Mountain West Showdown

There is a classic match-up on Thursday night in college football. That’s nothing new – the Thursday nights have been very good to us all year. This one, though, is a chance for a lot of people to see first-hand what the Mountain West has to offer (a lot, by the way). BYU travels to TCU in a game that will either significantly strengthen BYU’s claim to being a BCS Buster, or redeem TCU for a rough game against Oklahoma. The game started out with BYU favored by two, but has snce mved so that the home team s favored by as many as two. I’ve had this game crcled on my calendar for a long while now. I’ll leave the pick up to you, but here’s a look at three reasons you could justify betting on either eam:

TCU

Defense – TCU plays very good defense. Need proof? 19.1 That’s the number of rushing yards per game that the team has allowed. That’s ridiculous. They are solid on the pass, too. BYU will have its hands full like never before. Outside of the Oklahoma game, the defense has allowed just 45 points in six games. That’s just a hair over a TD per game.

Andy Dalton – TCU hasn’t looked good in their last two games offensively, but they have been playing without their starting QB. Dalton is no Heisman threat, but he can do his job well. He’s likely to be back on Thursday, and that will be a real boost for his team.

Line move – Three quarters of all bets placed have been on the Cougars, yet he line is moving to make them more attractive. That likely means that smart money is on the Horned Frogs. If you buy into that kind of thing then TCU is your team.

BYU

Defense – TCU is hyped as the defensive machine, but his team is pretty darned good without the ball, too. In fact, they are actually a little bit better statistically against the pass than TCU. Remember, this is the team that put up back-to-back shutouts this year. TCU isn’t a great offense at the best of times, and playiing this team won’t help improve that.

Style of play – BYU isn’t going to be able to run against TCU. No big deal, really. The Cougars run more than people think – Harvey Unga is on pace to break 1000 yards on the season. Still, the Cougars live and die by the pass, and they will still be able to pass. Oklahoma had no problem at all passing against TCU. If BYU’s QB, Max Hall, was playing for a BCS conference team he would be right near the top of the Heisman race. The guy completes more than 70 percent of his passes. Only six guys in the country have more passing yards after playing six games.

Streak
– The Cougars have not lost since September of 2007. That’s 16 straight games. They have won three of their last four at TCU. This team is exceptionally well coached, and they know how to win. Given the line, all they have to do here is win.

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