Is it too much to ask for game winners and totals to align for just one week? The week four winners went 6-2 on the moneyline and 5-3 against the spread. However, the totals went an ugly 2-6. However, the lock of the week of Kansas State was a winner, so expect Last Word to provide one lock moving forward. The Big 12 season marches on with Kansas State and Oklahoma State drawing the early bye week. That leaves just six games in the week five winners out of the Big 12 to pick from. Let’s not waste any more time. As always, all lines/totals are reflected in the most common number across multiple sports books at the time of publication.
Week Five Winners From the Big 12
Season Record ML: 37-13
Season Record ATS: 16-22
Season Record Totals: 18-20
Lock Of the week: 1-0
Cincinnati At BYU (+1.5)
The public will not have to wait for the lock of the week of the week five winners when Cincinnati and BYU meet up on a Friday night in Provo. Cincinnati’s head coach Scott Satterfield must wonder what he is got to do in order for his team to finish offensive drives with points. Meanwhile, BYU has been game the last two weeks against Arkansas and Kansas, splitting the two matchups. BYU appears to be the much stronger team right now. They are also playing in their Big 12 home opener after being on the road for two consecutive weeks. This line of getting BYU being a slight underdog seems too good to be true, but we aren’t going to overthink it. Take the better team playing at home getting points and feel confident locking it up before Vegas changes its mind.
Moneyline: BYU ATS: BYU Total 48.5: Over
Houston (+9.5) At Texas Tech
As long as the Red Raiders pound the rock, they should win. Texas Tech head coach Joey McGuire should have a fired-up and desperate team ready to play in front of its fans. But Dana Holg0rsen and his squad will be able to keep it close in a lower-scoring affair in Lubbock.
Moneyline: Texas Tech ATS: Houston Total 50.5: Under
#24 Kansas (+16.5) At #3 Texas
The biggest monkey on the back of the Texas program has been its ability to sleepwalk in games in which they are heavily favored. But don’t let this big number fool anyone; Texas knows exactly what they must deal with when Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels leads his offense on the field. Not to mention, the Jayhawks are a top-25 team coming to town. Add in the revenge factor of the last trip to Kansas, which was the catapulting win that started the Kansas rebuild, the Horns will be ready. So while Texas will never really be in doubt of losing, the Kansas offense will score enough to stay within the big number.
Moneyline: Texas ATS: Kansas Total 63.5: Over
Baylor At UCF (-11.5)
UCF debuted in the Big 12 on the road last week against the Big 12 champs and gave the Wildcats all they could handle for 3.5 quarters. The effort was even more impressive considering the Knights were playing with backup quarterback Timmy McClain. Meanwhile, Baylor is just a bad football team. It is hard to see Baylor head coach Dave Aranda coming up with any answers on a trip to the Bounce House. Baylor’s lack of offense all season will keep the overall scoring down in a game UCF controls from the opening kickoff.
Moneyline: UCF ATS: UCF Total 54.5: Under
Iowa State (+20) At #14 Oklahoma
There is no rhyme or reason why Iowa State plays Oklahoma close seemingly every year. In fact, the last time Iowa State lost to Oklahoma by three or more touchdowns was 2015. Each team has an opponent in which, no matter what, they get locked into a close game with more often than not. Oklahoma is going to be looking ahead a bit to Red River next week. The Sooners also have not been super impressive against teams with a pulse this season. So while Brent Venables’ team won’t drop their first game of the season, they aren’t covering three touchdowns.
Moneyline: Oklahoma ATS: Iowa State Total 47.5: Over
West Virginia At TCU (-11.5)
The last of the week five winners from the Big 12 concludes with the early surprise team from the conference. It also includes a team that most people only remember getting upset by Colorado in week one. West Virginia’s defense can muddy this up for the TCU offense. The Mountaineers should also find some success on the ground as well. But TCU has done nothing but get better every week since week one. Sonny Dykes has seemingly got this TCU team back on track and have been playing well. Expect West Virginia to slow the game down a bit and still be in the game going into the second half. But TCU’s offense will prove to be too much as they open it up in the second half to cover.
Moneyline: TCU ATS: TCU Total 50.5: Under
