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In a “must see” and “must bet” game of the College Football Week 9, the Sooners-Wildcats spread was sitting at -13.5 in favor of Oklahoma. This line has not moved.
Sportsbook.com Line & Total: Oklahoma -13.5 & 58.5
Opening Line & Total: OU -13.5 & 59
Nobody could have predicted that No. 11 Oklahoma would be ranked lower in the AP Poll than No. 10 Kansas State when the Sooners visit Manhattan, KS on Saturday.
Oklahoma allowed 572 yards in a 41-38 home loss to Texas Tech, while K-State upped its record to 7-0 with a 59-21 win at Kansas, thanks to 5 TD (4 rushing, 1 passing) from QB Collin Klein. Two weeks ago, the Wildcats beat that same Texas Tech tech on the road, 41-34, showing the nation that they can also score in bunches. Oklahoma is 7-1 SU in the past eight meetings with KSU, but the Wildcats are 4-3-1 ATS during this span. K-State has six straight ATS wins, and has also covered six in a row as an underdog. OU has failed to cover three of the past four games it has been favored by at least two touchdowns.
The Sooners haven’t lost two straight conference games since 1998. Oklahoma QB Landry Jones is third in the nation in passing yardage (2,589) and also has a streak of 3+ TD passes in five straight games this year, tossing 19 TD and 5 INT during this run. He was 26-of-37 for 294 yards, 4 TD and 0 INT in his only meeting versus the Wildcats in 2009. He threw two of those scoring passes to WR Ryan Broyles. The senior had a couple of streaks snapped in the loss to the Red Raiders, failing to gain 100 yards or score a touchdown for the first time in five contests. The good news for the Sooners ground game is that leading rusher Dominique Whaley is expected back in the starting lineup after missing last week’s game with an illness. Whaley has 627 rushing yards and nine touchdowns in six games this season.
Oklahoma’s passing defense has allowed 237 YPG (78th in nation), but Texas Tech was the only team to throw for 300 on the Sooners. They have held six of their seven opponents under 150 rushing yards and are allowing a mere 2.6 yards per carry in the past four contests. Since forcing five turnovers against Texas, Oklahoma has failed to take the ball away in its past two games.
Speaking of turnovers, K-State has a total of two offensive turnovers in the past six games, posing a +11 TO margin during this stretch. Klein’s improvement throughout the season has been impressive. He has scored a rushing touchdown in six straight games to give him 14 on the season. He has also completed 66% of his passes in the past three weeks after a mere 55% rate in the first four games of the year. Sophomore RB John Hubert is also having a big year with 637 rushing yards on 5.2 YPC.
The KSU run defense has not allowed a team to reach 140 rushing yards this year, holding Kansas to 76 yards on 37 carries (2.1 YPC) last week. The passing defense has been exposed by good offenses though. Baylor threw for 346 yards and Texas Tech piled up 461 yards against the Wildcats this year.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
