Kansas St. vs TCU Football Predictions & Best Bets

A CFP berth is the goal for the unbeaten TCU Horned Frogs

Sonny Dykes' first season at TCU ended with a rout of Iowa State, which ranked in the top 20 in scoring defense entering the game. With a record of 12-0, the Horned Frogs finished the regular season 9-0 in conference play. To qualify for the College Football Playoff, they must win here. TCU dominated Iowa State early, jumping to a 24-0 lead in the first quarter, then cruised the rest of the way. The Frogs led 34-7 at the half and never let Iowa State get closer than that. During the game, TCU held a 377-330 advantage in total offense, won the first down battle 21-19 and controlled the clock from 33:52 to 26:08. The Horned Frogs forced three turnovers, including a pair of pick-sixes, without committing a turnover.

In the FBS, TCU comes into this game ranked 25th in passing offense with 274.8 yards per game. In addition, they rank 27th in rushing offense with 198.5 yards per game. By scoring 41.3 points per game, the Horned Frogs are 4th in the nation in scoring offense, while allowing 24.5 points per game in scoring defense. As a passer, Max Duggan is 221 of 332 for 3,070 yards with 29 touchdowns and three interceptions while adding 294 yards and five touchdowns on the ground. As a result of a sprained knee suffered in the opener against Colorado, Chandler Morris is 18 of 26 for 145 yards plus a touchdown. He also has 20 yards on the ground. During garbage time, Sam Jackson (five of five, 63 yards, 64 rushing yards, two touchdowns) and Josh Hoover (one of one, two yards) saw action.

The teams met in late October, with TCU winning by a 10-point margin. During that game, the Horned Frogs threw for 280 yards and ran for 215 yards and two touchdowns. TCU forced two turnovers while not making any mistakes. Over the final 38:09, the defense blanked Kansas State, helping the team rally from a 28-10 deficit. The Wildcats' Martinez was knocked out early in that game, forcing Howard to start. Howard has improved Kansas State's passing game, but Martinez's ability to create with his legs has waned. TCU has Duggan in spades when it comes to that. Dykes' team is battle tested, motivated and determined to reach the CFP. As a result of their play, they emerged victorious.

Kansas St. Highlights

With a power ranking of 19, Kansas St. is ranked #38 in offense (scoring an average of 32.18 per game), #14 in defense (allowing an average of 18.73 points to be scored against them per game) and are 9-3 (8-3-1 ATS) this season.

TCU Highlights

TCU Horned Frogs has a power ranking of 12 and are #8 for offense (scoring an average of 39.45 per game), #59 for defense (giving up an average of 18.73 points per game) and 12-0 (9-2-1 ATS) overall. Kansas St. went 1-2 (1-2 ATS) in their last 3 matchups against TCU.

Curated Picks & Predictions

From the lines set by Sportsbooks, they predict the score to be KAN.ST 33.5, TCU 28.5. 58% of SportsJaw predicts TCU Horned Frogs to cover. OddsShark predicts Texas Christian will win, kansas state will cover, and the total will go over.

67% picked TCU Horned Frogs on Covers.com

Our ScoreCaster predicts Wildcats 34 to Horned Frogs 42.

Staff Prediction

Our prediction: Wildcats 34 to Horned Frogs 42.

Written by SportsJaw Staff Categorized as NCAAF Predictions