Baylor-Texas football preview capsule

[JLW71073]

Baylor (3-2, 0-2 Big 12) at Texas (4-2, 1-2), 7 p.m. CT Saturday (ABC)
Line: Texas by 11
Series Record: Texas leads 73-24-4.
WHAT'S AT STAKE
Both teams are looking to bounce back from blowout losses that were huge disappointments. Baylor couldn't stop TCU and a freshman quarterback in a 49-21 loss. Texas fell to Oklahoma 63-21, the third time the Longhorns have given up 60-plus points in 15 Oklahoma games under Mack Brown. The Bears have back-to-back wins over the Longhorns for the first time in 20 years. They've never won three straight in the series.
KEY MATCHUP
Baylor offense vs. Texas defense. The Bears rank second nationally in total offense (QB Nick Florence is first individually), and Baylor is third in scoring offense. The Longhorns are 99th in total defense and 94th in scoring defense. The Longhorns gave up 677 total yards and 343 rushing yards against the Sooners, including the longest run in the rivalry's 107-game history.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Baylor WR Terrance Williams had touchdown catches of 77 and 74 yards in last week's loss to TCU. He leads the nation at 166 receiving yards per game and has multiple touchdowns in four consecutive games.
Texas QB David Ash is nursing a sore left wrist, on his non-throwing side, but expects to play. He and the Texas offense looked overmatched against Oklahoma for the second straight year. The difference was how much better the Longhorns looked offensively this year before facing the Sooners.
FACTS & FIGURES
Baylor's turnover margin is plus-6 in its wins and minus-7 in its losses. ... Texas matched its season total of three turnovers with three against Oklahoma. ... The Bears have scored 11 TDs on drives of 1 minute or less. ... The Longhorns will face an opponent ranked in the top 10 nationally in either total offense or scoring offense for the fourth time in five games. ... Baylor's loss to TCU snapped an 11-game streak of scoring at least 30 points. ... Texas was held to 289 total yards against Oklahoma after a previous low of 404 this season.

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2012/oct/18/baylor-texas-football-preview-capsule/

 

[JLW71073]

Iowa State Cyclones at Oklahoma State Cowboys: Preview, prediction


Kickoff: Saturday, 12 p.m. ET (FX)
Spread: Oklahoma State by 14
Watchability: Cowboys fans have plenty of reasons to tune in. Iowa State ruined Oklahoma State's perfect season and a chance at a national championship last year. Coach Mike Gundy would pass Pat Jones for the most wins in Oklahoma State history, so the Cowboys also have sentimental incentive. The spread seems big considering Iowa State has one of the best defenses in the Big 12 and typically plays close games. Plus, the game is important for both teams in the Big 12 standings.
Shining stars: Oklahoma State: RB A.J. Klein continue to be two of the best defenders in the Big 12. Last week Knott had 13 tackles, including 1.5 for a loss. If the Cyclones' d-linemen can free up Knott and Klein, it could be another tough day for Randle.
Who could steal the show: Oklahoma State: QB James White out with a knee injury.
You going? Ranking the road trip: The forecast calls for low 80s. This has the feel of a make-or-break game for Oklahoma State's season, so although Iowa State is not the sexiest opponent, it should be a good atmosphere.
Magic number for Oklahoma State: 4. That's the number of turnovers Oklahoma State has forced this year. Last season the Cowboys led the nation with 44 takeaways. This year they are tied for second-to-last in the nation. The Cyclones have 14 giveaways, so this could be the week to finally start taking the ball away.
Magic number for Iowa State: 44.4 percent. That was Barnett's completion percentage last week. The Cyclones seem to go as their quarterbacks go, so that number will need to rise.
This game comes down to: Style. Oklahoma State wants a wide-open game and to get its offense marching up and down the field. Iowa State wants a ball-control game. If it's low-scoring, that would favor the Cyclones. A shootout is more to Oklahoma State's liking.
Prediction: Oklahoma State 27, Iowa State 20

This post was edited on 10/19 9:43 AM by JLW71073

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/blog/college-football-rapidreports/20585472/iowa-state-cyclones-at-oklahoma-state-cowboys-preview-prediction-tv-info

 

[JLW71073]

Kansas Jayhawks at No. 10 Oklahoma Sooners: Preview, prediction, TV info


Kickoff: Saturday, 7 p.m. ET (FSN)
Spread: Oklahoma by 35
Watchability: The record doesn't reflect it but Kansas is improved this year. The Jayhawks put a scare in Oklahoma State last week and backup QB Dayne Crist this week, so that's something for Kansas fans to watch. This is sort of tune-up game for Oklahoma with Notre Dame coming to Norman next week. Unless you're a Sooner or Jayhawk fan, you'll probably be tuned in to Kansas State and West Virginia.
Shining stars: Oklahoma: QB James Sims. Sims has only played in three games because of a suspension to start the season, and what he's done has been sort of overlooked. He's averaging 114.7 rushing yards per game, which would rank second in the Big 12 if he qualified. Sims had 138 yards and a touchdown last week against Oklahoma State.
Who could steal the show: Oklahoma: FB It wasn't the first time Millard has taken to the air to get past a defender, and after his numbers last week, he might get more chances. Kansas: Cummings. The backup QB came on in the fourth quarter last week to lead back-to-back touchdown drives. He has a big arm and can make plays with his feet, which is something Crist can't do.
You going? Ranking the road trip: If you have wanted to get to an OU home game but couldn't because of demand, this might be the chance to score a ticket against the Big 12's worst team.
Magic number for Oklahoma: 28-29. Oklahoma has scored on all but one of its red-zone trips. Kansas has the second-best red-zone defense in the Big 12. As long as the Sooners finish drives, they should be able to turn this into a blowout.
Magic number for Kansas: 14. The Jayhawks have forced 14 turnovers and have a plus-2 turnover margin. It's one statistic where they rank better than the Sooners -- Oklahoma has as many giveaways as takeaways. To keep the game close, KU needs to force some takeaways.
This game comes down to: Oklahoma has played well the past two weeks, and the Sooners would be well-served to keep that level of play going. As long as they don't get sloppy, they shouldn't have any problems handling Kansas.
Prediction: Oklahoma 55, Kansas 10

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/blog/college-football-rapidreports/20574519/kansas-jayhawks-at-no-10-oklahoma-sooners-preview-prediction-tv-info

 

[JLW71073]

Kansas State at West Virginia Preview


MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) - Tommy Tuberville and Texas Tech sure took a lot of the head-scratching out of how to slow down No. 17 West Virginia. Just in time for fourth-ranked Kansas State, too.
The Wildcats head to Morgantown on Saturday with a pretty good blueprint for success.
The difficulty is in trying to follow it.
"There might be philosophical thoughts in regards to how you defend Geno Smith and how you function on special teams that you say, `Maybe within our own schemes, we can do something,"' said Kansas State coach Bill Snyder, who should be facing an ornery group of Mountaineers.
This was supposed to be a matchup of top-5 teams with national championship implications, let alone Big 12 title implications, until the Red Raiders threw a giant sombrero in those plans.
Seth Doege was 32 of 42 for 499 yards and six touchdowns against the Mountaineers last Saturday. Texas Tech had 18 plays of 15 yards or more in the 49-14 romp, while the Red Raiders defense managed to hold West Virginia to 2 for 7 on fourth-down conversions.
Smith had just 275 yards passing and a touchdown, not even close to the ridiculous numbers that he had going in: 81.4 percent completions for nearly 400 yards per game.
Even the less-respected West Virginia ground game, led by Andrew Buie, had trouble finding room in Lubbock. The Mountaineers managed only 3.7 yards per carry, almost a full yard less than they had the previous week, when they outscored Texas 48-45 on the road.
"It was embarrassing. Guys were disappointed. It's no fun for anybody," West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen said. "And so we got in here, I didn't sugarcoat anything. It wasn't a positive session. It wasn't, `It's going to be OK. Don't worry about it.' That's not what we did. Our job is to coach them and tell them what reality is."
The reality is the Mountaineers (5-1, 2-1 Big 12) struggled on offense for the first time all season against a defense that was able to get off the field on fourth down.
They couldn't spring the big play with wide receivers Tavon Austin and Stedmon Bailey like they had in piling up 70 points in a victory over Baylor in their first foray into the Big 12.
They couldn't get off the field on defense, either.
That may be the biggest key to the success of Texas Tech, Snyder said.
"Part of it is their quarterback is extremely talented as well," Snyder said of Doege, who carved up the Mountaineers on a windswept day in West Texas. "It was kind of a matchup that tended to favor Texas Tech in regards to the passing game."
Kansas State doesn't have someone who can sling it all over the field like Doege, which Snyder is quick to concede, so there may not be much to glean from last weekend in that respect.
But the Mountaineers haven't faced anyone like the Wildcats' Collin Klein, either.
The run-first battering ram has rushed for 510 yards and 10 touchdowns this season, and that comes on the heels of a breakout year in which he piled up 1,141 yards and 27 TDs on the ground.
Klein's also shown some newfound ability to get the ball downfield through the air, too, throwing for 1,074 yards and seven touchdowns against just two interceptions this season. Klein's completion percentage of 66.9 is nearly 10 percent better than last season.
"You watch him on tape and you go, `We have to stop the run,"' Holgorsen said. "We'll work hard on trying to stop the run, and you want to make them pass. You look at him back there throwing the ball, it doesn't look very good, but it goes exactly where you want it to go."
West Virginia is allowing more than 37 points per game and has the nation's eighth-worst defense in big part because it has the third-worst pass defense in major college football, allowing nearly 400 yards per game.
"There are a lot of great offenses out there that they've played," Klein said, when asked why the Mountaineers' pass defense has been so porous. "Who knows exactly what the reasons are, but we just have to focus on putting together our plan and executing it on Saturday."
You can bet that means taking a close look at what Texas Tech did so well.
"They're in a little different spot than they expected to be going into this ballgame," Klein admitted, "but we know we're going to get their best shot regardless."

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/gametracker/preview/NCAAF_20121020_KSTATE@WVU/kansas-stwest-virginia-preview