Football expert Phil Steele is the owner and publisher of Phil Steele’s College Football Preview, regarded as the college football bible. Get in-depth coverage of college and pro football 24/7/365 at PhilSteele.com.
Oklahoma (-11) over WEST VIRGINIA: Oklahoma comes in ranked No. 20 in the NCAA, allowing 325 yards per game. My rankings, however, have the Sooners as a top 10 defense, and their last game against Baylor is a great example of the difference. The Sooners allowed a season-high 425 yards against the Bears, but that was actually Baylor’s worst offensive output of the season. In fact, Oklahoma has held four opponents to season lows, and in my exclusive pass efficiency defensive rankings they are No. 3. Now they take on a West Virginia offense that averaged 599 yards per game in its first four home games, but just 301 yards per game in its last two. The Mountaineers have lost four straight by 24 points per game, and the Sooners make it five straight.
UCLA (+3 1/2) over Usc: UCLA has not been slowed at home, averaging 526 yards per game, which includes facing three defenses I currently have ranked in my top 27. The Trojans have struggled when facing balanced teams and have allowed more than 140 yards rushing three times, losing all three, while the Bruins have topped that number in seven of 10 games. UCLA coach Jim Mora has brought an NFL mentality to his teams, which is what you need to win pressure-packed rivalry games.
LAST WEEK (NCAA): 1-1. SEASON: 10-12.