After going an identical 12-2 to reach the College Football Playoffs in each of the last two seasons under now widely-admired, offensive-minded head coach Lincoln Riley, the Oklahoma Sooners will enter the 2019 regular season looking to reach heights they haven’t seen since they won it all way back in 2000.
While Riley has helped the Sooners get back into the national championship mix in each of his two years at the helm, the Sooners are looking to take the next step after getting knocked out of the CFP in the semifinals in each of the last two seasons.
More importantly, Riley will be looking to help his team take the next step while trotting out a brand new quarterback for the third consecutive season. After watching current Cleveland Browns signal-caller Baker Mayfield win the 2017 Heisman Trophy win a campaign for the ages, Riley churned out his second straight Heisman winner as current Arizona Cardinals rookie and No. 1 overall draft pick Kyler Murray took home the coveted Heisman with another stupendous season for the Sooners.
Now, with former Alabama starter Jalen Hurts taking over for the departed Murray, Riley and the Sooners are looking to – and very well could – surpass the excellence they’ve shown in each of the last two seasons. Let’s find out right now how the Sooners are going to make out against their 2019 NCAAF win total odds.
Oklahoma Sooners 2019 Season Win / Loss Total Odds & Betting Prediction
2018 Team Leaders
- Touchdown: Trey Sermon (13)
- Rushing: Kennedy Brooks (1056)
- Passing: Kyler Murray (4361)
- Receiving: Marquise Brown (1318)
- Interceptions: Parnell Motley (3)
Why Oklahoma Will Top Their Win Total Odds?
There are a bunch of great reasons to back Oklahoma to record 11 wins or more to top their 2019 win total odds of 10½ victories. First, the Sooners have won 11 games or more in each of the last four seasons. Then, there’s the fact that the Sooners are replacing last season’s Heisman winner with another quarterback that has plenty of experience on the big stage in former Alabama signal-caller Jalen Hurts.
Despite being beat out for the No. 1 job while being now, infamously replaced, in favor of current Tide starter Tua Tagovailoa after halftime of the 2017 national championship game, Hurts is a player that went 26-2 as the starer for Nick Saban during his time with the Crimson Tide. After playing sparingly last season, Hurts is now chomping at the bit to lead the Sooners.
“Any opportunity I get just to step on the field, I say it’s a good deal,” says Hurts this spring.
More importantly, the Sooners have a proven offense that led the nation in scoring a year ago, not to mention a boatload of returning talent on the offensive side of the ball. Running backs Trey Sermon and Kennedy Brooks combined for 2,003 yards and 25 touchdowns last season. Sermon led the team with 13 touchdowns scored, while Brooks, a Freshman All-American, ran for a team-high 1,056 yards.
Hurts will also have some serious talent to throw the ball to starting with second-team All-Big 12 selection CeeDee Lamb who caught 65 passes for 1,158 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2018. Tight end Grant Calcaterra, a first-team All-Big 12 selection, is another target for Hurts that looks poised to have a breakout campaign.
Last but not least, Oklahoma has a highly sought after head coach in Lincoln Riley that is apparently one of the best offensive minds in all of either college or pro football.
Why Oklahoma Won’t Top Their Win Total Odds?
Well, you don’t have to look far for reasons why the Sooners might not win 11 games or more in 2019, seeing as how they were pretty awful on the defensive side of the ball last season. Oklahoma finished a dismal 113th in total defense and dead last nationally against the pass (130th). Oklahoma gave up a whopping 33.3 points per game to finish 101s in points allowed and really, were it not for their unstoppable offense, the Sooners would probably have lost five or six games. Not only that,but the Sooners will also have to overcome the loss of four starters on the offensive line, so, there are some question marks on both sides of the ball that Riley needs to answer before the bright lights go on for real in 2019.
Prediction
After looking at Oklahoma’s 2019 schedule, I can see the Sooners running the table at home this coming season. Difficult road dates await at UCLA, Texas and Oklahoma State, but those are also contests that Oklahoma looks like they’re going to have a decent chance to win.
Having said that, I still like Oklahoma to go 11-1 in their 12 regular season contests to narrowly top their win total odds while Jalen Hurts performs very well, but not quite at the same eve that Kyler Murray and Baker Mayfield played at the last two seasons.
Pick: 11 Wins
