In a battle of two schools that prefer to run the football, Head Coach Les Miles and the Kansas Jayhawks (+22) are gearing up to take on their conference rival No. 15 Texas Longhorns at Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium/Jamail Field. The game is scheduled to kick off at 7:00 p.m. ET and LGHN will televise the action.
Betting Preview: Texas Longhorns vs. Kansas Jayhawks
Kansas is a big road underdog here and is currently receiving 22 points from oddsmakers. Vegas has set the over/under (O/U) at 61 points. There could be some good live betting opportunities while the showdown is taking place.
This game’s opening line was -24. The total has yet to move after it was initially posted at 61.
The profitable Jayhawks are 2-4 against the spread (ATS) and have gained 4.8 units this season. The team has posted an O/U record of 3-3.
The Longhorns have gained 1.0 unit in 2019. The team is 4-2 ATS and owns an O/U record of 4-2.
The Jayhawks have gone only 2-4 straight up (SU), including 0-3 SU against Big 12 opponents. The Longhorns are 4-2 SU overall and are also 2-1 SU in conference play.
The Jayhawks are hoping to get back in stride after a 45-20 defeat to Oklahoma on October 5. Carter Stanley completed 18 passes for 230 yards and three touchdowns. Pooka Williams Jr. (137 rushing yards on 23 attempts) led the ground attack in the loss. Stephon Robinson Jr. (five receptions, 131 yards, two TDs) and Williams Jr. (five catches, 20 yards) handled the receiving duties.
One week ago, Oklahoma knocked off this Texas crew by a score of 34-27. The Longhorns defense let the Sooners run for 276 yards on 38 rush attempts, along with one rushing TD. CeeDee Lamb was a force to be reckoned with, recording 171 yards and three touchdowns on 10 catches for Oklahoma. For Texas, Sam Ehlinger completed 26-of-38 passes for 210 yards. Ehlinger (-9 rushing yards on 23 attempts, two TDs) and Roschon Johnson (95 yards on eight carries, one TD) spearheaded the ground game in the defeat while Devin Duvernay (eight receptions, 54 yards) and Johnson (six catches, 82 yards) led the pass-catching attack.
Kansas has run the ball on 55.4 percent of its offensive plays this year, including 49.1 percent across possessions in conference play. Texas has an overall rush percentage of 50.8 percent, and has kept it on the ground 56.4 percent of the time against Big 12 opponents. The Jayhawks have rushed for 158.7 yards/game (including 115.7 per game versus Big 12 opponents) and have five scores via handoffs this year. The Longhorns are logging 163 rushing yards per game (177.7 in conference) and have 13 total rush TDs.
It seems like the Jayhawks could hold an edge in the trenches. Their offensive line has yielded only 30 sacks while the D-line registered 21 sacks. The Longhorns, on the other hand, have allowed 27 sacks and their defense has forced only 32 sacks.
The Jayhawks offensive scheme has tallied 195.8 yards per contest through the air overall (196.3 per game versus conference opposition) and has 12 passing scores so far. The Longhorns have produced 291.7 pass yards per outing (234 against Big 12 foes) and have 17 total pass TDs.
Kansas appears to possess an edge when it comes to limiting the pass. The team’s allowed opponents to run for an average of 220.8 yards and pass for 223.7 yards per game. The Texas defense has allowed 310 yards per game to opposing passers and 143.3 yards per game to opposing runners. Both teams allow similar adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) to opponents, as the Jayhawks have given up an ANY/A of 6.59 to opposing QBs, while the Longhorns are yielding an ANY/A of 7.01.
Passing-wise, Stanley is up to 1,091 yards this season. He’s connected on 70 percent of his 128 attempts with 11 passing scores and four interceptions. Stanley’s got a 7.80 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number sits at 5.90 over the last two outings.
In the hosts’ locker room, Sam Ehlinger has completed 128-of-178 passes for 1,447 yards, 15 TDs and one INT. Ehlinger’s ANY/A stands at 8.37 for the season and 4.13 across his past two games.
When these two schools met a year ago, Texas knocked off Kansas by a touchdown 24-17.
Kansas Jayhawks vs. Texas Longhorns NCAA Tip
SU Winner: Texas, ATS Winner: Kansas, O/U: Under
Team Betting Trends
- The Kansas defense has sacked opposing quarterbacks 12 times this year. Texas has recorded 10 sacks.
- Texas has lost three fumbles this season while Kansas has lost four.
- The Jayhawks offense has recorded one pass play of 40 or more yards, while the Longhorns have accounted for four such plays.
- The Kansas defense has allowed four pass plays of 40 yards or more, while Texas has given up eight such plays.
- The Kansas offense has created 12 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while Texas has created five such runs.
- The Jayhawks defense has allowed 13 rushing plays of 20 yards or more, while the Longhorns have given up six such runs.
- The Over/Under for Texas’ previous match was 77. The under cashed in the team’s 34-27 defeat to Oklahoma.
- Over its last three matchups, Texas is 2-1 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
- In its last three contests, Kansas is 1-2 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
- Kansas has lost five of its last six games SU, with a 24-point victory over Boston College on September 13th representing the only win over that stretch.
- The Over/Under for Kansas’ last game was 67. The under cashed in the team’s 45-20 defeat to Oklahoma.
- Kansas has rushed for 4.3 yards per attempt across its last three games and 4.1 over its last two.
- Texas has averaged 4.2 yards per carry over its last three contests and 3.7 over its past two.
