NCAA Football Betting Preview – Conference USA
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As per usual, NCAA football betting cappers know that Conference USA will be top-heavy again this year. As with all the smaller conference, the disparity between the best team and the worst team is huge, which means there might only be one or two teams from Conference USA that make the National radar while the rest just compete amongst themselves for small bowls.
East Carolina and Houston are the headline acts in C-USA and both come in at different ends of the spectrum. It’s rare in the C-USA that any team without a high-flying offense does well but the Pirates proved they can still be successful with a pitiful offense. Meanwhile, Houston had – and has – one of the top offenses in the conference, which is why they’ll compete.
The good news for East Carolina is that quarterback Patrick Pinkney was granted a sixth year of eligibility, which means their offense should be respectable. At least with the best offensive line in the Skip Holtz era, this offense will be competent. The scary part about ECU is that their defense, which was among the best in school history last year, could be even better this year. The betting crowd should take note that eight starters and 25 lettermen return.
For Houston, all eyes will be on quarterback Case Keenum, who will have an outside chance to win the Heisman given the type of numbers he puts up. Last year, in the first year of a new system, the Cougars averaged 562 yards per game and 40 points. They should be even better in the second year of the system.
Tulsa will keep Houston company in the West as their offense is also quite potent. They have to deal with a coaching change but they have led the nation in offense over the past two seasons. Some offensive line concerns will likely keep this team a step behind Houston.
If you plan to place a sports bet online to win this conference, take a shot with Southern Miss, who has sleeper potential. They finished up Larry Fedora’s first year as head coach with five consecutive wins and a lot of parts return. Also, keep an eye on SMU, who should start to turn it around in June Jones second year at the helm.
Some sports picks list the Houston Cougars as potentially being a BCS buster but that’s highly unlikely. They have a solid offense but they still play in a very weak conference and their defense is suspect.
2009 Conference USA Prediction:
Look for the Cougars to win this conference but not to make the national splash that some people anticipate.
One reply on “CFB Football Gambling Predictions: Conference USA”
I’m going with East Carolina all the way to win this conference. They have been building this program for the last several years and this season’s team is shaping up to one of their best yet.