NCAA Football Odds – Houston Cougars vs. Rice Owls Free Pick & Preview
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Cougars at Owls Matchup
Saturday October 16 – 3:30PM
Rice Stadium – Houston, Texas
Houston (3-2) vs Rice (1-5)
Moneyline: No current moneyline
Spread Favourite: Houston -10
Over/Under: 63
(Odds courtesy of BetUS) – BET NOW!!!
Houston
The Cougars are 3-2 but considering their injuries things could be a lot worse. As it stands they are still undefeated in Conference USA and the lack of star QB Case Keenum has shown the depth of the program and the skill of coach Kevin Sumlin. This weeks game against Rice is the first of three straight on the road. They have to win this one to get off to a good start.
In last week’s loss to Mississippi State the Cougars threw for more than 300 yards using their third string QB. I think that officially qualified their offense for machine status. Equally important is that this is the first week that RB Bryce Beall hasn’t appeared on the injury list. He hasn’t burned it up with limited playing time this season but against the Owls he can be a dangerous weapon when combined with an elite receiving corps.
Houston has won four of the last five against Rice and the last four have gone over the total. Usually when these teams meet there are a lot of fireworks as a result of offensive proficiency and defensive ineptitude and this year should be about the same. Houston is not nearly as efficient or deadly without Keenum but covering the spread against a bad team like Rice is definitely doable. 
Rice
It says a lot about the Owls’ season that their highlight is losing by 17 points in their opener to Texas. At the time some thought that performance offered a glimmer of hope but now all it shows is that they have mastered how to lose a game by 17 points (they have done it three times this year).
It doesn’t look like Rice will win another game this season which will mean they will have saved themselves from a complete whiff by just a single point due to a 32-31 win over North Texas. I wonder if that is some sort of record.
Rice struggles in a lot of areas but especially on defense. The Owls are giving up more than 35 points per game and have the fourth worst pass defense in the nation. You can bet that Houston will challenge them through the air and the Owls may be powerless to stop it. Their own aerial assault led by QB Nick Fanuzzi is respectable but a lot of that is yards collected during garbage time.
Unfortunately there is not much for Rice to play for other than spoiling other team’s season’s at this point. With that in mind you can bet they would love to add another injury to the Cougars, whose campus is not that far from their own, especially on homecoming week. This is likely too much to ask from a team that has fallen very far very fast from 2008 when they won 10 games and the C-USA Western Division.
The Pick: Houston may be humming at a lower speed but they can still put points on the board especially against a weak team like Rice. They should jump out to a big lead and cover relatively easily
College Football Gambling Trends
Cougars are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games following a S.U. loss.
Cougars are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 conference games.
Cougars are 4-1 ATS vs. a team with a losing record.
Owls are 21-9-2 ATS in their last 32 conference games.
Owls are 2-5-2 ATS in their last 9 games as a home underdog.
Owls are 1-3-2 ATS in their last 6 games following a ATS loss.
Over is 4-0 in the last 4 meetings.
Home team is 6-1 ATS in their last 7 meetings.
Score Prediction: Houston 41 – Rice 21
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