A Big 12 battle is on tap between the Baylor Bears and the West Virginia Mountaineers at noon ET on Saturday at McLane Stadium. These two teams have allowed few points on average (Baylor 17.4, West Virginia 18), so any points scored will be well earned.
The Bears came up short against the Oklahoma State Cowboys last week, falling 24-14. LB Abram Smith put forth a good effort for the losing side as he punched in one rushing touchdown. That touchdown -- a 55-yard rush in the third quarter -- was one of the highlights of the game.
Meanwhile, West Virginia was close but no cigar last week as they fell 23-20 to the Texas Tech Red Raiders. A silver lining for West Virginia was the play of WR Isaiah Esdale, who caught six passes for one TD and 113 yards.
This next contest is expected to be close, with Baylor going off at just a 3-point favorite. Those burned by picking them against the spread last week might want to keep in mind that the team has not yet dropped back-to-back games against the spread this season.
The losses put the Bears at 4-1 and the Mountaineers at 2-3. A pair of stats to keep in the back of your head while watching: Baylor is 145th worst in the nation in rushing yards allowed per game, with 156.8 on average. West Virginia has experienced some struggles of their own as they are stumbling into the matchup with the 182nd fewest rushing yards per game in the nation, having accrued only 113.4 on average. It's possible one of these Achilles' heels will wind up tripping the losing team up.