Can Oklahoma cover against Texas? Week 7 college football picks for Red River Rivalry

Last season, Texas suffered its only loss before the College Football Playoff against the Sooners in the Red River Rivalry. This season, the Longhorns are looking for revenge but are considered heavy favorites in a huge rivalry game, not to mention a lead over Georgia. Can Oklahoma keep this one within two touchdowns?

Oklahoma Sooners vs. Texas Longhorns

Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET) – Cotton bowl

This may be more of a “gut feel” handicap compared to what I normally award, but for a rivalry game of this magnitude, that’s a lot of points. The range has now almost doubled what the forecast line was in the summer, and for obvious reasons. Texas is pretty much the only team in the country at this point that hasn't made a mistake. You could include Ohio State in this, but we've seen Texas play some tougher games.

At least there is the impression that Texas played tougher games. If you look at the Longhorns' schedule, it's actually just four easy home wins over minor teams and this road win at Michigan. The win over the Wolverines is looking more and more meaningless every week. So has Texas really shown us much?

The Longhorns are undoubtedly the more talented team. But Oklahoma has actually tested itself so far this season, particularly against Tennessee followed by a road trip to Auburn. We know what the Sooners are, and they are not among the country's elite. But I maintain we still don't know what Texas is, and that unfamiliarity makes this a pretty good place to score 14.5 points.

Then when you add in all the other factors surrounding this game, struggling Texas becomes a lot easier to stomach. The neutral site, the history of the rivalry, oh… and that Texas is actually playing the biggest game of its season next week. This is a huge prospect for the Longhorns, who host Georgia next Saturday night in one of the games of the year.

I will make sure Texas proves itself at this point, even though there are many factors working against it.

Place yours College football betting at DraftKings Sportsbook or from Download the DraftKings Sportsbook app.

The crown is yours: Sign up for DraftKings and experience the ultimate gaming and betting experience host!

All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am not eligible to participate in public DFS or DKSB contests.

The content contained in this article do not constitute a guarantee that a particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skills and judgment.