After a week of rest, the No. 9 Oklahoma Sooners will look to jumpstart their bid to get a College Football Playoff ticket after getting upset in the last time they were on the field. Up next for Jalen Hurts and company is a matchup with the Iowa State Cyclones, are also looking to bounce back following a loss.
Betting on the Iowa State Cyclones (5-3 Overall / 3-2 Conference)
Maybe the Cyclones should run the ball more. With quarterback Brock Purdy having an incredibly big workload over the weekend, the Cyclones may have depended on him too much in a 34-27 home loss to the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Purdy went 39 for 62 for 382 yards and a touchdown but also had three interceptions that largely turned the game against the Cyclones favor. Iowa State rushed the ball just 25 times. Being one-dimensional will bite any team against any competent defenses, so Iowa State will have to mix it up in their upcoming showdown with Oklahoma. That being said, Purdy’s protection deserves much credit after allowing just two sacks despite the high number of passing plays in the Cowboys game. Iowa State is 12th in the nation with a 55.93 pass play percentage and 23rd overall with an offensive quarterback sack percentage.
The Cyclones are 7-3 against the spread (ATS) in their last 10 games away from Ames. All but two of those games had seen the total go under.
Betting on the Oklahoma Sooners (7-1 Overall / 4-1 Conference)
It just got harder for the Sooners to get a ticket to the College Football Playoff after getting stunned on the road by the unranked Kansas State Wildcats in their last outing, 48-41. Quarterback Jalen Hurts put up big numbers still, but the defense crumbled and got carved up by the Wildcats, who had 426 total yards and held the ball almost 18 minutes more than the Sooners did. Hurts completed 19 of 26 passes for 395 yards and a touchdown and rushed for three more scores to go with 96 yards on 19 carries. Hurts can’t do it all, and if the Sooners want to see him light it up more, their defense should do a better job getting off the field. Iowa State can put up points also in a hurry with Purdy at the heart of the Cyclones’ offense, so Oklahoma’s secondary will be a key in this matchup.
The Sooners, who are 22nd overall with just 190.6 passing yards allowed per contest, are 3-0 ATS in their last three home games.
