The No. 18 Oklahoma Sooners find themselves in a familiar position Saturday evening as they go on the road to face the Iowa State Cyclones in an important Big 12 showdown. Last week, the Sooners were upset by Kansas State as four-touchdown favorites and must avoid a letdown against Iowa State in order to remain in the Big 12 race. Last year, they similarly faced Iowa State following an upset loss to Kansas State and managed a 42-41 victory despite squandering a 20-point lead in the fourth quarter.
Kickoff for this contest from Jack Trice Stadium is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. The Sooners are seven-point favorites, down from opening at -9.5, and the over-under for total points scored is 62.5 in the latest Oklahoma vs. Iowa State odds from William Hill. Before making any Iowa State vs. Oklahoma picks, check out the college football predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every FBS college football game 10,000 times. Over the past four-plus years, the proprietary computer model has generated a stunning profit of over $4,000 for $100 players on its top-rated college football picks against the spread. It is a sizzling 16-2 on top-rated picks through four weeks of the 2020 college football season, returning over $1,100 in profit already. Anyone who has followed it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Oklahoma vs. Iowa State. You can visit SportsLine now to see the picks. Here are the college football odds from William Hill and trends for Iowa State vs. Oklahoma:
- Oklahoma vs. Iowa State spread: Oklahoma -7
- Oklahoma vs. Iowa State over-under total: 62.5 points
- Oklahoma vs. Iowa State money line: Oklahoma -260, Iowa State +220
- OU: The Sooners rank No. 8 nationally in total offense at 562.5 yards per game.
- ISU: The Cyclones have covered four straight meetings in the series.
Why Oklahoma can cover
The good news for the Sooners is they have reached the College Football Playoff in four of the past five seasons and have survived a regular-season Big 12 defeat in each of those campaigns on their way to receiving an invitation to the four-team competition. Last year, they were similarly upended by Kansas State before squeaking by Iowa State the following week. They eventually defeated Baylor, 30-23, in overtime in the Big 12 title game to earn the No. 4 seed in the CFP.
Coach Lincoln Riley has posted 12-2 records in each of his first three seasons at the helm and has never suffered back-to-back defeats. He also mentored back-to-back Heisman trophy winners in Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray, both of whom were top overall picks in the NFL draft. Jalen Hurts, last year's starter, was taken in the second round by the Philadelphia Eagles.
Because of their rich quarterback history, freshman Spencer Rattler was among the Heisman favorites before he even took one snap for the Sooners. His three-interception game against Kansas State played a major role in Oklahoma's downfall, but Riley said he's impressed with his quarterback's progress. He also said the turnovers are something "we will both get cleaned up."
Why Iowa State can cover
The Sooners will need to limit their mistakes in order to beat an Iowa State club that has closed the gap in what had been a one-sided rivalry. The Cyclones memorably pulled off a 38-31 upset three years ago in Norman as 31-point underdogs. They also rallied on the road last year before missing a 2-point conversion as time expired as the Sooners held on for a 42-41 victory.
Iowa State used a balanced offensive attack to consistently move the ball last week against a usually stout TCU defense. Its 424 yards of total offense were equally split between rushing and passing. Junior quarterback Brock Purdy went 18-of-23 for 211 yards with a score and zero interceptions. Sophomore running back Breece Hall went for 155 yards on 18 carries and three touchdowns.
How to make Oklahoma vs. Iowa State picks
SportsLine's model is leaning under on the total, with projections showing no running back reaching 100 yards for Oklahoma, while Purdy is held under 300 yards passing. It also says one side of the spread hits in well over 60 percent of simulations. You can only get the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Iowa State vs. Oklahoma? And which side of the spread hits well over 60 percent of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Oklahoma vs. Iowa State spread to back, all from the advanced model that is up over $4,000 on its top-rated college football spread picks, and find out.
