The Baylor Bears host the Colorado Buffaloes on Saturday as Big 12 conference play gets started for both teams. Colorado had a sneaky win over Georgia Tech in their season opener, but they were blasted by Northwestern last weekend in a game where they turned the ball over 4 times and couldn’t generate much offense. Baylor lost the opener to Auburn, where they piled up tons of offense but only 16 points. They have won their two lower-level matchups since then, but there are still lots of questions here. I don’t ever love laying a lot of points with Baylor because their games have so much volatility baked in, but I think they are quite a bit better than Colorado. I’ll take Baylor -10, and I expect this line to expand a bit as the week goes on.
Baylor QB DJ Lagway suffered an ankle injury against Florida that caused him to sit the next two games. Baylor could get by without him, so they opted for caution and let him rest. Lagway can be turnover-prone, but the upside is definitely there, and he throws one of the prettier balls in the game (when it is on target). Baylor’s defense is better than we expected too, and I think this team has a chance to compete in the second tier of the Big 12. Colorado should be at the bottom of this conference. They have very little depth, and they aren’t great in the trenches on either side. They need things to bounce their way, and they try to survive on some creative playcalling and taking chances down the field. It is a boom-or-bust world for the Buffs. I just don’t think it will work out for them most weeks. Give me the Bears.
Colorado vs Baylor prediction: Baylor -10 (-120) available at time of publishing. Playable to -12.5.
