2012 College Football Week 7 Picks: Oklahoma over Texas

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Game of the Week: Texas vs. Oklahoma

The Red River Rivalry (say it five times fast, I'll wait) returns for its 107th installment. The Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners both enter the game with one loss and BCS bowl game aspirations far from a certainty.

Mack Brown's boys are coming off a tough loss to West Virginia at home, 48-45. There's little doubt that the Longhorns can score points at a rapid rate. Their 46.8 points per game is the sixth-most in the country. However, with the potent offense comes a defense that mimics a sieve. Over their last three games, the Longhorns have allowed 31 or more points (Ole Miss, OK State and Geno Smith's West Virginia Mountaineers). Texas ranks 86th in the country in rush defense behind Texas State and 56th in pass defense behind Virginia. The defense is helping put the “burnt” in burnt orange.

It's not all bad; David Ash has thrown for more than 1,200 yards with 11 touchdowns and one interception. Texas boasts a three-headed monster in the backfield with Joe Bergeron, Malcolm Brown and Jonathan Gray all with more than 240 rushing yards and 12 total touchdowns.

Bob Stoops' Sooners were thinking BCS title before the season started, but Kansas State emerged as an early-season roadblock to that goal. The Wildcats outscored Oklahoma 14-6 in the fourth quarter en route to the upset win. Three turnovers by the Sooners ultimately cost them the game.

There were also some whispers for Landry Jones as a top Heisman candidate heading into the season, but those have evaporated–mostly because of Geno Smith–but 1,032 passing yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions don't garner a lot of attention either. Damien Williams is averaging 7.8 yards per rush with five touchdowns through the first four games.

The Sooners are 59th in rush defense, but ninth in pass defense, which will force Ash into his stiffest test of the season.

We simulated the Sooners and Longhorns and Oklahoma comes away with the win 52.5 percent of the time by an average score of 26-23.

College Football Week 7
Matchup	Win%	Avg Score
Boston College Eagles	11.9	17	Boxscore
@ Florida State Seminoles	88.1	30
Duke Blue Devils	39.6	24	Boxscore
@ Virginia Tech Hokies	60.4	28
Maryland Terrapins	49.5	22	Boxscore
@ Virginia Cavaliers	50.5	23
North Carolina Tar Heels	50.5	27	Boxscore
@ Miami (FL) Hurricanes	49.5	25
Fordham Rams	5.0	8	Boxscore
@ Cincinnati Bearcats	95.0	51
Syracuse Orange	39.6	20	Boxscore
@ Rutgers Scarlet Knights	60.4	23
Temple Owls	40.6	20	Boxscore
@ Connecticut Huskies	59.4	22
Louisville Cardinals	66.3	26	Boxscore
@ Pittsburgh Panthers	33.7	21
Illinois Fighting Illini	21.3	16	Boxscore
@ Michigan Wolverines	78.7	25
Iowa Hawkeyes	42.6	22	Boxscore
@ Michigan State Spartans	57.4	23
Wisconsin Badgers	54.5	26	Boxscore
@ Purdue Boilermakers	45.5	25
Northwestern Wildcats	69.8	26	Boxscore
@ Minnesota Golden Gophers	30.2	20
Ohio State Buckeyes	80.2	30	Boxscore
@ Indiana Hoosiers	19.8	17
Akron Zips	17.8	17	Boxscore
@ Ohio Bobcats	82.2	29
Buffalo Bulls	19.8	17	Boxscore
@ Northern Illinois Huskies	80.2	27
Western Michigan Broncos	39.1	27	Boxscore
@ Ball State Cardinals	60.9	28
Miami (OH) RedHawks	46.5	23	Boxscore
@ Bowling Green Falcons	53.5	24
Navy Midshipmen	56.4	26	Boxscore
@ Central Michigan Chippewas	43.6	24
Toledo Rockets	78.2	28	Boxscore
@ Eastern Michigan Eagles	21.8	18
Utah Utes	45.0	21	Boxscore
@ UCLA Bruins	55.0	23
California Golden Bears	56.4	26	Boxscore
@ Washington State Cougars	43.6	25
USC Trojans	82.2	35	Boxscore
@ Washington Huskies	17.8	23
Arizona State Sun Devils	82.2	31	Boxscore
@ Colorado Buffaloes	17.8	19
Kentucky Wildcats	31.7	16	Boxscore
@ Arkansas Razorbacks	68.3	23
South Carolina Gamecocks	46.5	18	Boxscore
@ LSU Tigers	53.5	21
Auburn Tigers	46.5	19	Boxscore
@ Mississippi Rebels	53.5	22
Tennessee Volunteers	48.5	21	Boxscore
@ Mississippi State Bulldogs	51.5	22
Florida Gators	73.3	24	Boxscore
@ Vanderbilt Commodores	26.7	16
Alabama Crimson Tide	84.2	29	Boxscore
@ Missouri Tigers	15.8	15
Utah State Aggies	55.4	29	Boxscore
@ San Jose State Spartans	44.6	27
Texas A&M Aggies	57.4	28	Boxscore
@ Louisiana Tech Bulldogs	42.6	25
Idaho Vandals	62.9	25	Boxscore
@ Texas State Bobcats	37.1	21
Stanford Cardinal	35.1	21	Boxscore
@ Notre Dame Fighting Irish	64.9	25
Kent State Golden Flashes	50.0	20	Boxscore
@ Army Black Knights	50.0	19
Oregon State Beavers	62.4	25	Boxscore
@ Brigham Young Cougars	37.6	22
Texas Longhorns	47.5	23	Boxscore
vs. Oklahoma Sooners	52.5	26
TCU Horned Frogs	47.5	24	Boxscore
@ Baylor Bears	52.5	25
Kansas State Wildcats	57.4	25	Boxscore
@ Iowa State Cyclones	42.6	23
West Virginia Mountaineers	71.3	35	Boxscore
@ Texas Tech Red Raiders	28.7	29
Oklahoma State Cowboys	79.2	32	Boxscore
@ Kansas Jayhawks	20.8	22
UTEP Miners	25.7	20	Boxscore
@ Tulsa Golden Hurricane	74.3	30
Southern Miss Golden Eagles	29.7	20	Boxscore
@ UCF Knights	70.3	26
Memphis Tigers	32.2	21	Boxscore
@ East Carolina Pirates	67.8	28
UAB Blazers	35.6	24	Boxscore
@ Houston Cougars	64.4	31
Texas-San Antonio Roadrunners	39.1	24	Boxscore
@ Rice Owls	60.9	27
Southern Methodist Mustangs	82.2	29	Boxscore
@ Tulane Green Wave	17.8	16
Fresno State Bulldogs	31.7	25	Boxscore
@ Boise State Broncos	68.3	30
Colorado State Rams	40.6	20	Boxscore
@ San Diego State Aztecs	59.4	23
Air Force Falcons	51.5	24	Boxscore
@ Wyoming Cowboys	48.5	23
New Mexico Lobos	53.5	23	Boxscore
@ Hawaii Warriors	46.5	22
Nevada Wolf Pack	81.2	30	Boxscore
@ UNLV Rebels	18.8	19
South Alabama Jaguars	14.4	16	Boxscore
@ Arkansas State Red Wolves	85.6	30
Florida Atlantic Owls	14.9	17	Boxscore
@ Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks	85.1	31
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders	37.1	24	Boxscore
@ FIU Golden Panthers	62.9	31
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers	66.3	29	Boxscore
@ Troy Trojans	33.7	24