Week 15: Cougars vs Bearcats
Week 15 college betting action sees the Houston Cougars taking on the Cincinnati Bearcats in Cincinnati, OH. Cappers picks provides free college football handicapping tips all season long.
The Bearcats bring a six-game win streak into this contest to take on the red hot Cougars who have won five of their last six.
College Football Odds
Houston Cougars (7-4) vs. Cincinnati Bearcats (8-3)
Saturday, Dec. 6
12:00 PM ET
Nippert Stadium/Cincinnati, OH
ESPN
College Football Betting Lines: -6.5
College Football O/U: 57.5
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Both teams have solid offenses who average right around 30 points a game each.
Houston
The Cougars are led by running back Kenneth Farrow who is coming off his fifth 100-yard rushing performance of the season where he rushed for 110 yards in Houston’s 35-9 victory over SMU.
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Their offense is averaging 29.2 points per game and only surrendering 17.8.
Farrow ranks second in the conference in touchdowns with 12. Also, he leads the team in rushing with 796 yards so far this season.
The strong point of the Cougars has to be there defense, and more importantly the pass defense. They only allow an average of 182.2 passing yards per game, which is good for second in the conference. The secondary has intercepted 19 passes this year in only 11 games.
Houston gained 433 yards of total offense last week, which includes three touchdowns from quarterback Greg Ward.
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In last years matchup, the Cougars fell to the Bearcats 24-17 and gave up 593 total yards. The defense will have to play with much more intensity this year if they want to leave Cincinnati with a win.
Cincinnati
Quarterback Gunner Kiel had an off week last week, compared to what he has done in other weeks this year. Kiel has racked up 2,820 passing yards to go along with 28 touchdowns. The sophomore quarterback from Columbus, Ohio has had an impressive year and has led the Bearcats to eight wins while keeping his completion percentage at 60.
The defensive line is anchored by Terrell Hartsfield, who has a conference leading eight sacks. Cincinnati’s defensive is averaging 2.7 sacks per game and only 318.7 yards during their six game win streak.
Another key performer on the defensive side is linebacker Jeff Luc. He averages 10.3 tackles per game and leads the conference with five forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries.
Wide receiver Mekale McKay has a team leading 8 receiving touchdowns to go along with 643 yards.
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The key to the Bearcats success is their defense. Before the six game win streak they were allowing 573.6 yards per game, which is 250 yards more than they allowed during the win streak.
NCAA Football Handicapping Trends:
- Cincinnati is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games.
- Houston is 1-5 vs. Cincinnati in its last 6 games.
- Cincinnati is 16-3 ATS in its last 19 games at home.o
- Houston is 1-5 SU vs. Cincinnati in its last 6 games.
Cincinnati will come out ready to play this Saturday with hopes of still winning an AAC title. Gunner Kiel will look to expose the secondary of the Cougars with his arm and his legs. I expect Houston to play well and try to end their regular season on a high note, but previous results are not in their favor when playing in Cincinnati. It will be interesting to see the talented secondary of Houston try and stop Gunner Kiel.
Free NCAA Betting Pick 4* Cincinnati -6.5
With the Bearcats on a mission to win a conference title, I expect them to put a lot of points on the board.
There is a lot of value in getting the Bearcats at -6.5. They have a good offense and putting up points shouldn’t be a problem.
Final Score — Cincinnati 31, Houston 17
Gunner Kiel’s pass attack along with McKay’s receiving ability should be able to hook up a couple times in this game.
Check out our Updated College Football Week 15 Odds.
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