TCU vs Oklahoma State preview, predictions, betting odds, live stream info
TCU vs. Oklahoma State
The college football regular season may be halfway over, but things in the Big 12 are just getting started.
An impressive November slate gets underway on Saturday at Boone Pickens Stadium when the No. 8 TCU Horned Frogs visit the No. 14 Oklahoma State Cowboys in a game with massive conference and national title implications.
Both teams enter the contest at 8-0, but didn’t get too much love in the initial College Football Playoff rankings due to weak strength of schedules so far. That will change on Saturday afternoon, as somebody is going to get a nice resume boost.
TCU has gone undefeated behind an offense that nobody has been able to stop to this point. The Horned Frogs are averaging 7.7 yards per play, second in the nation per TeamRankings, with the lethal connection of quarterback Trevone Boykin and receiver Josh Doctson putting up huge numbers week to week.
Oklahoma State’s offense isn’t too shabby either, with an average of 6.2 yards per play. Rotating in multiple quarterbacks typically has some drawbacks, but the Cowboys have been very efficient with J.W. Walsh and Mason Rudolph splitting snaps.
Expect plenty of offensive fireworks during the contest, which begins at 3:30 PM eastern on Fox and the Fox Sports Go app. Further details for Saturday’s game are below:
Date: Saturday, October 7, 2015
Start Time: 3:30 PM eastern
Location: Stillwater, OK
Stadium: Boone Pickens Stadium
TV Info: FOX
Live Stream: Fox Sports GO
Radio: TCU IMG Sports Network, Cowboy Sports Network, Sirius XM 199
Ticket Information: For ticket information click here,
Keys to Victory
Both of these offenses are going to put points on the board, and there’s not a whole lot either team can do about it. The big question is which defense will generate enough stops to get some separation.
It’s easy to doubt Oklahoma State at this point, as the Cowboys barely escaped the likes of Texas and Kansas State. However, Oklahoma State will be easily the best defensive TCU has played since the opening week of the season and might have enough to pull off the upset in front of what will be a raucous home crowd.
The Cowboys best player is defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah, who has been extremely disruptive as a pass rusher during his college career. Ogbah leads the Big 12 with nine sacks and is complimented nicely by a very talented defensive line around him.
That normally wouldn’t be much of a problem for Boykin, who has basically been impossible to sack. A big part of that is Boykin’s athleticism and ability to create in the pocket, but he’s been helped out by an excellent Horned Frogs offensive line.
However, that could change on Saturday, as TCU left tackle Hala Vaitai is questionable after suffering a right knee injury last Thursday against West Virginia. If Vaitai can’t go, Ogbah could cause enough trouble to make things interesting.
Nobody is going to be able to completely stop the Boykin to Doctson connection, but Oklahoma State may be more poised to slow it down than any team TCU has faced to this point. Cowboys cornerback Kevin Peterson has played well this season and should be able to at least test Doctson in a key matchup to watch.
That’s not to discount the TCU offense, which is explosive enough to score at any time, even if the Horned Frogs get behind the chains. If the Horned Frogs can establish any sort of ground game they will win, but that won’t be easy against the Big 12’s best defensive line.
The Horned Frogs’ defense was ravaged by injuries early on the season and struggled, but has looked much better in the past two weeks against Iowa State and West Virginia. Oklahoma State is much better offensively than either of those two teams, so it will be interesting to see if that trend continues.
The dual-quarterback system has been difficult for opponents to prepare for so far, as Walsh and Rudolph are excellent compliments to each other. Oklahoma State also features a solid group of receivers that should be able to put some big plays on the TCU secondary.
Boykin will likely need to put together a tremendous performance, which he is certainly more than capable of. This figures to be a back-and-forth shootout, where one big play on defense or special teams could make all the difference.
Betting Odds
Point Spread: TCU -5.5
Moneyline: TCU -215, Oklahoma State +185
O/U: 76.5
TCU is 4-4 against the spread and opens this game as a sizeable road favorite. After getting off to a 0-2 start, Oklahoma State is 5-1 against the spread over its last 6 games.
Prediction
Neither of these teams have faced anywhere near the level of competition that they will on Saturday, so there are a number of ways this game could go. As per usual in the Big 12, things will probably be wild and unpredictable, with plenty of points on the board.
If healthy, it’s the Oklahoma State defensive line that could make the difference. Ogbah has the potential to be a game-changer, while Jimmy Bean and Vincent Taylor have been very effective as well.
Boykin will be the best player on the field and will negate some of that with his tremendous playmaking ability. But he may be pressed into one or two mistakes, which could be enough with an ultra-efficient Cowboys offense going up against a TCU defense with plenty of question marks.
Throw in the fact that TCU has looked shaky on the road this year and will be up against its most hostile crowd to date, and Oklahoma State looks poised to pull the home upset.
Final Score: Oklahoma State 42, TCU 38