bears out of the end zone during a last-second two-point conversion to tie up the game. Now, the Mountaineers will be gunning for their chance at a three-game winning streak against the Cowboys.
In their last meeting, the West Virginia was almost doubled up 37-20 in Stillwater. The triumph made it two straight for the Cowboys and four of the last six.
(12) Oklahoma State Cowboys (6-1)
The Oklahoma State Cowboys’ aspirations of playing for a national title are still alive because of their win in Texas. So far, their only loss is at the hands of a solid TCU team that is ranked fourth in the country. The Cowboys are finding ways to win with one of the FBS’s most potent offenses. They hope to replicate their performance last year against the Mountaineers and lay another 37 points on the board.
Quarterback Mason Rudolph has been one of the best players under-center in Division I football. He has been consistent from week to week with only one weak game against the Horned Frogs on his resume’. It was a rougher outing against a stout Longhorn defense last week. The captain threw for only 282 yards with no touchdowns and no picks. Overall, he has completed 66 percent of his throws for 2,650 yards with 19 (T2nd) touchdowns and only four interceptions.
Running back Justice Hill has turned on the jets in his last four games. He has eclipsed the century mark in all four and provided balance to the Cowboys’ offense. Last week, Hill touched the ball 33 times out of the backfield against Texas. He also dashed for 117 yards but failed to find the end zone. Altogether, the shifty tailback has 750 yards and six combined touchdowns.
Pass-catchers James Washington, Marcell Ateman, and Jalen McCleskey are the best trio of wideouts in college football. Combined, they have over 2,000 yards receiving yards and 15 touchdowns. Washington is a beast, catching a team-high 38 passes for 912 yards and six touchdowns. Ateman is close, with another 33 grabs for well over 600 yards and four more scores.
Basically, the Oklahoma State Cowboys defense has been hit or miss all season long. Against strong teams, they seem to struggle and force their offense to outscore their opponents. Fortunately, they came up big against Texas and held the Longhorns to just 10 points. In all, the Cowboys are ranked 72nd against the pass and 36th against the run. They also are surrendering 22 points to opposing offenses.
(22) West Virginia Mountaineers (5-2)
The Mountaineers avoided a letdown performance by holding back the Bears two-point conversion in the waning moments of last week’s contest. As a result, the Mountaineers sit 3-1 in the Big-12 Conference and 5-2 overall. This game is huge for the Blue Mountain Boys because another loss in the conference will dash their hopes of playing for the conference title.
Florida transfer quarterback Will Grier has been absolutely outstanding in the Mountaineers offense this season. Grier has thrown for over 2,000 passing yards and 21 touchdowns with just five interceptions. Last week, it more of the same from the hot-handed thrower. Grier completed 26 passes for 375 yards and an impressive five touchdowns. He should find plenty of open spots to connect with his receivers against the Cowboys average secondary this weekend.
Running backs Justin Crawford and Kennedy McCoy are doing the best they can to keep the offense balanced for the Mountaineers. Together, the two tailbacks have rushed for nearly 950 yards with 10 touchdowns. Crawford has been especially productive, rushing for over 100 yards in his last five contests and has a team-high seven rushing touchdowns. Quarterback Will Grier isn’t afraid to tuck the ball and run with it either. He also has chipped in almost 100 yards with two more trips to the end zone.
The Mountaineers are also finding plenty of teamwork from four different wideouts. Gary Jennings and David Sills V are the two that stand out to me. Both have caught over 100 passes together and both have found the back of the end zone. Jennings leads the team with 56 catches. Sills V is Will Grier’s favorite choice in the red zone. The outstanding receiver has been brutal on opposing cornerbacks, catching 15 touchdowns on the year with 737 yards on the year.
The West Virginia defense did have some trouble finding ways to stop the Baylor offense in their latest test. Unfortunately, they allowed the Bearss to compile 497 yards of total offense. That has to be concerning, as they will face a much better offense when they play the Cowboys this weekend at home. They are very weak against the run, ranking 100th in the nation, surrendering 198 yards per game. The secondary is worse, allowing 261 yards a game which is 105th in the FBS.
Prediction
Las Vegas has given the Cowboys a lot of respect by having them as a 7.5 point favorite. They really haven’t beaten the stronger opponents by much and certainly not on the road. Still, Mason Rudolph could have a field day against this Mountaineers offense. With that being said, Will Grier could also gash the Cowboys for tons of yardage and points. In fact, Kenny Sills V is actually the hotter receiver compared to James Washington coming into this game. Nevertheless, both will have big days in this shoot-out.
Because both of these clubs can score from anywhere on the field and the Mountaineers are home, I like the seven points with the hook here. I believe that West Virginia will go tit for tat with the Cowboys and this game will be down to the wire. Take West Virginia to cover the 7.5 as a home dog at Mountaineer Field. It’s a very tough place to go in and get a victory, let alone one by more than a touchdown.
Also, the over/under is way up there at 73.5. With these two offenses, that could be reached. As a matter of fact, there might be 40 plus points by the end of the first half. Still, a lot of these games that are supposed to be high-scoring can still have plenty of points but not 73.5. I’m staying off of this total for that reason. Certainly, I’d have no problem if my readers would like to play the over with Mason Rudolph and Will Grier on the same field. #moneytreesgrow @EriktheHun
Trends
The Cowboys are 28-11-1 ATS in their last 40 games in October.
The Cowboys are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 conference games.
The Under is 6-1 in the Cowboys last 7 road games.
The Mountaineers are 6-14 ATS in their last 20 games in October.
The Mountaineers are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games following an ATS loss.
The Over is 5-1 in the Mountaineers last 6 home games.
Under is 4-0 in the last 4 meetings.
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