West Virginia vs. Iowa State Total Pick
The West Virginia Mountaineers will put their unbeaten record on the line Saturday night when they visit the Iowa State Cyclones at 7:00 p.m. ET. Will the game turn high-scoring for bettors?
Game Snapshot
175 West Virginia Mountaineers at 176 Iowa State Cyclones
7:00 p.m. ET, Saturday, October 13, 2018
Jack Trice Stadium, Ames, Iowa
Public Betting Trends
According to oddsmakers from online sports book BetNow.eu, the Mountaineers are 6.5-point favorites to beat the Cyclones. The total, meanwhile, sits at 56 points. As of this writing, 68% of the public betting tickets wagered on this matchup are on the Mountaineers.
West Virginia Mountaineers
West Virginia senior QB Will Grier completed 27-of-41 passes for 332 yards, four touchdowns and three interceptions in Saturday’s 38-22 victory over Kansas. Grier came into today with a 25/0 TD/INT rate in the red zone over his West Virginia career. Today, incredibly, he threw three red zone interceptions in the first half against the Big 12’s longtime doormat. Grier ended up with four turnovers total, but the Mountaineers were nonetheless able to pretty easily fend off the Jayhawks. Grier is a very gifted NFL prospect, but we’d love to see him tamp down on unforced errors, which typically come from him overextending to try to make a play.
Iowa State Cyclones
Iowa State redshirt senior QB Kyle Kempt (knee) is doubtful for Saturday’s game against West Virginia. A surprise return by Kempt is the only thing that would potentially keep freshman Brock Purdy from drawing the start against the Mountaineers. Purdy came on in relief of Zeb Noland — and ripped it up for five touchdowns — in Saturday’s win over Oklahoma State. We have not seen Kempt take the field since injuring his knee against Iowa in Week 2.
Betting Trends
West Virginia
The under is 7-3 in the Mountaineers’ last 10 games overall.
Iowa State
The under is 10-3 in the Cyclones’ last 13 games overall.
Prediction
Iowa State’s Brock Purdy will start again on Saturday after stepping in for Zeb Noland last week. Purdy threw for 318 yards and four touchdowns on 23 pass attempts and a 13.8 yards per attempt average. He also ran for 84 yards and a score, so perhaps the Cyclones have something in this kid. On the other side, we know WVU will move the ball, even against a good ISU defense. After the Cyclones scored over 40 points last week, I feel good about taking the over on Saturday night this week.
College Football Prediction: Iowa State Cyclones +6.5