2012 College Football Week 8 Picks: West Virginia over Kansas State

This is as much a public service announcement as it is WhatIfSports.com's college football Game of the Week preview.

First, Kansas State football is ranked fourth in the country. Yes, they are in the FBS.

Second, like West Virginia, the Wildcats, who are 6-0 including an upset win over Oklahoma, do play football in the Big 12. We can't assume that people know this, as Manhattan, Kansas cannot be found on iPhone 5 maps.

Third, if Bill Snyder's boys can bring home a win in Week 8, they could very well be on their way to the BCS National Championship Game.

Alabama, stop laughing.

If you were to visit the school's athletic site, the Purple Pride slaps you right in the face with a splash page boasting:

Since the start of the 1993 season, few programs can match Kansas State's win total or its winning percentage of nearly 75 percent. The Wildcats have participated in 3 Big 12 Championship games - claiming the 2003 Big 12 crown over No. 1 Oklahoma. K-State has been a consistent winner under Coach Bill Snyder, earning a postseason bowl berth in 14 of 19 seasons from 1993-present, including the 2012 AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic.

On offense, the Wildcats do one thing: run the football. Quarterback Colin Klein has evenly split carries with running back John Hubert—98 apiece—for 1,116 yards and 18 touchdowns. The offense is averaging more than 40 points per game.

The Cats rush defense is ranked 16th in the country, allowing 102 yards on the ground per game. However, it's the Mountaineers pass offense that K-State needs to fear this week, and Snyder better hope his secondary brings their "A" game because the 239 yards allowed average (76th in country) can quickly become 339 yards with Geno Smith hungry after a Heisman hiccup in Week 6 at Texas Tech.

Speaking of West Virginia, Dana Holgorsen's crew must be sick of the Lonestar State after having to travel to Texas back-to-back weeks.

"Welcome to the Big 12!"

Smith was shut down by Texas Tech's top pass defense in the country last Saturday. Through his first five games, the frontrunner for the Heisman completed more than 81 percent of his passes with more than 399 pass yards per game. Against the Red Raiders, he only completed 52.7 percent of his passes for 275 yards with one touchdown.

As previously mentioned, Kansas State's offense is pretty one-dimensional favoring the rush. Not good news for a Mountaineers' defense that ranks 43rd in the country in rush yards allowed per game at over 131, but have allowed 12 touchdowns via the ground (t-84th).

We simulated the Mountaineers and Wildcats 101 times, and it's West Virginia holding court at home winning 56.4 percent of the time by an average score of 28-25.

College Football Week 8
Matchup	Win%	Avg Score
Virginia Tech Hokies	30.7	22	Boxscore
@ Clemson Tigers	69.3	28
Boston College Eagles	36.6	21	Boxscore
@ Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	63.4	27
Wake Forest Demon Deacons	43.6	21	Boxscore
@ Virginia Cavaliers	56.4	24
North Carolina Tar Heels	57.9	30	Boxscore
@ Duke Blue Devils	42.1	27
North Carolina State Wolfpack	65.3	26	Boxscore
@ Maryland Terrapins	34.7	20
Florida State Seminoles	74.3	27	Boxscore
@ Miami (FL) Hurricanes	25.7	22
South Florida Bulls	40.6	21	Boxscore
@ Louisville Cardinals	59.4	25
Connecticut Huskies	45.0	21	Boxscore
@ Syracuse Orange	55.0	23
Rutgers Scarlet Knights	62.4	24	Boxscore
@ Temple Owls	37.6	19
Purdue Boilermakers	25.7	19	Boxscore
@ Ohio State Buckeyes	74.3	27
Michigan State Spartans	35.6	19	Boxscore
@ Michigan Wolverines	64.4	23
Minnesota Golden Gophers	36.6	21	Boxscore
@ Wisconsin Badgers	63.4	24
Penn State Nittany Lions	51.0	23	Boxscore
@ Iowa Hawkeyes	49.0	22
Nebraska Cornhuskers	62.4	27	Boxscore
@ Northwestern Wildcats	37.6	23
Western Michigan Broncos	35.6	20	Boxscore
@ Kent State Golden Flashes	64.4	25
Army Black Knights	52.5	22	Boxscore
@ Eastern Michigan Eagles	47.5	21
Ball State Cardinals	54.5	29	Boxscore
@ Central Michigan Chippewas	45.5	26
Cincinnati Bearcats	66.8	28	Boxscore
@ Toledo Rockets	33.2	23
Northern Illinois Huskies	77.2	28	Boxscore
@ Akron Zips	22.8	17
Pittsburgh Panthers	81.2	28	Boxscore
@ Buffalo Bulls	18.8	17
Bowling Green Falcons	86.1	27	Boxscore
@ Massachusetts Minutemen	13.9	17
Colorado Buffaloes	6.9	17	Boxscore
@ USC Trojans	93.1	37
Utah Utes	35.6	21	Boxscore
@ Oregon State Beavers	64.4	26
Washington Huskies	48.5	25	Boxscore
@ Arizona Wildcats	51.5	27
Stanford Cardinal	60.4	25	Boxscore
@ California Golden Bears	39.6	22
Oregon Ducks	79.7	30	Boxscore
@ Arizona State Sun Devils	20.3	22
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders	16.8	19	Boxscore
@ Mississippi State Bulldogs	83.2	32
South Carolina Gamecocks	34.7	17	Boxscore
@ Florida Gators	65.3	21
Auburn Tigers	36.6	17	Boxscore
@ Vanderbilt Commodores	63.4	22
LSU Tigers	57.4	22	Boxscore
@ Texas A&M Aggies	42.6	19
Alabama Crimson Tide	78.2	28	Boxscore
@ Tennessee Volunteers	21.8	17
Georgia Bulldogs	84.2	25	Boxscore
@ Kentucky Wildcats	15.8	12
New Mexico State Aggies	17.3	21	Boxscore
@ Utah State Aggies	82.7	31
Idaho Vandals	17.3	20	Boxscore
@ Louisiana Tech Bulldogs	82.7	33
San Jose State Spartans	69.3	33	Boxscore
@ Texas-San Antonio Roadrunners	30.7	24
Brigham Young Cougars	32.7	19	Boxscore
@ Notre Dame Fighting Irish	67.3	27
Indiana Hoosiers	56.4	25	Boxscore
@ Navy Midshipmen	43.6	24
Kansas Jayhawks	13.9	18	Boxscore
@ Oklahoma Sooners	86.1	34
Baylor Bears	38.6	23	Boxscore
@ Texas Longhorns	61.4	27
Iowa State Cyclones	41.6	26	Boxscore
@ Oklahoma State Cowboys	58.4	29
Kansas State Wildcats	43.6	25	Boxscore
@ West Virginia Mountaineers	56.4	28
Texas Tech Red Raiders	61.4	28	Boxscore
@ TCU Horned Frogs	38.6	25
Rice Owls	19.8	20	Boxscore
@ Tulsa Golden Hurricane	80.2	31
Tulane Green Wave	47.0	22	Boxscore
@ UTEP Miners	53.0	24
Houston Cougars	52.5	28	Boxscore
@ Southern Methodist Mustangs	47.5	27
East Carolina Pirates	64.4	29	Boxscore
@ UAB Blazers	35.6	24
Marshall Thundering Herd	73.3	26	Boxscore
@ Southern Miss Golden Eagles	26.7	19
UCF Knights	83.2	30	Boxscore
@ Memphis Tigers	16.8	18
UNLV Rebels	5.0	18	Boxscore
@ Boise State Broncos	95.0	34
San Diego State Aztecs	32.2	19	Boxscore
@ Nevada Wolf Pack	67.8	26
New Mexico Lobos	32.2	20	Boxscore
@ Air Force Falcons	67.8	27
Wyoming Cowboys	38.6	23	Boxscore
@ Fresno State Bulldogs	61.4	26
FIU Golden Panthers	41.6	27	Boxscore
@ Troy Trojans	58.4	28
Florida Atlantic Owls	46.5	23	Boxscore
@ South Alabama Jaguars	53.5	24
Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks	55.4	27	Boxscore
@ Western Kentucky Hilltoppers	44.6	24
Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns	63.9	30	Boxscore
@ North Texas Mean Green	36.1	25

Each Monday, WhatIfSports.com's NCAA college football simulation engine will provide you with game predictions for every D-1 FBS game that upcoming week. The college football simulation engine generates detailed information for each game including each team's chances of winning (Win%) and the average points scored for both teams. Make sure to share the college football information you gained here with your friends by either checking out our NCAA football widgets on the WhatIf To Go page or clicking on the social networking share bar at the top and bottom of this article.

Check out our 2012 College Football Season-to-Date page to follow our accuracy and for Upsets of the Week.

The statistical inputs to the thousands of college football simulations are based on rigorous analysis of each team's roster, depth charts and statistically based player rankings. Roster modifications are made in cases of injury or suspension and those players are removed from their team's game simulation for that week.