Kansas at West Virginia: 10/17/20 College Football Picks and Prediction
Photo by Rob Ferguson-USA TODAY Sports
West Virginia Mountaineers (2-1) vs Kansas Jayhawks (0-3)
Game Info: Saturday, October 17, 2020 at 12:00 pm (Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium)
Betting Odds: West Virginia Mountaineers -23 -- Over/Under: 51.5 Click Here for the Latest Odds
The Kansas Jayhawks will travel to Mountaineers Field at Milan Puskar Stadium to take on the West Virginia Mountaineers this Saturday afternoon in College Football action.
The Kansas Jayhawks dropped to 0-3 (0-2 Big 12) on the season after being defeated by the 17th ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys, 47-7, on October 3rd. Kansas struggled on both sides of the ball agianst the Cowboys and couldn’t fight back after going into halftime by a 31-0 margin. Kansas was outgained by a 593-193 margin and lost the turnover battle by a 1-0 margin in the loss. Leading the way for the Jayhawks was RB Velton Gardner who had 31 yards and a TD on 11 carries.
On the season, Kansas is averaging 14.7 ppg on 296.0 total yards per game (146.7 passing yds/g; 149.3 rushing yds/g). Offensively, Kansas has been led by the backfield duo of Velton Gardner (36 att, 182 yards, 2 TD) and Pooka Williams Jr. (40 att, 175 yards, 2 TD). Kansas has used multiple QB’s this season in Jalon Daniels (57.5 Comp %, 174 yards) and Miles Kendrick (60.5 Comp %, 246 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT). Jalon Daniels suffered a foot injury against Oklahoma State and is currently questionable for this matchup. The top receiving threats for the Jayhawks have been Kwamie Lassiter II (15 rec, 171 yards, TD), Takulve Williams (15 rec, 80 yards), Andrew Parchment (11 rec, 75 yards, TD), and Lawrence Arnold (6 rec, 45 yards).
Defensively, Kansas is allowing their opponents to average 44.0 ppg on 421.0 total yards per game (193.3 passing yds/g; 227.7 rushing yds/g).
The West Virginia Mountaineers improved to 1-2 (1-1 Big 12) on the season after defeating the Baylor Bears, 27-21 in 2OT, on October 13th. West Virginia allowed Baylor to force OT after tying the game with just 1:19 left in regulation, however, was able to pick up the victory on a 3-yard TD run by Leddie Brown after the Mountaineers defense made a stop to start the 2nd OT. West Virginia outgained Baylor by a 345-256 margin, however, did lose the turnover battle by a 4-2 margin in the loss. Leading the way for the Mountaineers was RB Leddie Brown who had 93 yards & 2 TD on 27 carries.
On the season, West Virginia is averaging 32.0 ppg on 440.7 total yards per game (263.7 passing yds/g; 177.0 rushing yds/g). Offensively, West Virginia has been led by the backfield duo of Leddie Brown (63 att, 320 yards, 4 TD) and Alec Sinkfield (28 att, 187 yards, 2 TD). QB Jarret Doege has completed 66.3% of his passes for 724 yards, 5 TD, & 2 INT. The top receiving threats for Doege and the Mountaineers have been Winston Wright Jr. (15 rec, 180 yards, TD), Sam James (17 rec, 160 yards, TD), Bryce Ford-Wheaton (8 rec, 108 yards, 2 TD), and T.J. Simmons (4 rec, 82 yards).
Defensively, West Virginia is holding their opponents to an average of 19.3 ppg on 268.0 total yards per game (166.3 passing yds/g; 101.7 rushing yds/g).
The Jayhawks are 19-39-1 ATS in their last 59 road games and 0-3 ATS on the season. The Mountaineers are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games in October, however, are 4-1-1 ATS in their last 6 games.
This is a lot of points for West Virginia to cover, but I’ve seen anything from Kansas this season that give me confidence that they won’t lost this game by 30+ points, especially as they might be without their head coach, Les Miles, who recently tested positive for COVID-19. West Virginia’s offensive attack should have no trouble putting up points agianst the Kansas defense which is giving up 44.0 ppg and I think the Mountaineers do enough in this one to cover this large home spread. Good Luck!
Brett’s Pick West Virginia Mountaineers -23
AUTHOR: Brett Nault
Mitch's Take...
