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Get ready for a Big 12 battle as the Texas Longhorns and the West Virginia Mountaineers will face off at noon ET on Saturday at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium. Given that these two teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this contest.
Texas fought the good fight in their overtime matchup against the Kansas Jayhawks last week but wound up with a less-than-desirable result, falling 57-56. Yes, you read that final score correctly. And yes, they were playing football. Texas' loss came about despite a quality game from QB Casey Thompson, who passed for six TDs and 358 yards on 43 attempts in addition to punching in one rushing touchdown.
Meanwhile, the game between West Virginia and the Kansas State Wildcats last week was not a total blowout, but with the Mountaineers falling 34-17 on the road, it was darn close to turning into one. No one had a standout game offensively for West Virginia, but they got scores from WR Reese Smith and WR Winston Wright Jr..
Texas is expected to lose this next one by 3. Now might not be the best time to take Texas against the spread since they've let down bettors for the past five consecutive games.
The losses bumped both teams down to an identical 4-6. A couple defensive stats to keep in the back of your head while watching: The Longhorns are 232nd worst in the nation in rushing touchdowns allowed, with 23 on the season. The Mountaineers have experienced some struggles of their own as they are stumbling into the matchup with the 175th most passing touchdowns allowed in the nation, having given up 15 on the season. It's possible one of these Achilles' heels will wind up tripping the losing team up.
