The Baylor Bears feel like they're on a collision course with TCU for the Big XII title for the second straight season.
There are still some potential landmines to avoid though, and a Thursday night trip to Manhattan to take on the Kansas State Wildcats could very well be one of them.
WHEN THE BAYLOR BEARS HAVE THE BALL
Seth Russell's season came to an end the last time the Bears were on the field when he suffered a broken neck. It was a horrible story for Russell, and it might end up being the deathblow to Baylor's season, too.
To his credit, true freshman backup Jarrett Stidham was brought here to Waco because he can put the pill in the air, and in reserve duty this season, his numbers have been fantastic. The frosh has gone 24-of-28 for 331 yards with six TDs and no picks, and he has a rushing score for good measure, too.
That said, there's a real difference between being the starter and being the guy to come in and mop up a game when it's out of reach, and we're going to find out in a hurry what Stidham is bringing to the table. If the frosh looks unfazed by his first start on the road in a conference game in primetime, Baylor will once again feature an impossible offense to stop.
Live bettors though, should know that aggression is coming from this Kansas State defense. The Wildcats are averaging 2.4 sacks per game, and part of the reason they stuck with TCU for the full four quarters just a few weeks ago is due to their ferocious defensive front seven.
It isn't often that Baylor is slowed down, but if there's a game where that could happen, this is clearly it.
WHEN THE KANSAS STATE WILDCATS HAVE THE BALL
The Wildcats are going to have to be careful with the football in this game. They simply can't turn it over and give an awesome Baylor offense field position to work with. The demise against TCU was two second half turnovers, and if that's how this plays out on Thursday, the Wildcats might as well not bother showing up.
Since that TCU game though, it's all fallen apart for Kansas State. The offense has managed just nine total points against Texas and Oklahoma, and the team has just 22 first downs in that span.
The Bears can be beaten deep; we've seen that time and time again. Joe Huebner though, isn't the type of quarterback who can get the ball out there 50 yards down the field on a dime. KSU has to find big plays from somewhere to stay in this game for live betting purposes, because we know that Baylor is going to keep scoring, even if it comes at a slower clip than we're used to with Stidham now under center.
TREND TO TRACK
Art Briles has had a history of being able to work some magic no matter how tough the spot is, but he's been particularly good off of bye weeks. The Bears are 5-1-1 ATS in their last seven off of byes, something which live bettors can't forget against a team which has a history of giving up gobs of points in the second half.
Baylor isn't going to take its foot off of the gas pedal, especially with Stidham still learning his way around this offense. If the Bears get a chance to win by 50, they're going to do so.
BookMaker opened the spread for this Thursday game at -16 in favor of the Baylor Bears. Minute-by-minute spreads, totals and props are available for this game using the live betting platform at BookMaker.
Access live betting lines from your mobile device at BookMaker Sportsbook! You can wager on sporting events as they unfold on your television with BookMaker's live betting platform. Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here, so start betting with BookMaker today! The game between the Baylor Bears and the Kansas State Wildcats will go down Thursday, November 5, 2015 at 7:30 p.m. ET at Bill Snyder Family Stadium. The matchup will be televised on FOX Sports 1.
