King of The Game: OSU vs. Tulsa

We are starting a new weekly post this football season. A weekly competition I like to call “King of the Game.”

The rules are simple. Each week five people will make predictions about the upcoming game. The predictions will vary each week. Plus, each contestant get’s the opportunity to earn bonus points by making a wild prop bet.

Our contestants will consist of myself, Kyle Cox, Nick Welch, someone from the enemy’s side, and an OSU fan contributor. This week’s picks from the enemy come from Hunter Hart of Reign Cane Sports, an independent Tulsa Sports Blog. Basically, it’s the Tulsa version of PFB.

Our fan picks come courtesy of Carlie Goekeler. How could we not pick her after this tweet?

I hate to pull the woman card, the alum card, the homecoming queen card, the Coop fan card but I did. There are my cards. Pick me.

— Carlie Goekeler (@carlizzle93) August 28, 2017

She offered a little insight into herself.

“My name is Carlie Goekeler and I am a 2016 alum of Oklahoma State. I am currently pursuing my D.O from OSU’s College of Osteopathic Medicine. Being a medical student takes up 99% of my time so the Pistols Firing Blog is my lifeline in the fall (my favorite part being the podcasts). My parents met at OSU and have been taking me to all the home football games since 2001. I’m a total OSU fanatic and perfect evidence that even a part science nerd/part sports junkie/part girly girl can win homecoming queen.”

We begin our competition with this Thursday’s season opener against Tulsa! The Cowboys and Golden Hurricane are facing off for the first time since 2011 (has it been that long?).

Here are this week’s bets:

• Bet Against the Spread: OSU -17
• More Catches: James Washington or all of Tulsa
• Over/Under: +2.5 turnover margin for OSU
• King of the Game: Defense (OSU or Tulsa)
• Prop Bet

Without further adieu…

Phillip Slavin

Bet Against the Spread: OSU
I think Tulsa’s offense will try to run the ball in the first half (unsuccessfully) and be forced to throw in the second, which won’t go well either. OSU will be slow out of the gate as they have been the past few years, but get things rolling in the second quarter and win handily.

More Catches: Tulsa
OSU will want to get its various wide receivers opportunities. If the Cowboys are up big in the second half, which I think they will be, they’ll get other guys the chance to show in-game what they can do.

Over/Under: Over
When Tulsa is forced to throw the ball in the second half to keep things from getting ugly, Ramon Richards and A.J. Green are going to have fun against an in-experienced starting quarterback.

King of the Game: Chad Whitener
Tulsa should try and run the ball a lot, especially in the first half. They have a solid offensive line, which should open up opportunities for the linebackers to get tackles. I’m going with Whitener to lead the team in tackles this game.

Prop Bet: Oklahoma State gets three defensive scores.
Saying one isn’t interesting, neither is saying two. I’ll go with one on special teams, a blocked punt or field goal run back, and two more by the defense. Maybe a pick-six and a scoop-and-score.

Kyle Cox

Bet Against the Spread: Tulsa
I’ll go with my prediction from my summer preview which was a 38-24 win. So, the Cowboys get it done but do not cover. This is still the first game of the year and there might be a couple of bugs to work out. Still, I think it’s a handily-won victory. Somewhere around 32-7 in the second half and Gundy gives it to Justice and J.D. King to grind out the clock.

More Catches: Tulsa
They are retooling and at the time of this yet to name a starting QB. But think of them as Art Briles’ Baylor-lite, or extra-lite or however that works. Regardless, Philip Montgomery coaches a system that works and it get his playmakers in space. Tulsa averaged 20.5 catches per game last year and I don’t expect that to drop off too much. Besides, James Washington has never had double-digit catches in a game his entire career.

Over/Under: Over
Whoo momma! Let’s swing for it and say two picks from the greenish QB (whoever it is) and a forced fumble. Hopefully, that’s all it takes to win that battle 3-0.

King of the Game: Ramon Richards
This feels like a Ramon interception game. He’ll get at least one of those. On Tulsa, I’ll go with senior free safety Jordan Mitchell who had nine pass breakups last year. They’ll need to get a lot from their secondary to stay in this one.

Prop Bet: Oklahoma State will go for it on fourth and 2-plus yards early in the game.

Nick Welch

Bet Against the Spread: OSU
I’ll take the over, so higher than 17-point difference.

More Catches: Tulsa
Tulsa>Washington

Over/Under: Over
I’ll take the over, probably like three.

King of the Game: Darrion Daniels
My own opinion, TU has an average O-Line, with an inexperienced quarterback and I think he gets a coverage sack or two, maybe a fumble recovery.

Prop Bet: Eight different Oklahoma State receivers catch a ball.
Is that crazy enough? If not, OSU kicks and makes a 45-plus yard field goal.

Hunter Hart

Bet Against the Spread: I’ll take OSU here.
OSU has had struggles with teams like Central Michigan, Texas Tech, and Iowa State which gives me hope, but Tulsa has too many unknowns offensively to score the points necessary to ultimately keep it close.

More Catches: Easy choice here, I’ll take all of Tulsa.
I know Tulsa has never faced a receiver like Washington, but they did play Courtland Sutton last year. Sutton is expected to be a 1st- round draft pick, and he had 8 catches in that game. With all the options that Rudolph has, I see Washington getting around that same number. TU will probably throw about 20-25 passes, so I think (hope) that we will complete more than 10 of those.

Over/Under: Under.
Last year Tulsa was middle of the road in turnover margin, but the lead RB only lost the ball 2 times out of 264 attempts. I trust him, and I don’t think Coach Montgomery will put our new QBs in situations where they can make mistakes.

King of the Game: Chad Whitener. Tulsa needs to run the ball effectively on Thursday. I think that TU’s offensive line will give a good push, but if Whitener is able to stuff the run then the Hurricane will be in for a long day. Additionally, Whitener will need to stay disciplined on the read option which is typical of a Montgomery-run offense. 

Prop Bet: Tulsa will have more yards than OSU after the first quarter.
TU traveled to Ohio State last season, and after the first quarter TU had more yards on offense than the Buckeyes. It is a different team this year, but I still think TU will be able to run the ball effectively. Honestly, I don’t know how TU’s defense will stop OSU, but prop bets are supposed to be wild and fun!

Carlie Goekeler

Bet against the Spread: OSU by 21
There are bound to be mistakes in this game from OSU simply because it’s the first. However, there is no way Tulsa beats the spread.

More Catches: Tulsa
Okay I’m drinking the orange kool-aid and all but Tulsa will have more catches than Washington. With a receiving core as strong as ours, there is no way Washington has a chance.

Over/Under: Under
Tulsa did win 10 games last year and their coach doesn’t accept sloppy play. I think this game will be fairly clean overall.

King of the Game: Ramon Richards.
I’m all in on Ramon and this position change. It sounds like this bet was made for Ramon. Someone who you have always cringed while watching but also the first guy you send off the sidelines when OSU is up 1 with 5 seconds left and OU is on our 20. Ramon seems to be the guy who is in the right place at the right time and we all know he has the competitive spirit to do something crazy.

Prop bet: Tyron Johnson takes the first returnable kick to the house.
I’m really excited to see what this caged ex-tiger can do. Listening to him talk to the media, you can tell he’s really excited for the opportunity to play for a team that makes plays that result in 7s instead of 3s.