College Football Picks Week 4: 4 Ways West Virginia Can Upset LSU

The headline game of the Week 4 college football schedule is set to kick off at 8 p.m. between the LSU Tigers and the West Virginia Mountaineers.

According to BetOnline.com, the Tigers are six-point favorites on the road at Mountaineer Field.

The Mountaineers have a tough task ahead of them, but it is not impossible for them to come away with a victory.

Here are four ways the Mountaineers can upset LSU.

Shut Down LSU Offense

One way the West Virginia Mountaineers can upset the LSU Tigers is to shut down their offense.

The Tigers have one of the best defenses in the league, but if the offense doesn't score many points, there is only so much a defensive line can do. 

This may be a tough task for the Mountaineers, as they gave up 31 points last week to a Maryland team that is still finding itself under new head coach Randy Edsall. 

LSU has scored 40 or more points in two of their three games, but were held to just 19 points on the road last week against Mississippi State.

If that trend of low scoring on the road continues, the Mountaineers could come away with the upset tonight.

Geno Smith Has a Huge Game

Not many quarterbacks have huge games against this LSU defense, but if Geno Smith can step up, it will go a long way for the Mountaineers' upset chances.

The best performance by a quarterback against the Tigers' defense thus far was in Week 1, when Oregon's Darron Thomas passed for 240 yards, a touchdown and an interception. 

Smith may be the best quarterback this defense will face, as he is seventh in college football, averaging 356 yards per game and chucking for seven touchdowns.

If Smith is able to throw for 300-plus yards and a couple of scores, the Mountaineers could have a chance for the upset tonight. 

Jarrett Lee Makes Mistakes

Up to this point in the season, Jarett Lee has been a near-flawless game manager at the quarterback position for the LSU Tigers, but he will make some critical mistakes in this game.

In his career, Lee has thrown 20 touchdowns to 19 interceptions, so it is clear that he is susceptible to turnovers.

The Mountaineer's defense has three turnovers so far this season and will need to add to that number if they want to beat the Tigers.

If they are able to intercept Lee a couple of times, the Mountaineers have a good chance to win this game in Morgantown.

Long Offensive Drives

The Mountaineers will have to put together some long offensive drives if they want any chance of winning the game tonight against LSU.

LSU's strength this season has been their speedy defense making plays all over the field, but if the Mountaineers can keep that defense on the field for as long as possible, the speed will be nullified and they will be able to take advantage.

If the Tigers defense is tired, Geno Smith will be able to go to work and pick apart the defense, but with a lot of subs, this will be easier said than done.

Long, sustainable drives on offense will go a long way towards the Mountaineers coming away with a victory against one of the nation's top teams, the Tigers, tonight. 

They will need to get the running game involved in order to extend the drives.

If the defense is able to do whatever they want against the Mountaineers, it could be a long night.