No. 6 Oklahoma State Cowboys (5-0 SU, 4-1 ATS) at No. 22 Texas Longhorns (4-1 SU, 3-2 ATS), Saturday October 15th 2011. 3:30PM EST, College Football Week 7, Darrell K Royal - Texas Memorial Stadium Austin, Tex.
By Jay Horne, NCAA Football Handicapper, Predictem.com
Point Spread: OSU -7/UT +7
Over/Under Total: OFF
Make Texas a +27 underdog by placing them into a 20 point college football teaser at 5Dimes.
One week after being disrespected in the Red River Rivalry, the no. 23 Texas Longhorns must regroup as they battle another perennial power from "The Sooner State." The Longhorns were simply embarrassed by Oklahoma last week 55-17 while suffering their first loss on the season. This week the Longhorns host yet another Big 12 power by way of the visiting 6th ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys.
For the Cowboys, they are the only expected contender that could potentially challenge Oklahoma for the Big 12 Championship or at least that is how it appears to this point in the season. The Cowboys completely embarrassed Kansas last week in route to a 70-28 blowout in Stillwater. This week the Cowboys offense will attack the Longhorns defense very similar to the way Oklahoma did a week ago which is through the air in the passing game.
The Longhorns defense was shredded for 367 yards against the pass last week in their big loss to Oklahoma. However, the blame cannot solely lie on the hands of the defense. Texas played a very ugly game by turning the ball over 5 different times to the Sooners resulting in 3 defensive touchdowns. The Longhorns are a much better team than the nation saw a week ago and they will try to prove that point this Saturday in Austin. For the Longhorns to knock off the Cowboys, they will definitely need things to go their way. Nobody has found a way to stop the Oklahoma State offense this season so Texas will need a bend, but don't break approach on the defensive side of the football. Of course a few turnovers would definitely help the defenses' cause, but ultimately the Longhorns offense will have to find a way to score some points.
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QB Case McCoy appeared to have previously solved the quarterback riddles for the Longhorns offense in previous weeks. However, McCoy completed just 9 of 16 passing for 116 yards with 0 touchdowns and 0 picks in the loss to Oklahoma last week. To make mattepicrs worse, running back Malcolm Brown was held to a season low 54 yards on 17 carries. The only player to have any type of success last week was freshman receiver Jaxon Shipley who caught 9 passes for 89 yards and a touchdown. Shipley has been the biggest surprise for the Longhorns offense this season and currently leads the team in receiving with 369 yards and 3 scores. Still, the rest of the Longhorns offense has to play better if the team is going to be successful this year.
The Texas offensive line was completely dominated in their loss to Oklahoma and that will be another big concern against the Cowboys defense this week. Texas could not get the ground game going with Brown who as previously stated was held to a season low in rushing, but the offensive line surrendered 8 sacks to the Oklahoma defense as well. The Texas offense must play much better upfront this week and allow McCoy some time to throw the football. Also, Texas will likely put some focus on establishing the run to try and keep the ball away from the Oklahoma State offense. For that to be successful, Malcolm Brown will need to be a big factor in the game and have some room to run the football.
For Oklahoma State, the game plan will remain the same. The Cowboys will look to score points and score points in bunches. The Cowboys have some of the most explosive playmakers in the country and currently own the top ranked scoring offense in the country averaging 51 points per game. The Cowboys attack defenses through the air with the number 2 passing attack in the NCAA averaging 432 yards per game. QB Brandon Weeden leads the Big 12 in passing yards and has simply played outstanding through the first half of the season. Weeden completed 24 of 28 passing last week for 288 yards with 5 touchdowns and 0 interceptions to catapult his position in the Heisman Trophy race.
Weeden does a great job of spreading the ball around to the open receiver, but he also has one of the best receivers in the entire nation as his disposal in WR Justin Blackmon. Blackmon won the 2010 Biletnikoff Award and is having another stellar season in 2011. On the year, Blackmon has racked up 534 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns to lead all Oklahoma State receivers. Between Weeden and Blackmon, most defenses would have a hard enough time defending just the two.
Then you add in a spread offense with some talented young receivers that understand how to get open and you can quickly see why Oklahoma State has been nearly unstoppable on the offensive side of the football. The question this week will be can the Cowboys put up another repeat performance against the Longhorns defense?
Jay's Pick to Cover the Point Spread: Texas has not been impressive on the offensive side of the football this season and I believe they are still an overrated group. Oklahoma State simply puts up a lot of points and shows no signs of slowing down. Big play on Oklahoma State -7.
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