TCU vs. West Virginia odds, spread, lines: Week 9 college football picks, predictions by computer model
Big 12 rivals headed in opposite directions meet up this weekend as West Virginia hosts TCU in college football's Week 9 action on Saturday.
West Virginia is unranked and sitting at 3-4 on the year, with just a 1-3 mark in conference play, losing two of its last three overall, most recently an ugly 48-10 decision on the road to Texas Tech.
TCU, meanwhile, is undefeated this season, coming off two dramatic victories over Oklahoma State and Kansas State, and won four straight games against ranked teams over the last month.
What do the experts think of the matchup? Let's see how the College Football Power Index computer prediction model projects the game.
TCU vs. West Virginia picks, predictions
Week 9 college football picks: TCU vs. West Virginia
The computer is siding with the road team this week, as TCU has the 67.9 percent chance to defeat West Virginia and remain undefeated on Saturday.
That leaves the Mountaineers a 32.1 percent shot to hand the Horned Frogs their first loss of the season.
The oddsmakers project a close game, as TCU comes in the 7 point favorites over West Virginia, according to the lines at SI Sportsbook, which set the over/under mark at 69 points for the matchup.
TCU comes in at No. 15 on the index's 131 college football rankings, a reflection of its projected per-game scoring margin against average teams: FPI estimated the Frogs are 13.7 points better on a neutral field and predicts they will win 10.2 games this season.
The computer ranked West Virginia at No. 51 overall, dead last in the Big 12, and expected to win 4.7 games on the year.
AP top 25 voters were more generous to TCU, which came in at No. 7 in the latest official rankings this week.
College Football Power Index
Football Power Index (FPI) college football rankings and computer prediction model are a measure of team strength that predicts a team’s future performance.
Rankings and scores predictions are based on 20,000 simulations of a team’s season, using a combination of analytics, including scores to date, quality of opponents, and a team’s schedule.
College football rankings
According to AP top 25 poll
1. Georgia (31 1st-place votes)
2. Ohio State (18)
3. Tennessee (13)
4. Michigan
5. Clemson (1)
6. Alabama
7. TCU
8. Oregon
9. Oklahoma State
10. USC
T-10. Wake Forest
12. UCLA
13. Penn State
14. Utah
15. Ole Miss
16. Syracuse
17. Illinois
18. LSU
19. Kentucky
20. Cincinnati
21. North Carolina
22. Kansas State
23. Tulane
24. NC State
25. South Carolina