The Kansas Jayhawks (+29) will clash with their conference foe No. 9 West Virginia Mountaineers at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium. The afternoon game will get going at 12:00 p.m. ET and interested parties can watch the action on ESPN2.
Betting Preview: Kansas Jayhawks vs. West Virginia Mountaineers
West Virginia is the heavy favorite and is currently giving up 29 points to Kansas. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 61 points, and this game may present some live betting possibilities.
The opening line was -28. The game’s total hasn’t moved since it opened at 61.
The hapless Jayhawks have lost 3.4 units so far and are 2-3 against the spread (ATS). The team has recorded an O/U mark of 2-2.
The Mountaineers have been a nice surprise for moneyline bettors this season, gaining 3.0 units. They’re 4-0 ATS and also own an even O/U record of 2-2.
The Jayhawks have gone 2-3 straight up (SU), including 0-2 SU against Big 12 opponents. The Mountaineers are 4-0 SU overall and are also 2-0 SU in conference play.
The Jayhawks are most-recently reeling from a 48-28 defeat to Oklahoma State last week. Carter Stanley completed 24 passes on 32 attempts for 247 yards and three touchdowns. Pooka Williams Jr. (97 yards on 13 rush attempts, one TD) and the signal-caller Stanley (-1 yards on 13 carries) mounted the ground attack. Steven Sims Jr. (10 receptions, 89 yards, one TD) and Williams Jr. (six catches, 60 yards) shared the receiving duties in the defeat.
West Virginia just picked up a 42-34 win over Texas Tech. Will Grier completed 27-of-41 passes for 370 yards and three touchdowns. Kennedy McKoy (77 rushing yards on 11 attempts, one TD) mounted the running game while Marcus Simms (nine receptions, 138 yards, one TD) and Gary Jennings Jr. (seven catches, 70 yards, two TDs) led the receiving corps in the win.
Kansas has run the ball on 55.7 percent of its offensive plays this year, including 50.4 percent across possessions in conference play. West Virginia has a rush percentage of 48.7 percent, and has run the ball 43.8 percent of the time against Big 12 opponents. The Jayhawks have run for 184.0 yards per game (including 121.5 per game versus Big 12 opponents) and have seven scores on the ground this year. The Mountaineers are averaging 158.5 rushing yards per game (113.5 in conference) and have five total rush TDs.
It seems like the Mountaineers might have the more disruptive lines up front. Their offensive line has allowed just six sacks while their D-line has registered eight sacks. The Jayhawks O-line has allowed 16 sacks and their defense has generated only five sacks.
The Jayhawks offensive scheme has averaged 175.8 yards in the air overall (198.0 per game versus conference opposition) and has eight passing scores so far. The Mountaineers have put up an astonishing 372.8 pass yards per game (363 in the Big 12) and have 17 total pass TDs.
Defensively, Kansas has let opponents rush for an average of 177.2 yards and throw for 202.4 yards per game. The West Virginia defense has allowed 212.8 yards per game to opposing passers and 131.0 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 5.52 to opposing QBs, while the Mountaineers are yielding an ANY/A of 5.30.
Grier likely has the edge over Stanley in this matchup. His adjusted net yards per pass attempt sits at 12.27 for the season and 9.81 across his past two games while Stanley’s ANY/A is 7.50 (and 7.07 over the last two games).
These two squads met a year ago with the final outcome being a 56-34 victory for West Virginia.
Kansas Jayhawks at West Virginia Mountaineers Bedding Prediction
SU Winner: West Virginia, ATS Winner: Kansas, O/U: Over
Team Betting Trends
- The West Virginia defense has recorded eight sacks on the year while Kansas has five.
- Both teams have lost two fumbles this year.
- The Jayhawks offense has recorded zero pass plays of 40+ yards, while the Mountaineers have put up six such plays.
- Both defenses have allowed four pass plays of 40 yards or more. The Kansas defense has given up eight pass plays of 30+ yards while West Virginia has permitted seven such plays.
- The Kansas offense has created 13 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while West Virginia has created six such runs.
- The Jayhawks defense has allowed six rushing plays of 20+ yards, while the Mountaineers have given up four such runs.
- West Virginia was getting 4 points in its last outing and the O/U was set at 75.5. The over cashed and West Virginia covered in the team’s 42-34 win over Texas Tech.
- Over its last three matches, West Virginia is 3-0 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
- Over its last three contests, Kansas is 1-2 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
- Kansas was getting 17 points in its last game and the O/U going into it was 56. The over cashed and Kansas did not cover in the 48-28 loss to Oklahoma State.
- Kansas, as a team, has averaged 5.94495412844037 yards per carry over its past three games and 4.0 over its last two.
- West Virginia has averaged 4.9 yards per carry over its last three outings and 3.8 over its past two.
