5. TCU Horned Frogs at Oklahoma State Cowboys
According to the ESPN Matchup Predictor, Oklahoma State has a 68.8 percent chance of beating TCU, so that’s pretty nice. The Pokes are led by a Heisman candidate at quarterback where Mason Rudolph may end up leaving Stillwater as the program’s best signal-caller of all time. The senior is coming off the best game of his career in the win against Pittsburgh. Rudolph threw for 497 yards and five touchdowns in the one-sided affair. He’ll be tested a bit more this weekend against Gary Patterson’s TCU Horned Frogs.
TCU typically is one of the few Big 12 teams that elect to play defense and the Horned Frogs are capable of slowing Rudolph, James Washington and the Pokes deep and talented group of skill position players, but I don’t believe they’ll slow them to the extent that TCU leaves Stillwater with a win. Make no mistake, this will be the toughest test for Oklahoma State so far this season, and perhaps the toughest test they’ll see until their Bedlam when they meet Baker Mayfield and Oklahoma, but I fully expect the Pokes to win by more than a touchdown on Saturday afternoon.