The Baylor Bears and the Cincinnati Bearcats meet Saturday in college football action from Nippert Stadium. Baylor is 2-4 overall this year and coming off an open week. The Bears last appeared in a loss to Texas Tech. As for Cincinnati, they just finished up against Iowa State over the weekend. In that one the Bearcats took a 20-point loss to fall to 2-4 as well. Check back all season long for free college football picks at Sports Chat Place.

Baylor Bears 

The Bears opened up the season with a couple of tough matchups, losing 42-31 to Texas State and 20-13 to Utah to start at 0-2. Baylor went 2-1 over the next three outings with wins 30-7 over LIU and 36-35 versus UCF (sandwiched around a loss to Texas 38-6), but then took a blowout loss 39-14 versus Texas Tech back on October 7 in their most recent game. 

In the Texas Tech matchup, the Bears gave up points in all four quarters (including 15 in the fourth) on the way to the loss. Baylor QB Blake Shapen finished with 324 yards and a score, while Monaray Baldwin paced the receivers with 126 yards and a TD on five catches. Dominic Richardson led an anemic running game with 21 yards on nine carries. 

Baylor Bears Team Facts

• Baylor has won five of its last six games as an underdog against non-AP-ranked teams.
• Baylor has failed to cover the spread in nine of its last 10 games.
• Baylor has lost the first half in each of its last three games against conference opponents.
• Each of Baylor’s last six road games against conference opponents have gone OVER the total points line.

Cincinnati Bearcats 

Over on the Bearcats’ side, they got off to a pretty good start in their first two games, taking out Eastern Kentucky 66-13 and Pittsburgh 27-21. Cincinnati hit the proverbial skids after that however with losses to Miami-OH 31-24 (OT), Oklahoma 20-6 and BYU 35-27 to drop the team to 2-3 overall. 

Last Saturday versus Iowa State, the Bearcats were down 17-7 by the break, giving up point in every quarter on the way to a 30-10 loss. QB Emory Jones bagged just 96 yards, one TD and two picks while also leading the rush with 72 yards off 15 carries. Chamon Metayer added 43 yards and a score off his four receptions. 

Cincinnati Bearcats Team Facts

• Cincinnati has won each of its last 17 matches as a favorite when playing with a rest disadvantage.
• Cincinnati has failed to cover the spread in each of its last seven October games against non-AP-ranked teams.
• Cincinnati has lost the first half in each of its last four games against conference opponents.
• Cincinnati has won the first quarter in 11 of its last 14 home games against conference opponents.
• Each of Cincinnati’s last seven October games against non-AP-ranked teams have gone UNDER the total points line.

Matchup/League Facts

Baylor has scored fewer than 15 points in three home games this season – most of any FBS team.

ANDREW’S FREE PICK 

I’ll probably go with Cincinnati here, but I’m probably also staying away. The Bearcats couldn’t solve the Iowa State defense in their last outing, generating just 214 total yards (99 passing), 3.5 yards per play, 15 first downs and a 3-of-13 success rate on third-down tries. Cincinnati has hit the skids lately, giving up 20 or more points in each of their last four games and 30 or more in three of those four. 

As for Baylor, they’ve left a lot to be desired over their first six outings as well. The Bears have 14 or fewer points in three of their games (all losses) and 30 or more points in the other three (a 2-1 record), so Baylor really needs to get it going on offense if they want to pull off a win here. With the extra week of preparation I like the Bears to start fast but I don’t think they’ll end up covering. Cincinnati is going to need a big rebound after a dismal showing against Iowa State, though.