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Kansas Jayhawks football vs. Oklahoma Sooners: 5 things to know, betting line, TV

The Kansas Jayhawks (1-5) begin the back half of their season against Oklahoma on Saturday.

Here are details and five things to know about the game.

THE DETAILS

Kickoff: 11 a.m. Saturday

Where: Booth Memorial Stadium, Lawrence

TV/streaming: ESPN

Radio: WHB (810 AM) in Kansas City, KFH (1240 AM) in Wichita

The line: Oklahoma by 38 1/2

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW

Air Sooners. Oklahoma’s recent move from quarterback Spencer Rattler to Caleb Williams has only enhanced what has been an impressive Sooners passing attack. OU leads the Big 12 in both completion percentage and total passing yards, with Williams connecting on 18 of 23 passes for 295 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions in his first start last week — a 52-31 home win over TCU.

Third down woes. KU’s defense has allowed opponents to convert 57% of their third downs this season — the worst mark of any defense nationally. The next-worst team is UMass, which has allowed 54% success on the critical down.

A different Bean. Quarterback Jason Bean has performed much worse statistically in KU’s Big 12 games compared to non-conference ones. In three non-league contests, Bean has averaged 225 yards passing and 8.2 yards per attempt with 59% completion percentage; in three league games, though, he’s averaged 86 passing yards and 4.4 yards per attempt with 50% completion.

Not a crazy scenario. Oklahoma being a 38-plus-point favorite over KU actually isn’t rare for recent history. The last time the Jayhawks were 38-point-or-more underdogs was ... last year when they played at Oklahoma. According to the betting database at Odds Shark, five of the eight instances since 2010 when KU was a 37-plus-point underdog also came against Oklahoma: 2020 (38.5), 2017 (38.5), 2016 (39.5), 2015 (39.5) and 2011 (37).

Look out. The Sooners are tied for the conference lead with 19 sacks this season, while also ranking fifth nationally in Pro Football Focus’ season pass rush grade. Defensive linemen Isaiah Thomas and Perrion Winfrey are tied for third in the league with 4.5 sacks each. As a comparison, KU as a team has a combined three sacks in six games this season.