Week 9: #15 Wildcats vs Cougars Odds
College football Week 9 betting action sees the #15 Arizona Wildcats taking on the Washington State Cougars on Saturday October 25th at Martin Stadium in Pullman. Cappers Picks provides free NCAA football handicapping tips all season long.
Coming off their bye week, the Arizona Wildcats are still fuming after their one loss of the season, a 28-26 loss at the hands of USC.
College Football Lines
#15 Arizona (5-1, 2-1 Pac-12) @ Washington State (2-5, 1-3 Pac-12)
Saturday, October 25th 9:00 PM ET @ Martin Stadium – Pullman
NCAA Football Spread: Arizona -3
NCAA Football O/U: 72.5
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A game they were well on their way to winning before a very timely miscue. The Cougars have come to rely solely on the pass and are daring teams to stop them.
Washington State’s identity was solidified with the arrival of Mike Leach a few years ago. Since then, Connor Halliday has been his weapon, culminating with Halliday breaking the NCAA single-game pass record with 734 yards in their game against Cal.
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Arizona is looking to stay in the hunt for the Pac-12 South with USC, Arizona and Arizona State all having one conference loss, just as the Wildcats have. With the Cougars being one dimensional, this game will test the Arizona pass defense.
#15 Arizona
Quarterback Anu Solomon has been stellar for Arizona this season since taking over the starting role. On the year, he has completed 174 of 278 passes for 2,136 yards, 15 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. He also has 160 yards on the ground.
Nick Wilson has been the clear leader in the rushing game, racking up 574 yards and 6 touchdowns on 90 carries. Wilson is in danger of missing this game, though – it would be his second missed game in a row due to an injury to his ankle.
Terris Jones-Grigsby 57 carries for 299 yards and 3 touchdowns as well for the Wildcats, who have featured a potent all-around squad so far this season.
Cayleb Jones has been the biggest target in the pass game, making 39 catches for 592 yards and 6 scores. Austin Hill is second in receiving with 25 catches for 345 yards and 3 touchdowns.
The biggest test will come for the Arizona defense, though, who are looking to pressure Halliday into making mistakes. Middle linebacker Scooby Wright leads the team in tackles with 70, including 11 tackles for loss, 6 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
The Wildcats are 7th in the nation in passing per game with 357.5 and 24th in points for with 37.5 points per game.
Washington State
It’s hard not to mention the Cougars without also mentioning Mike Leach, Connor Halliday and the pass offense. But as good as the passing offense is, it still has not carried the Cougars to many victories. They are looking to change that this week, trying to beat Arizona for a second straight season after stunning them last season.
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Halliday has been a machine for Leach. On the season, Halliday has racked up 3,344 yards, 28 touchdowns and 8 interceptions on 292 of 438 passing. That makes him the top passer in college football, almost 600 yards above the next closest.
The Cougar receiving corps has put up impressive numbers as a group. Vince Mayle is leading the team in receiving yards with 781 yards on 57 catches. River Cracraft also has 57 catches for 676 yards and Isiah Myers has 53 grabs for 627 yards. All three have 7 touchdown receptions a piece.
Dom Williams also has 24 grabs for 496 yards and 6 touchdowns to help the #1 passing offense in college football.
The rush offense, however, is one of the worst in college football, ranked 127th overall. Jamal Morrow has 53 rushed for 209 yards and Gerard Wicks has 48 grabs for 195 yards and 3 scores for the anemic Cougar run game.
Daquawn Brown has 55 total tackles for the Cougar defense to go with his 5 tackles for loss and 8 pass break ups. Darryl Monroe is second in tackles with 53 to go with his 1.5 sacks, 3 tackles for loss and a pass breakup. Ivan McLennan has 3.5 sacks, a forced fumble and a blocked kick.
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NCAA football handicapping trends
- Under is 5-1 in Wildcats last 6 games on fieldturf
- Under is 4-1 in Wildcats last 5 games overall
- Under is 6-2 in Wildcats last 8 conference games
- Under is 4-1 in Cougars last 5 vs. a team with a winning record
- Under is 4-1 in Cougars last 5 conference games
Week 9 NCAA Football Prediction
I really don’t think this is a question of whether or not Arizona can beat the Cougars – it’s by how much. Knowing they only need to play the pass on defense will greatly help them.
Free 4* NCAA Betting Pick:Take the UNDER (72.5)
While I don’t think Arizona will shut down the Cougar pass game, they definitely won’t be allowing any record setting performances in this one.
Final Week 9 Score: #15 Arizona 31 – Washington State 20
Anu Solomon and company walk away from The Palouse with a conference win.
Check out our Updated College Football Week 9 Odds.
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