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The Kansas Jayhawks take on the West Virginia Mountaineers in Morgantown, West Virginia, on Saturday, Nov. 14. Kickoff is set for 5:30 p.m. ET on ESPNU.
West Virginia is favored by -3 points on the spread with a moneyline of -142. Kansas, meanwhile, enters as a +3 underdog and is +120 on the moneyline to pull off the upset. The over/under sits at 67.5 total points.
Here’s my Kansas vs. West Virginia prediction and college football pick for Saturday, November 14.
Kansas vs West Virginia Prediction
- Kansas vs. West Virginia Pick: West Virginia -3 (-105)
My West Virginia vs. Kansas best bet is on the Mountaineers to cover the spread. Find the best line available on our live NCAAF odds page and be sure to download the Action Network app for more picks and analysis.
Kansas vs West Virginia Odds
| Kansas Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+3 -115 | 67.5 -112o / -108u | +120 |
| West Virginia Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-3 -105 | 67.5 -112o / -108u | -142 |
- Kansas vs West Virginia point spread: West Virginia -3 (-105), Kansas +3 (-115)
- Kansas vs West Virginia over/under: 67.5 (-112o / -108u)
- Kansas vs West Virginia moneyline: Kansas +120, West Virginia -142
Kansas vs West Virginia College Football Preview
Kansas Jayhawks Betting Preview: Another One Slips Away
Kansas has squandered opportunities to win football games all season and now sits at 3-6 with a bowl appearance very improbable.
The mistakes, failure to capitalize in the red zone and careless turnovers have resulted in losses to Arizona State, Kansas State, TCU and UCF in games the Jayhawks had firmly within reach at one point or another.
The offense is inconsistent, and the defense is weak. After two gut-wrenching losses in a row — KU has lost four of its last five games — Kansas has to lock in and find internal motivation this week to put a solid performance together on the road.
The quarterback play of Isaiah Marshall has looked excellent at times and maddening at others, and the Jayhawks ended up going to Cole Ballard in the game at TCU.
Ballard was held out last week against UCF and is questionable for this game, so Marshall will likely see the majority of snaps.
Marshall has a decent amount of mobility and can gain yardage with his legs, and he's the second-leading rusher on the team with 528 rushing yards and four touchdowns.
Running back Dylan Edwards has run for 595 yards, and getting the ground attack humming unlocks a lot for this offense.
The passing game has been sporadic, but KU does have a decent corps of receivers, including Nik McMillan, Nahzae Cox and Cam Pickett. These three are capable of producing explosive plays from anywhere on the field and should have success against WVU.
The defense hasn't been consistently strong for Kansas this season, but the last three games have been the best stretch of the season for the Jayhawks' stop unit.
TCU managed just 286 yards of total offense, while Baylor and UCF each had 358, a big improvement from giving up 550 yards in each of the two games before that.
The red-zone defense has improved significantly, and KU has been excellent on third down.
West Virginia Mountaineers Betting Preview: Catch Them If You Can
West Virginia went toe-to-toe last week with Texas Tech on the road in a good old-fashioned Big 12 shootout.
Texas Tech was the preseason favorite to win the conference, and while the Red Raiders aren't nearly the team many expected, WVU's 48 points and 582 total yards were very impressive.
The schedule stiffens after this game, so the motivation for WVU has to be securing bowl eligibility at home this week.
Quarterback Michael Hawkins has thrown the ball really well in the second half of the season, and WVU has found more consistency in the passing game. Hawkins has a 12:2 touchdown-to-interception ratio, and all four of his 200-plus-yard passing efforts have come in the last five games.
The ground game, however, is what makes the engine run. The rushing duo of Hawkins and running back Cam Cook has been one of the best in college football this year, as these two have combined to rush for 1,996 yards and 27 touchdowns.
The offensive line has played well, and the rushing attack has shown up in every game this season.
The defense… is a different story.
The Mountaineers sit bottom-10 in the country in many metrics, and they've allowed an abundance of explosive plays each and every week. Opponents have ripped off a 20-yard play against the Mountaineers 70 times, and 21 of those plays went for 40 yards.
The unit can't tackle, is regularly out of position, and its ability to stop the run has been negligible at best.
Five of WVU's six conference opponents have scored 41 points or more. The 'Neers have given up 568 yards per game and eight yards per play against Big 12 foes this season.
Kansas vs West Virginia Pick, Betting Analysis
This line opened with West Virginia as a three-point favorite, with a total that has been bet up from 65.5 to 67.5, where it currently sits. I like the Mountaineers here.
Last week's result might be the breaking point this year for Kansas football, as the Jayhawks blew another lead and suffered a defeat in horrific fashion.
The defense has a tough ask this week when it comes to stopping the WVU rushing offense. The last power rushing attacks to line up against Kansas were Utah and Kansas State, who rushed for a combined 646 yards on 6.6 yards per carry.
I'm not convinced the WVU defense is suddenly going to turn things around and become tough, but the unit showed against TCU and Virginia that it can be competent against P4 competition.
Kansas is going back to Marshall at quarterback, and his wildly inconsistent play can result in feast-or-famine performances. Marshall may have open receivers, but his 55% completion percentage shows that he misses some of those receivers, sometimes in costly situations.
Hawkins has orchestrated the offense brilliantly in conference play, and he should have a decent amount of success finding explosive plays in the passing game against a KU secondary that has struggled with giving up deep shots.
The inconsistent play of the Jayhawks and their perceived lack of motivation lead me to believe this game will be a struggle for them. The Mountaineers will get it done on Saturday night. I'm OK laying the number here.
Pick: West Virginia -3
Kansas vs West Virginia Betting Trends
