The Rice Owls (1-1) face off against the Houston Cougars (0-2) on Saturday, September 14th. This game will be played at TDECU Stadium in Houston and televised on ESPN+. Rice is coming off a win in their previous game, while Houston is looking to get back on track from a loss to the Oklahoma. Kickoff is set for 8:00 ET.

Rice Owls vs Houston Cougars

 

Rice Offense Breakdown

Rice’s offense was unstoppable in their 69-7 win, racking up 535 yards of total offense. The ground game was particularly dominant, with 331 rushing yards and six touchdowns. Dean Connors led the way with 113 yards on just nine carries, averaging 12.6 yards per attempt, and finding the end zone three times.

Quarterback E.J. Warner completed 66.7% of his passes for 189 yards and two touchdowns. He finished with 189 yards and a passer rating of 92.22. Braylen Walker was the top receiver, catching four passes for 47 yards.

Houston Offense Breakdown

In Houston’s 16-12 loss to Oklahoma, the Cougars’ offense totaled 318 yards, with 260 of those yards coming through the air. Donovan Smith completed 85.7% of his passes for 260 yards, throwing one touchdown and one interception and finishing with a passer rating of 102.38. Joseph Manjack IV led the receiving corps with three catches for 72 yards.

The Cougars managed 18 first downs but struggled to establish a running game, finishing with just 58 rushing yards on 35 attempts. Stacy Sneed led the ground attack with 33 yards on 11 carries.

Rice Team Defense

Rice’s defense was dominant in their most recent game, holding Texas Southern to just 49 passing yards and 40 rushing yards. The Owls picked off two passes and allowed only one touchdown, while limiting Texas Southern to just 9 first downs and 89 total yards of offense.

Rice Team Defense

After facing Oklahoma in their most recent game, Houston’s defense will be looking to improve. They held the Sooners to 16 points and 256 total yards, with 82 rushing yards on 32 attempts. Against the pass, Houston gave up 174 yards and two touchdowns, but they did manage to come up with one interception.

Rice vs Houston Trends

• Rice has a 2-3 record in their last five road games. In this stretch, they averaged 24 points per game while allowing 26. The team also performed well vs the spread at 3-2.
• Houston has a 1-4 record in their last five home games. In this stretch, they averaged 15 points per game while allowing 31. The team also performed well vs the spread at 3-2.
• In their last five games as the betting underdog, the Rice Owls have a straight up record of 1-4 and an ATS mark of 3-2.
• Going back to their last five games as the favorite, the Houston Cougars have a straight up record of 2-3. But, their mark vs the spread was just 2-3.

Owls vs Cougars Prediction

We have Houston winning this matchup 27-18 over Rice, and with the current spread at -4.5 in Houston’s favor, we like their chances to cover as the home favorite.

Looking at the over/under line, which is set at 44.5 points, our projection of 45 points aligns closely with the line. However, we lean slightly towards the over as the more favorable bet.

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All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

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* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.