The Pac-12 and the Big 12 are emerging as conferences with interesting races, even if neither so-called Power 5 conference has a serious contender for the College Football Playoff. TCU is currently leading the Big 12 after knocking out the starting quarterbacks in wins over Oklahoma and Kansas and then benefiting from a defensive meltdown from Oklahoma State and winning in double overtime. Kansas State comes to Fort Worth this Saturday to give the Horned Frogs their latest test. UCLA is in the driver’s seat right now to win the Pac-12, but Oregon has returned to the top ten by winning all their games since that Week 1 disaster against Georgia. UCLA heads to Oregon this weekend to play for the top spot in the conference standings. Let’s take a look at the five best sports betting options from the college gridiron for the coming weekend.
NCAA News: Top 5 Betting Games for Week 8
→ Saturday, October 22
Kansas Jayhawks (+8.5) at Baylor Bears
(12:00 pm ET, ESPN2)
Baylor has dropped two in a row, losing to Oklahoma State at home and then at West Virginia, with those games bookending their bye week. Next is a date with the Kansas Jayhawks, who were lighting up the Big 12 until their starting quarterback, Jalon Daniels, went down with a shoulder injury against TCU. Jason Bean does not have the same versatility at quarterback, and Baylor has a front seven that can stop the run. Kansas’ defense also has problems, as became apparent after Oklahoma could not manage a single point against Texas before hanging 52 on Kansas. It helped that the Sooners had starting quarterback Dillon Gabriel back, but the Jayhawks’ defense has holes that Baylor can exploit. Frankly, if Baylor can’t take advantage of a backup quarterback and cover this spread, we may need to consider the prospects of relegation too, say, the Sun Belt. Bears to win and cover.
Texas Longhorns (-6) at Oklahoma State Cowboys
(3:30 pm ET, ABC)
This line opened at Texas -3 and has moved further in the Longhorns’ direction amid uncertainty about the status of Oklahoma State quarterback Spencer Sanders. The Cowboys have won eight of the 11 meetings between the two teams since 2010, and the last five games have come down to single digits. Texas has better talent overall and has a stout front seven, and the Oklahoma State secondary has been porous. Even so, I see the Cowboys bouncing back from TCU’s run of luck last week. Cowboys to cover.
Ole Miss Rebels (+1.5) at LSU Tigers
(3:30 pm ET, CBS)
A red flag for Ole Miss fans – that defense has been porous lately. Yes, Kentucky only scored 19 in Week 5, but then Vanderbilt scored 28 and Auburn scored 34. LSU has a much more powerful attack, as they showed when they dropped 45 on Florida down in Gainesville. LSU has the front seven to slow down the Ole Miss running game, which means that Jaxson Dart will have to elevate the passing game. Ole Miss has problems of their own in the secondary, as we saw when Kentucky pushed Ole Miss to the brink. Tigers to win and cover.
Texas A&M Aggies (-3.5) at South Carolina Gamecocks
(7:30 pm ET, SEC Network)
The Gamecocks went to Kentucky last week and beat the Wildcats, 24-14 – although Kentucky was rolling with a backup quarterback. The Gamecocks have not beaten Texas A&M in SEC play at all – and the Aggies joined the conference in 2012. Even so, the Gamecocks have more momentum coming in. The Aggies come in off the bye after getting shelled at Mississippi State and narrowly losing at Alabama, and starting quarterback Haynes King has taken his lumps so far. The Gamecocks also come in off the bye, and the shine is really off an Aggie program that considered itself a national contender before that shocking loss to Appalachian State. Gamecocks to cover.
Kansas State Wildcats (+3.5) at TCU Horned Frogs
(8:00 pm ET, FS1)
Both of these teams keep the pace relatively slow, but TCU has the potential to score in bunches, picking up chunk plays. TCU has run 43 plays that gained at least 20 yards, while Kansas State only has run 20. The Wildcats’ defense is steadier than TCU’s, though, and is less likely to give up those big plays. Kansas State has only one loss this season, and that is to a Tulane team that also has a high-octane offense. Can the Wildcats go to Fort Worth and pull off the upset, or even cover? During the Bill Snyder days, I would have said yes, but after the Wildcats could only manage ten points at Iowa State, this will be a challenge. Horned Frogs to win and cover.
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