OSU vs. WSU (Washington St.) NCAAF Week 1 Free Pick + Preview

[Shame About Ray]

Oklahoma State at Washington State in Saturday Action!




The Oklahoma State Cowboys (7-6 SU, 6-6 ATS in 2007) will catch a team in a bit of transition on Saturday when they do battle with the Washington State Cougars (5-7 SU, 6-6 ATS in 2007) in the NCAA football opener for both teams, scheduled to get underway at 3:30 PM ET at Martin Stadium (artificial turf) in Pullman, WA.

Saturday, August 30

BetUS NCAA Football Betting Odds: OKLAHOMA STATE -7, Total 66

Here are some of the NCAA college football betting trends as they relate to this matchup:

* OSU has covered two of its last six games
* OSU has played four of its last six games OVER the total
* OSU has lost 12 of its last 17 road games SU
* OSU has played five of its last six road games UNDER the total
* WSU has covered four of its last five games
* WSU has lost six of its last nine games SU
* WSU has played five of its last seven games UNDER the total
* WSU has won and covered four of its last six home games
* WSU has played six of its last nine home games OVER the total

Alex Brink, last year's star signal-caller for Washington State, has moved on to the NFL's Houston Texans (at least for now). And with that, 6'7" Gary Rogers, who tossed 16 passes last year, comes in and takes over the newly-designed no-huddle offense installed by first-year head coach Paul Wulff, who was formerly at Eastern Washington. And there is a shift from the 3-4 alignment to a 4-3 on defense, on which side WSU ranked 85th in the country last year.

There is not much chance of matching 2007's #8 national ranking in the pass game, though, and that attack is slowed down even more by the man who could have been Rogers' big play receiver, Jeshua Anderson, who averaged a robust 31 yards a catch last season. Looks like there are some growing pains to get over in Pullman.

No one will accuse Oklahoma State of being a standout bunch defensively. Overall, they ranked 101th nationally, and bring back only three members of the front seven. Junior college players will be asked to chip in, but it is doubtful that will make a major difference.

What CAN be the difference-maker, as far as this game is concerned anyway, is the fact that Oklahoma State has much more continuity and cohesion on offense. You can't really complain much about the decision to displace quarterback Bobby Reid with Zac Robinson, who threw for 23 TD's with only nine interceptions, and gained 847 rushing yards. Running back Kendall Hunter is a guy with some huge upside (had 6.5 ypc last year) and tight end Brandon Pettigrew (15.4 yards per catch) could be one of the four or five best at his position in the country.

What we're saying is that we KNOW Oklahoma State is going to score some points. WSU is more of the unknown quantity. But we know they will have to overcome a few things to get where they want to go, so, though it is not a strong recommendation, we are going to lay the points with OSU, the seven-point favorite in the BetUS NCAA college football betting odds.

JAY'S PLAY: OKLAHOMA STATE -7 **