Betting Preview: West Virginia Mountaineers vs Oklahoma Sooners

Fresh off a win over Texas in the Red River Rivalry, the Oklahoma Sooners hope to avoid a letdown this week when they’re nearly five-touchdown favorites over the visiting West Virginia Mountaineers. West Virginia may be without starting quarterback and former Sooner Austin Kendall, who left last week’s loss to Iowa State with a chest injury.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

West Virginia opened as a 32.5-point underdog, marking the first time the Mountaineers have caught four-plus touchdowns since a 2013 clash vs Robert Griffin III and the Baylor Bears. Big numbers are nothing new to Oklahoma, which has laid more than 20 points in five of its six outings this year.

West Virginia News & Notes

At full health, the Mountaineers don’t have much of a chance at an upset this week. Without quarterback Austin Kendall, it’d be virtually impossible.

West Virginia’s offense was essentially non-existent last week after Kendall left the Mountaineers’ home game against Iowa State in the Sportsbook quarter. West Virginia generated just 12 first downs and 190 total yards in a 38-14 loss, and seven of those Mountie points came on an interception return that opened the scoring.

If Kendall can return to action this week, he’d be extremely motivated. He transferred to Morgantown this year after realizing Oklahoma was going to bring in Jalen Hurts, and the Sooners attempted to block his eligibility this season before eventually conceding.

But the former Oklahoma backup QB may not get the chance to show up ex-coach Lincoln Riley, thanks to the chest injury he suffered last week. “I think we’ll know more (Sunday) or Monday,” West Virginia head coach Neal Brown told reporters. “The good thing is it’s not an arm or shoulder injury.”

Oklahoma News & Notes

Think the Sooners can only play offense? Think again. Oklahoma’s defense took center stage in last week’s 34-27 win over Texas in the Red River Rivalry, recording nine sacks and limiting Longhorns star quarterback Sam Ehlinger to just 210 passing yards.

That performance bailed out the top-ranked Sooner offense, which turned the ball over twice in the red zone and scored only 10 points in the Sportsbook half.

Defense still isn’t a strength in Norman, but the signs of improvement are encouraging. After allowing 31 points in an Sportsbook-week win over Houston, the Sooners held their next four opponents to 20 points or less before the strong performance against a potent Texas attack.

“Regardless of what the outside world thinks, we believe a lot in our defense,” Riley told reporters after last week’s win.

Betting Pick: Oklahoma -32.5

The Sooners have scored at least 50 points in each of the last three meetings, and West Virginia isn’t capable of keeping up.