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West Virginia Football: High-octane Mountaineers welcome TCU to town

By Dana Becker

AUSTIN, TX - NOVEMBER 03: Will Grier #7 of the West Virginia Mountaineers celebrates after the game against the Texas Longhorns at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on November 3, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, TX - NOVEMBER 03: Will Grier #7 of the West Virginia Mountaineers celebrates after the game against the Texas Longhorns at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on November 3, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /
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West Virginia football welcomes TCU for a Big 12 battle this Saturday. The Mountaineers remain in control of their own destiny in the conference.

The Mountaineers sit inside the Top 10 of the latest College Football Playoff, but they’ll need some help to crack the Top 4. Of course, a loss to the Horned Frogs would end all of that.

Led by Will Grier, West Virginia has one of the top offenses in the country. The Mountaineers enter the contest averaging 40 points and almost 492 total yards per game. Grier, still a Heisman candidate, has completed 182 of 261 passes for 2,618 yards with 28 touchdowns.

Grier’s top target, David Sills V, has 43 receptions for 626 yards and 11 touchdowns. Kennedy McKoy is the leading rusher with 460 yards and two scores.

West Virginia has picked up back-to-back wins over Texas and Baylor, including a 42-41 victory vs. the Longhorns last week when Grier ran in the game-winning two-point conversion.

For TCU, Michael Collins has replaced Shawn Robinson at quarterback, with Jalen Reagor catching 49 passes for 734 yards and six scores. Darius Anderson anchors the ground game with 530 yards.

The Horned Frogs snapped a three-game losing streak with a 14-13 victory over Kansas State last week.

Here’s how you can watch Saturday’s league contest between West Virginia and TCU:

Date: Saturday, Nov. 10
Time: 11 a.m. ET
Location: Morgantown, W.V.
Venue: Milan Puskar Stadium.
TV: FOX Sports 1
Live Stream: FOX Sports GO | Fubo TV

Keys to Victory

Grier and the West Virginia offense should find enough room to exploit a strong TCU defense, but it might not be as easy as other weeks. The Horned Frogs allow 24 points per game and 335 yards, with 191 of that coming against the pass.

The Mountaineers have been on a roll, scoring 42 and 58 points since a loss to Iowa State. Prior to that setback, they posted 38 and 42 in wins over Kansas and Texas Tech.

Despite being just 2-3 over the last five, the TCU defense has held all but Oklahoma under 27 points. That includes just 13 points allowed vs. Kansas State, 17 to Texas Tech and 14 to Iowa State.

Betting Odds

Odds courtesy of OddsShark

Point Spread: West Virginia -12
Over/Under: 56

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Prediction

If West Virginia wants to remain in that second group waiting for someone to slip up in the College Football Playoffs, they’ll have to take care of their own business. Since a loss to Iowa State, the Mountaineers have done just that – and they should be able to make it three in a row with a win over TCU.

Final Score: West Virginia 34, TCU 24

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