Oklahoma Sooners: College Football TV Schedule & Gambling Picks - Week 5

Two top-10 matchups, anyone?

Ohio State travels to Happy Valley. Stanford plays at Notre Dame. In this particular instance, the away teams have a bit more leeway here. The College Football Playoff committee seems to take context into consideration (or at least claims to do so), so I think Ohio State can afford to lose a close loss at Penn State and still make a run at a natty, while Penn State likely wouldn’t have that benefit.

The other matchup is also interesting on that front, as Notre Dame doesn’t have the remaining schedule to build enough of a resume if it doesn’t win on Saturday. However, that schedule is an absolute cakewalk, so the Irish will likely rock the CFP boat if they come out on top this week. Stanford, on the other hand, while certainly not benefiting from the Pac-12’s reputation, has remaining games at Washington and Cal — both of whom are ranked at the moment.

I’m not really tripping about the potential for a potential one-loss OU team to be left out at this point in the season, but if something like that does worry you, you’ll probably want to root for Stanford. The Cardinal will have opportunities to trip up down the stretch, but there’s nothing to stop the Irish (other than themselves) if they come out on top. That would equate to an Independent taking one of the four spots, which would have contending programs from P5 conferences biting their nails down the stretch.

Anyway, here are this week’s gambling picks. You can also find this week’s schedule (along with TV and streaming info) down at the bottom.

Last Week’s Picks

Baylor at Oklahoma (-23.5) - I’m expecting more than a few big plays from a very talent group of Baylor receivers, and I’m expecting to pull out some hair, but I don’t think it’s going to be enough to keep it close against an Oklahoma Sooners offense that should meet minimal resistance — particularly on the ground. Gambling pick: We might not be thrilled as we enter OU-Texas week, but I’ll take Oklahoma to cover. Over 69

Oklahoma State (-16.5) at Kansas - As suspect as Oklahoma State’s offensive line is, this game could have a much lower score than we might have predicted a few weeks ago. I obviously don’t think OSU is quite bad or dysfunctional enough to lose to Kansas (as AMAZING as that would be), but I’m tempted to take the Jayhawks to beat this spread. Gambling pick: Let’s do it! Kansas beats the spread against OSU. Under 62

West Virginia (-3.5) at Texas Tech - The Raiders picked up a huge win last week in Stillwater, but I’m still not terribly bullish on this team. That result can largely be chalked up to a BOOTY Oklahoma offensive line doing a poor job and a QB that clearly isn’t quite up to snuff. Tech’s offense appears to its usual self, but OSU’s offensive ineptitude contributed heavily to the discrepancy in time of possession. Don’t expect that to be the case against West Virginia. Gambling pick: West Virginia covers in Lubbock. Over 72

Texas (-8.5) at Kansas State - Last week, Bill Snyder yanked Skylar Thompson in favor of Alex Delton — who has the far inferior arm of the two — without notifying any of his assistants. This appeared to be less of a case of giving a different look (as they’ve done before) than it was a shift in direction offensively. With that apparent change in direction, the Purple Kansas offense doesn’t have a prayer against much of anyone other than the 2017 Oklahoma defense. Hell, K-State’s offensive line is worse than it was a year ago, so that OU team might’ve had an easier time against this unit. Anyway, Texas isn’t back, but the ‘Horns will be just fine this week. Gambling pick: Texas covers. Under 49

Iowa State at TCU (-10.5) - Despite the consecutive losses, this is still a good TCU team. Turnover margin has been the biggest issue by far, and if Shawn Robinson and Co. can clean that up, the Frogs can be seen as a real threat once again. Gambling pick: TCU covers at home. Over 46.5

Stanford at Notre Dame (-5.5) - Notre Dame is becoming harder and harder to figure out. The defense has a lot of talent and has usually looked solid. However, the unit is beginning to show some small cracks. Will Stanford be able to take advantage of them? Bryce Love still hasn’t found his footing, but the passing game is picking up the slack to some degree (JJ Arcega-Whiteside wins a lot of jump-balls). Notre Dame’s offense, on the other hand, finally found a groove against Wake Forest with Ian Book, who seems unlikely to relinquish the job to Brandon Wimbush. Gambling pick: This is one of the toughest ones I’ve looked at this season, but I’ll take Notre Dame to cover at home. Under 52

Ohio State (-3) at Penn State - Basically, Ohio State has the advantage in vital areas. I like Dwayne Haskins much more than Trace McSorley, and Ohio State’s defense is a bit more polished (and talented) than Penn State’s. That’s enough for me. Gambling pick: Ohio State covers in Happy Valley. Under 71