The Oklahoma Sooners will play their final contest before the Big 12 Championship game when they host the West Virginia Mountaineers on Saturday. While they have already locked up their spot in the title game, Oklahoma still has a lot to play for this weekend. The Sooners are rolling after six straight wins and will likely lock in the No. 2 spot in the College Football Playoff rankings with another statement win over West Virginia this Saturday afternoon. The Mountaineers are coming off a tough loss to the Texas Longhorns and will be without their star quarterback due to injury. Factor in the home advantage for Oklahoma and it should be no surprise that they are a substantial favorite for this Big 12 showdown.
Adding a dimension to this game is that Baker Mayfield has been suspended…for some part of this contest. We’re not exactly sure for how long but he will serve a suspension. And he’s also lost his captaincy. If the Sooners were really serious about punishing him, they’d have suspended him for the game. At this point, he’s likely to get a little rest and the suspension is likely to be shortened if the Sooners are in any type of trouble.
Details
Odds: Oklahoma Sooners -23
Date & Time: Saturday November 25th, 2017 – 3:45 PM ET
Location: Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, Norman, Oklahoma
Broadcast: ESPN
Reasons To Bet On The West Virginia Mountaineers
West Virginia will be in tough without its starting quarterback Will Grier. The junior passer suffered a broken finger in his throwing hand last week and will miss the next four-to-six weeks following surgery. Grier has been outstanding for the Mountaineers so far this year, throwing for 3,490 yards and 34 touchdowns with 12 interceptions. This is a significant loss. With Grier sidelined, West Virginia will be forced to turn to redshirt sophomore Chris Chugonov at the quarterback position. With Chugonov under center, there is a good chance the Mountaineers commit to the run early against the Sooners with the hope that they can effectively move the football on the ground and try to keep it away from Baker Mayfield and company. Senior running back Justin Crawford has averaged 5.5 yards per carry while rushing for 963 yards and seven touchdowns this season. He will need another dynamic performance this week in order for West Virginia to have a shot at covering as a substantial road underdog this weekend.
Reasons To Bet On The Oklahoma Sooners
Mayfield’s sideline antics and subsequent apology will be talked about a lot this week but there is no reason to expect the Heisman trophy favorite to slow down on the field. Mayfield threw for 257 yards and three touchdowns in last week’s win over Kansas. The senior passer has thrown for 3,816 yards and 34 touchdowns compared to just five interceptions this season. Mayfield has a talented cast of weapons around him and the Sooners are capable of scoring points in bunches. Oklahoma ranks fourth in the nation with an average of 44.0 points per game this season and there really is no reason to expect them to slow down against West Virginia in their final contest before the Big 12 Championship game.
Outlook
The Sooners are on cruise control in the Big 12 with a spot in the conference title game locked up. However, don’t expect a letdown from Oklahoma with a chance to deliver another dominant win at home this weekend. Mayfield is motivated to lock up the Heisman trophy with another dominant performance and a big Sooners win could help take some of the attention away from last week’s sideline debacle. Meanwhile, the Mountaineers are in a tough spot without their starting quarterback. West Virginia is getting a lot of points in this one and it still might not be enough to cover the point spread on the road this weekend. Lay the points with the Sooners. They should be able to roll to an easy win in this spot – especially once Mayfield gets into the game.
Pick: Oklahoma -23
Click here to bet on the college football season right now. DSI has a full list of spreads, totals and props for every single game on the board. Get all of the latest lines that you need to get a piece of the action!
