The Oklahoma Sooners needed a critical last-minute stop to escape last weekend’s Bedlam slugfest against Oklahoma State with a victory – and there’s another challenge on the horizon as they wrap up their regular-season schedule in West Virginia on Nov. 23. But the Sooners still need to take care of business in between; fortunately, they’re well-positioned to do so as they host a Kansas Jayhawks team on Saturday that fell 21-17 to Kansas State last week for its sixth loss in the past seven games.
Oklahoma’s 48-47 win over its Stillwater-based rival kept the Sooners’ College Football Playoff chances intact, but revealed some major deficiencies on defense that they’ll need to address if they hope to play for the national championship. And to that end, this week represents a get-right spot on the schedule, with the Jayhawks ranking well outside the top 100 in the country in total offense and points per game. Oklahoma is currently the 36-point favorite; the Sooners routed Kansas 41-3 in last year’s meeting.
- Oklahoma is 9-0 SU in its last nine games at home.
- Kansas is 0-13 SU in its last 13 games vs Oklahoma.
- The total has gone OVER in five of Oklahoma’s last six games.
Kansas vs Oklahoma Game Center
Carry On, Big 12’s Wayward Son
You can’t blame Kansas fans for being skeptical about their team hanging around against an Oklahoma team that boasts the No. 1 offense in the country in terms of yards per game. The Jayhawks have been the worst road team in Division I for the better part of a half-decade and have also been one of the worst in the country against their own conference.
The Jayhawks come into Saturday’s game at the Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium having won just one of their previous 51 road games – and that came earlier this season in a 31-7 triumph at Central Michigan. They’ve also struggled mightily to be competitive over that stretch, having gone a dismal 15-36 ATS over that stretch.
Combined with the Jayhawks boasting just two wins in their previous 37 games against conference opponents – while going 7-17 ATS in their last 24 conference road games – it’s hard to imagine Oklahoma not covering this one despite the massive spread, particularly with the Sooners having gone a sizzling 12-4 ATS in their last 16 games in Norman.
You Can Count on Kyler
Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa might remain the odds-on favorite to win the Heisman Trophy at season’s end, but Oklahoma’s Kyler Murray deserves consideration. Murray has been the top two-way threat in the nation through the first 10 games of the season, and is in great position Saturday to give the Sooners a massive halftime lead before getting a breather in the second half.
Murray’s first-half resume so far in 2018 has been downright mind-boggling. The five-foot-10 dynamo comes into the weekend having completed better than 74 percent of his passes through the first two quarters, with 1,972 passing yards, 21 touchdowns and just three interceptions. He has also racked up 404 rushing yards and four scores on the ground in that span.
Oklahoma would love to have the luxury of resting Murray and an assortment of other starters in the second half with a pivotal game against the Mountaineers looming – so look for the Sooners to go OVER on their first-half total while also covering the first-half spread with relative ease.
My Pick: Kansas Under is a Rock-Chalk Lock
The Sooners have one more week to get their defensive house in order before traveling to face Will Grier and a Mountaineers offense that averages better than 40 points per game. And with Saturday’s outcome not likely to be in doubt, it’s the perfect time for Sooners interim defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill to get Oklahoma refocused defensively against the offense-starved Jayhawks.
I expect Oklahoma to make life miserable for Kansas, just as it did in limiting the host Jayhawks to a lone field goal in last year’s encounter. Kansas has been held to 17 or fewer points in four of its past seven games, and will be lucky to get to double digits in this one. I strongly recommend bettors opt for the UNDER on Kansas’ team total.
