Spread & Over/Under Predictions for WVU vs. Cincinnati

Can the Mountaineers cover the spread this week?

Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

West Virginia hits the road this weekend for a matchup with an old Big East foe in Cincinnati. The Bearcats are currently 4.5-point favorites as both teams make their return to play following a much-needed bye week.

Here are my picks for this week's WVU game. Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.

Star ratings (Strength of prediction):

1 Star - Not very confident
2 Star - A little confident
3 Star - Fairly confident
4 Star - Very confident
5 Star - Should be a lock to happen

Spread: Cincinnati -4.5

2-star play on West Virginia (+4.5): Although Nicco Marchiol is likely in line to get the start, I still lean toward taking the points with West Virginia in a possible upset. The running game should be at full strength, with CJ Donaldson cleared earlier in the week and coming off of a bye. WVU is still a bit beat up on the defensive side of the ball, but the change in leadership during the bye week could produce positive results. If this gets into a back-and-forth affair, the Mountaineers will be in some trouble.

Over/Under: 56.5

4-star play on the over: Cincinnati has one of the best passing attacks in the league, averaging 282.4 yards per game, which is obviously not great news for the Mountaineer secondary. On paper, Cincinnati's defense hasn't played horribly, but they've also seen some pretty weak or middle-of-the-road offenses this season. This matchup could be like Cincinnati's 44-41 win over Texas Tech. I don't think it'll be quite that high-scoring, but there will be no issues putting the ball into the end zone for either team.

Record this season:

ATS: 5-3 (62.5%)
O/U: 4-4 (50%)
Overall: 9-7 (56.2%)

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