The BYU Cougars control their own destiny in the Big 12.
If they win their last two games against Cincinnati and UCF, the Cougars will go to the Big 12 Championship.
That could be enough to get them into the College Football Playoff, depending on the out-of-town scoreboard, but that’s a question for another day.
Cincinnati’s path is much more complicated, but it requires wins over BYU and TCU, plus a lot of help.
The Bearcats are 2.5-point home underdogs Saturday evening.
BYU vs. Cincinnati odds, prediction
A fairytale season for Cincinnati was derailed over the last two weeks.
The Bearcats were flying high at 7-1 overall and 5-0 in the conference, but they were dealt back-to-back blows by Utah and Arizona, dimming their hopes of getting to the Big 12 Championship.
Things could get even bleaker this week against BYU, as the stylistic matchup for this game skews towards the Cougars.
BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier is getting plenty of press for his terrific freshman campaign, but the Cougars are a run-first, ask-questions-later offense.
LJ Martin has put together a terrific campaign out of the backfield, rushing for 912 yards and six touchdowns as the team’s bellcow, but Bachmeier has chipped in quite a bit with his legs.
He’s amassed 479 yards and has 10 rushing touchdowns on the campaign.
All of this spells trouble for Cincinnati.
For all the good work the Bearcats have done in 2025, they really struggle to slow down the run.
Cincinnati ranks 70th in the country in yards allowed per carry (4.3) and 90th in rushing yards conceded per game (167.4).
The Cougars should have their way with the Bearcats in the trenches, which will put heaps of pressure on Cincinnati’s offense, which has stalled after a terrific start to the campaign.
Betting on College Football?
Brendan Sorsby looked out of sorts in losses to Utah and Arizona, and now he faces a secondary that ranks 17th in the country in completion percentage.
It will be a raucous environment in Cincinnati on Saturday, but the tale of the tape is too hard to ignore.
The Play: BYU -2.5 (-115, DraftKings)
Why Trust New York Post Betting
Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports bettor with 10 years of experience in the gambling industry. He loves using game theory to help punters win bracket pools, find long shots, and learn how to beat the market in mainstream and niche sports.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
