Kansas State at Texas Tech Spread

Written by Jack Jones

The 17th-ranked Kansas State Wildcats put their unbeaten record on the line when they travel to face Texas Tech Saturday in Big 12 play. The Red Raiders had their perfect start come to a halt last week, and they will want to make sure that the Wildcats don’t leave Lubbock unscathed. Texas Tech has owned this series over the past decade, winning five straight meetings with Kansas State by double-digits. The Red Raiders won 66-14 at home in their last meetings in 2009.

If you are looking to wager on this game, then you will find a line of Texas Tech -3 over Kansas State and a total set of 59.5 points.

Texas Tech

The Red Raiders opened their season with four straight victories over mediocre competition. Texas Tech (4-1, 1-1 Big 12) suffered their first loss of the year last week with a 40-45 home setback against the Texas A&M Aggies. They had a chance to get within 31-26 with a field goal with just five minutes remaining in the third quarter. That field goal was blocked and returned 65 yards for a touchdown to instead make it 38-23, a deficit that was too much to overcome. The Red Raiders actually outgained the Aggies 523-393 for the game.

Eric Stephens had 122 rushing yards in the loss, but he had to leave late in the third quarter with a knee injury. Stephens now has 570 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground, and he could miss the rest of the season, which would be a huge loss. Seth Doege will have to pick up the slack and improve on an already impressive campaign. The junior quarterback is completing 71.4 percent of his passes for 1,706 yards and 17 touchdowns to one interception.

His favorite receivers have been Darrin Moore (21 receptions, 339 yards, four TD), Eric Ward (30, 289, eight TD) and Alex Torres (23, 277, one TD). Doege leads a unit that ranks 7th in the country in total offense (524.6 yards/game) and 8th in scoring offense (45.8 points/game). The other side of the ball had been another story. Texas Tech ranks 94th in the nation in total defense (420.4 yards/game) and 67th in scoring defense (27.2 points/game).

Kansas State

The Wildcats have been one of the biggest surprises in the entire country. Kansas State (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) has played a pretty difficult schedule after opening with two cupcakes, so they are starting to prove that they are for real. The Wildcats beat Miami 28-24 on the road, then-No. 15 Baylor 36-35 at home, and Missouri 24-17 at home over the last three weeks, respectively. Despite getting just 286 total yards of offense against the Tigers, they were able to limit Missouri to 326 yards which proved good enough to win. They led 24-3 early in the fourth quarter before allowing two late Mizzou touchdowns to make the final score appear much closer than the game really was.

Kansas State features one of the best defenses in the entire country. They rank 17th in total defense (298.8 yards/game) and 15th in scoring defense (16.6 points/game). The Wildcats really have not shown any weakness on this side of the ball. They give up 92.4 rushing yards and 206.4 passing yards per game. Their offense won’t wow you, but it has been getting the job done. K-State is 96th in total offense (335.6 yards/game) and 71st in scoring offense (27.0 points/game). Their biggest weakness is a passing offense that generates only 127.0 yards/game through the air, good for 107th in the nation.

Collin Klein is a dual threat quarterback for the Wildcats. Klein is completing 57.4 percent of his passes for 593 yards with six touchdowns and three interceptions. He is second on the team in rushing with 468 yards and seven scores on the ground. John Hubert gets the bulk of the carries, rushing for 469 yards (5.5/carry) and one touchdown through his first five contests. Chris Harper is their go-to receiver with 19 grabs for 226 yards and two touchdowns.

Betting Trends

The Wildcats are 0-6 ATS in their last 6 meetings with Texas Tech. However, K-State is 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games overall, 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games as an underdog, and 6-1 ATS in their last 7 road games vs. a team with a winning home record.

Few teams have been a better bet when coming off a loss than Texas Tech. The Red Raiders are 44-17-1 ATS in their last 62 games following a S.U. loss. But they are just 3-8 ATS in their last 11 games following a ATS win, 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games as a home favorite of 0.5-3.0, and 0-4 ATS in their last 4 home games vs. a team with a winning road record.

Comments

Got something to say?