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Free Picks: #4 Baylor vs. West Virginia Gambling Lines & Handicapping Preview

Week 8: Bears vs Mountaineers

Week 8 college betting action sees the #4 Baylor Bears taking on the West Virginia Mountaineers at Milan Puskar Stadium. Cappers Picks provides free college football handicapping tips all season long.

Entering this contest, both teams are coming off high-scoring, three-point victories.

College Football Odds

#4 Baylor (6-0) vs. West Virginia (4-2)
Saturday, Oct. 18
12:00 PM ET
Milan Puskar Stadium
College Football Betting Lines: Baylor -9
College Football O/U: OFF
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Click here to view… ATS Stats & Expert NCAA Betting Prediction Insight!

Baylor managed to sneak out a win against No. 9 TCU 61-58, while the Mountaineers took down Texas Tech 37-34 on the road.

Baylor

The Baylor Bears barely squeaked out a win against TCU last week. It took a fourth quarter that saw them outscore their opponent 24-14, and in true Baylor fashion, it finished on top with a whole lot of points to claim as their own.

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What wasn’t in true Baylor fashion was a defense that gave up 58 points. On the season, the Bears are 25th in the nation in points allowed (20.0 per game), and that end of the field will need to be more on point against West Virginia.

The good news for Baylor is that its offense looked as good as ever, which is saying something considering it’s already the best scoring team in the nation. On the year, this squad is averaging 52.7 points per contest.

Along with putting points up on the board, this team can boast that fact that it does it with a balanced offense. Through the air, it’s sixth in the nation, averaging 371 yards per contest; on the ground, it’s 17th (251.5 per game).

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Against West Virginia, Baylor will look to use that balance with an emphasis on the ground game. The Mountaineers are 42nd in the nation defending the pass, but just 87th against the run.

West Virginia

The bad news for West Virginia has nothing to do with Baylor’s offense. We know how good it is, but the Mountaineers are putting up 36.7 points per game of their own, which puts them just inside the top 30 in the nation in that particular category.

The bad news for West Virginia is that it’s going up against an elite defense that will look to combat those points.

On the year, Baylor is 22nd in defending the pass and 15th defending the run. The good news there is that where West Virginia excels (throwing the ball) is where Baylor has a slight dip — even if it is a minimal one at that.

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So far this season, the Mountaineers are putting up 368.3 yards per game passing, which is good enough for seventh in the country — it’s also where they’ll need to dominate to come away with a competitive showing in this one.

NCAA Football Handicapping Trends:

  • BAY are 20-6-1 ATS in their last 27 games overall.
  • BAY are 10-3 ATS vs. a team with a winning record.
  • Over is 12-4-2 in BAY last 18 games in October.
  • Over is 7-3 in WVU last 10 games overall.
  • WVU are 4-9 ATS in their last 13 games overall.

Week 8 NCAA Football

If the Mountaineers are going to come away with a win in this one, it will need a big time showing on both sides of the ball. If it hopes to win ATS even if it can’t muster a victory SU, it will need a great showing on one side of the ball — likely to be offense.

Free NCAA Betting Pick 4* Baylor -9

Although you can’t count out West Virginia because of its passing game, Baylor is simply too good both offensively and defensively. Look for the Bears to come off last week’s scare with a new mentality, as a loss during the second half of the season would push them away from automatic contention in the first-annual College Football Playoffs.

Check out our Updated College Football Week 8 Odds.

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