Unfortunately for the Kansas Jayhawks, who are 35-point NCAA football betting underdogs against the Oklahoma Sooners, the latter are not looking past them and into all that the future does and could hold for them, such as the Big 12 championship game against either TCU or Oklahoma State, which they clinched with a 38-20 win over the Horned Frogs, the Sooners’ fifth straight outright win and third straight ATS win, and possibly even a College Football Playoff spot.
"The next one is bigger. That's why they call it #ChampionshipNovember."
Full coverage ➡️ https://t.co/yov5Uh1nkX pic.twitter.com/7W0KuBEjyj
— Oklahoma Football (@OU_Football) November 12, 2017
- Date: November 18
- Time: 3:35 PM
- Venue: Memorial Stadium, Lawrence, KS
- Sportsbook Vegas odds College Football Betting odds:
Oklahoma -35 (-110) 70½ (-110) -25000
Kansas +35 (-110) 70½ (-110) +9000
To get to Oz, first you have to go through Kansas
“We haven’t won the Big 12 yet,” Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield said. “[The Jayhawks]’re a Big 12 opponent that’s in the way of our goals, so it shouldn’t take any extra motivation. We have to have the same mindset no matter who we’re playing against. That’s kind of been our focus all year – it doesn’t matter who we’re playing, we have to rise to the occasion and play well, week in and week out.” In addition to their own merits, losses by Notre Dame and Georgia have put the Sooners in an even better position in relation to the CFP, which “shows that you don’t take care of business on Saturdays, you’re not going to be in that talk anymore,” Mayfield added. “That doesn’t have to be us. We can learn from watching those two teams. Just the fact that we’ve got to win – it doesn’t matter who you’re playing – and you’re going to get everybody’s best shot this late in the year, so we’ve got to be ready to bring ours too.” OU has won its last 15 road games and its last 11 against teams with a losing record, but has not covered the NCAA football betting spread in five of the last six as a double-digit road fave.
The littlest Big 12 team
The Jayhawks have lost nine straight games since winning their season-opener, and have just one win over an FBS opponent since November 2014, going 1-33 thenceforth. Kansas has additionally lost its last 12 encounters since 1997, including the last three by a 168-17 margin. Let it not be said, though, that KU isn’t breaking records. As a matter of fact, following their 27-42 loss to Texas on Saturday, the Jayhawks now hold the longest road losing streak in the FBS, with 45 losses since 2009. Both athletic director Sheahon Zenger and coach David Beaty are still, though, in Kansas chancellor Douglas Girod’s good graces. “I want to reiterate my confidence in Sheahon and coach David Beaty,” Girod said in an open letter to faculty and alumni. “Nobody denies the challenges we are having on the field, but I maintain my belief that Sheahon and coach Beaty have the right long-term vision and are doing things the right way.” The Jayhawks have covered the NCAA football betting spread in two of their last three and are 5-2 ATS in its past seven as a double-digit home dog.