In a battle of two schools that like to keep the ball on the ground, Coach Lincoln Riley and the No. 8 Oklahoma Sooners (-24) are set to take on their conference nemesis Kansas State Wildcats at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. FOX has the TV rights and the game is scheduled to get going at 3:30 p.m. ET.
Betting Preview: Oklahoma Sooners vs. Kansas State Wildcats
Kansas State is a heavy road dog here and is currently receiving 24 points by bookmakers. If the Wildcats get ahead early on it’ll produce a worthy betting opportunity in-game. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 64 points.
This matchup’s line opened at -22 but has recently moved down to -24. The game’s total hasn’t moved after it was set initially at 64.
The Wildcats are down 0.3 units so far in 2018 and 4-3 against the spread (ATS). They’ve been a good under bet and have posted an Over-Under mark of 2-4.
The Sooners have gained 0.0 units this season. The team is 3-4 ATS and the over has hit in six of its games.
The Wildcats are 3-4 straight up (SU), including 1-3 SU against Big 12 opponents. The Sooners are 6-1 SU overall and are also 3-1 SU in conference play.
The Wildcats are coming off a resounding 31-12 victory over Oklahoma State on October 13. The passing attack left much to be desired as Skylar Thompson completed only 11 passes on 22 attempts for 130 yards. Alex Barnes (181 yards on 34 rush attempts, four TDs) and the signal-caller Thompson (80 yards on 12 carries) led the ground attack. Isaiah Zuber (three receptions, 33 yards) and Barnes (three catches, 51 yards) handled the receiving duties in the win.
Oklahoma just got a 52-27 win over TCU. Kyler Murray completed 19-of-24 passes for 213 yards and four touchdowns. Kennedy Brooks (168 rushing yards on 18 attempts, one TD) and Trey Sermon (110 yards on 17 carries, two TDs) spearheaded the running game while CeeDee Lamb (five receptions, 91 yards, one TD) and Marquise Brown (five catches, 41 yards) led the pass-catching attack in the win.
Kansas State’s run the ball on 63.1 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Oklahoma has an overall rush percentage of 58.3 percent. The Wildcats have run for 191.6 yards/game (including 202.0 per game versus Big 12 opponents) and have 12 scores on the ground this year. The Sooners are totaling 225.1 rushing yards per game (222.8 in conference) and have 19 total rush TDs.
If 2018 numbers can translate to this game, then it appears the Sooners ought to own an advantage in terms of efficiency in the ground game. Their running backs has produced 6.4 yards per carry while the defense has allowed a YPC of 3.5 to opponents. The Wildcats have rushed for 4.6 yards per carry while allowing 5.2 yards per rush attempt to opponents.
The Wildcats offensive scheme has averaged 164.7 yards through the air overall (154.0 per game against conference opposition) and has six passing scores so far. The Sooners have put up 301.1 pass yards per outing (326 against Big 12 foes) and have 26 total pass TDs.
Defensively, Kansas State has allowed 173.0 rush yards and 233.1 pass yards per game. The Oklahoma defense has given up 249.9 yards per game to opposing passers and 150.4 yards per game to opposing runners. The Wildcats are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 5.09 to opponents, while the Sooners have given up a 6.54 ANY/A.
Murray has been more productive than Thompson lately. His adjusted net yards per pass attempt stands at 14.09 for the season and 11.49 over his past two outings while Thompson’s ANY/A is 6.05 and 3.11 over his last two.
When these two squads met last year, Oklahoma won by a touchdown 42-35.
Kansas State Wildcats vs. Oklahoma Sooners Free Pick
SU Winner: Oklahoma, ATS Winner: Kansas State, O/U: Over
