TCU at Kansas State: Prediction, pick, line, odds, TV channel, live stream, watch online

TCU was the underdog the season and now it's the favorite. 

The Horned Frogs are tied with Texas atop the Big 12 standings with a 2-0 conference record. Those wins -- on the road at Oklahoma State and at home against West Virginia -- have been impressive, and now they control their path to the Big 12 title game. However, the Frogs must keep the streak going on the road against Kansas State. Bill Snyder is one of the country's best coaches and Manhattan is a tough place to get a W. Is Gary Patterson's team up to the challenge?

Viewing information

Date: Saturday, Oct. 14 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
Location: Bill Snyder Family Stadium -- Manhattan, Kansas
TV: FS1 | Live stream: fubo.TV (try for free)

Storylines

TCU: This game ends a difficult three-game stretch. Get out unscathed and there's a good chance the Frogs enter November 8-0 and firmly entrenched in the immediate playoff conversation. To get past K-State, TCU needs to control the line of scrimmage and get off a few explosive plays. Those have been huge factors for TCU in controlling its past two conference games. The thing is, K-State's defense is good at limiting big plays and stopping its version of the single wing has been a tough assignment for opponents. It'll be a slugfest, so TCU's toughness will be tested. 

Kansas State: Can the receivers make enough plays to create offensive balance? The Wildcats are dead last in the Big 12 in passing offense, and that's fine by itself because no team throws comes close to throwing fewer passes per game. (As it so happens, TCU is next to last at 30.6 attempts per game.) However, passing inefficiency was a brutal 44.22 rating in a 14-7 loss to Vanderbilt. Jesse Ertz is the best passing option at quarterback, but he hasn't been 100 percent healthy and Alex Delton is expected to start. Passing won't be the key to victory for K-State, but it needs to be a factor. 

Prediction

TCU has played well, but West Virginia had success running the ball on them in Week 6. K-State doesn't have a Justin Crawford in its offense, but they play the type of grinding offense that wears opponents down. Tack on Bill Snyder's genius as a game-week planner and this figures to be a tough outing for TCU. There's enough explosiveness in the run game and pressure along the D-line for TCU to win this, but a mistake or two from quarterback Kenny Hill keeps this one uncomfortably close.  Pick: Kansas State +4.5

	Dennis Dodd	Barton Simmons	Jerry Palm	Chip Patterson	Tom Fornelli	Ben Kercheval	Barrett Sallee
KSU +4.5	Kansas St.	Kansas St.	TCU	Kansas St.	Kansas St.	Kansas St.	TCU
SU	Kansas St.	TCU	TCU	Kansas St.	TCU	TCU	TCU