No. 7 Kansas State Wildcats (7-1 SU, 6-2 ATS) vs. No. 6 TCU Horned Frogs (7-1 SU, 7-1 ATS)
College Football Week 11
Date and Time: Saturday November 8th, 2014. 7:30PM EST
Where: Amon G. Carter Stadium Fort Worth, T.X.
TV: FOX
by Jay, Football Handicapper, Predictem.com
Point Spread: KSU +6/TCU -6
Over/Under Total: 57.5
One of the top games of the weekend will take place in Fort Worth when the no. 6 TCU Horned Frogs clash with the no. 7 Kansas State Wildcats inside Amon G. Carter Stadium. At 7-1 SU, both teams are still alive in the college football playoff picture but this weekends highly anticipated matchup may be more about deciding the fate of the Big 12. The Wildcats (5-0 in Big 12) remain the only undefeated team in conference play but Gary Pattersons Horned Frogs are in the perfect position to take over the top spot in the Big 12 if they can pull out the W this Saturday night.
Not only does Saturday game feature two of the best teams in the Big 12 but this game also features two of the best teams in the FBS against the books. TCU is 9-1 ATS in their last 10 games and have also covered the mark in each of their last 5 home games. Kansas State on the other hand has been a road warrior covering the spread in 13 of their last 14 games as a road underdog. The Wildcats are also 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games outright on the road. Therefore something has to give when these two moneymakers meet this Saturday night.
The matchup to watch when these two teams tangle will be the battle between the Kansas State defense and the TCU offense. Each unit has been impressive in their own right. The Wildcats defense owns the 12th best scoring defense in the FBS yielding just 18.6 points per game. The Wildcats defense has not given up more than 30 points all season and they have given up just 14 points in the last two games combined. However the Wildcats will have the ultimate challenge this week against a TCU offense that on pace to set a school record in terms of scoring.
The Horned Frogs currently rank 2nd in the FBS in scoring averaging a whopping 48 points per game. Not bad for coach Gary Patterson who has built his reputation on the defensive side of the ball. However, this years Horned Frogs offense has been lethal through the air waves with quarterback Trevone Boykin. Boykin has thrown for 2,472 yards on the season with 22 touchdowns and just 4 picks. TCUs passing attack hoist the 6th best mark in college football averaging 335 yards per contest. WR Josh Doctson is also having a great year on the outside. Doctson has over 600 receiving yards with 7 touchdowns on the season to lead the receiving corps.
The question entering this weeks matchup is can the Horned Frogs offense sustain their success against a stingy Kansas State defense. More importantly how will the matchup on the other side of the ball shake out? Kansas State quarterback Jake Waters is one of the toughest dual threats in the Big 12. Waters has tossed 11 touchdowns with just 3 picks while completing 65% passing on the year and has also been very strong on the ground with 404 yards and 7 more touchdowns. If Waters and Kansas State can sustain drives against a mediocre TCU defense, they should find some opportunities to score. Just how many points they will need to pull out the victory, remains to be seen.
Jay’s Pick to Cover the Point Spread: Rest assured a lot of intensity and emotion will be on display this Saturday night as this is a very important game in each teams season with Big 12 and college football play implications on the line. As long as TCU avoids a disastrous start and gets far behind early, I believe they will pull away in the 2nd half. The Horned Frogs offense is just too dynamic to contain at this point in the season and they will make plays once the Kansas State defense starts to wear down. Take TCU -6
