West Virginia’s next Big 12 test comes with the betting market leaning toward the Mountaineers.
FanDuel opened WVU as a 2.5-point favorite for next week’s home matchup with Cincinnati, with the over/under set at 62.5 points. The game will give West Virginia another conference chance after a season that has been hard to pin down against the number, even if the record itself is sitting at 3-3.
That 3-3 mark extends to the spread. The Mountaineers are 3-3 ATS this year, with a mix of covers and missed opportunities that has tracked closely with how these games have played out.
WVU did not cover against Arizona, failed to get the money in a Week Four loss to Oklahoma State, and came up short in a Week One win where it beat Coastal Carolina but did not cash the 20.5-point number. On the other side, the Mountaineers covered a 40.5-point spread in Week Two and pulled off a cover in their win over UVA as 10.5-point underdogs.
The Week Five result was one of the tighter calls of the season. West Virginia lost by three when the line closed at 3.5 points, which was just enough to sneak the Mountaineers in on the cover.
Totals bettors have had a different kind of experience. Through six games, WVU has gone over every time if you caught the right closing number.
Arizona, Iowa State, Oklahoma State and Virginia all cleared the total comfortably. The UT-Martin game got there late thanks to a fumble return for a touchdown, while the opener against Coastal Carolina landed right on the edge of the market - the line opened at 56.5, dropped to 54.5, and the final score finished with 55 points on the board.
Last year, even with a 4-8 overall record, West Virginia was a strong team against the spread at 7-5. The Mountaineers covered all four of their wins and also cashed in losses to BYU as 20.5-point underdogs, TCU at +16.5 and Arizona State at +9.5. Their failures to cover came against Ohio as 3.5-point favorites, Kansas as 12.5-point underdogs in a 31-point loss, Utah as 13.5-point underdogs in a 34-point loss, UCF as 6.5-point underdogs in a 32-point loss and Texas Tech as 24.5-point underdogs in a 49-point loss.
The total was just as slippery in 2025, landing under in five, six, seven or eight games depending on the timing and the sportsbook. It stayed under in every situation for Texas Tech, TCU, Kansas, Ohio and Robert Morris. It was clearly over in Houston, UCF, BYU and Utah, while Arizona State, Colorado and Pitt all sat in the middle, with the over/under moving enough to cross the final score at different points.
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What stood out most for the Bearcats was how they answered a bad stretch without losing their poise. Cincinnati outboarded Ohio State 45-35 and shot 48% overall, while the Buckeyes were stuck battling a cold perimeter night, hitting only 4 of 23 from three-point range. For a team still shaping its identity, it was the kind of road-like result that can matter beyond October, even if the exhibition setting leaves plenty still to sort out. [Read more 🡒]