MIKE DAVIS
5-Unit Play. Take #159 Oklahoma St -2.5 over Texas Tech (Saturday, October 31st at 3:30 pm)
Let me be as blunt as I can be: Texas Tech is absolutely atrocious on defense. They couldn’t stop you playing quarterback with our group of handicappers as your offensive line and skill position players. Seriously, they are horrible. That puts an inordinate amount of pressure on the offense. While TT’s offense can score some points, it certainly isn’t consistent. And that’s putting it mildly. I really like Kingsbury but his idea of forcing a few turnovers/field goals and outscoring teams will have to change before he becomes a top-tier head coach. The talent in this game will be close with Okl St having a slight advantage. But the defensive advantage belongs to the Cowboys and in the end, this game will come down to who can get the most stops. The answer is simple: not Texas Tech!
Take Oklahoma State.
4-Unit Play. Take #172 Kentucky +8.5 over Tennessee (Saturday, October 31st at 7:30 pm)
Tennessee is too young and too inconsistent to be favored by 8.5 points over anyone in the SEC, even Kentucky. I certainly like the way the Vols have played recently as they took Alabama to the brink and they beat UGA at home. However, I can envision a situation where they may have a bit of a letdown this week at Kentucky. They are coming off the emotional win vs UGA two weeks ago and the close loss at Bama last week and now they play lowly Kentucky. This team is not mature enough to avoid letdowns. Kentucky is not a very good team but they do have some explosive players on offense including Boom Williams. They have close losses vs Florida and Auburn at home and a win over Missouri. An upset in this spot would not shock me at all but I will run to the window with the 8+ points.
Take Kentucky