The Texas State Bobcats (7-5) face off against the Rice Owls (6-6) on Tuesday, December 26th. This game will be played at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas and televised on ESPN. Both team’s come into this one having won their previous games. Kickoff is set for 5:30 ET.

Texas State Bobcats vs Rice Owls

The Texas State Bobcats Are Coming Off A Win

Texas State is coming off a 52-44 win over South Alabama in their last game. TJ Finley had a passer rating of 131.55 while throwing for 368 against South Alabama. He attempted 28 passes and achieved a completion percentage of 67.9% during the game.

Not only did Texas State win straight-up, they also covered the spread as 6-point underdogs. The team’s 96 combined points surpassed the over/under line of 58.

The Texas State Bobcats take on the Rice with a 7-5 record, including 2-4 on the road and 5-1 at home.

So far, Texas State has been favored seven times and the underdog in five games. This has led to an ATS record of 6-6 and an average scoring differential of +2.2. Through 12 games, the average over/under line in Texas State’s games is 61 points. Their games have averaged a combined 69.8 points leading to an OU record of 5-6-1.

The Rice Owls Are Coming Off A Win

As Rice prepares to face Texas State, they are coming off a 24-21 win over Florida Atlantic. In the win against Florida Atlantic, quarterback AJ Padgett achieved a QB rating of 100.62, completing 24 of 37 passes for 255 yards. Additionally, he contributed three touchdowns to the game.

Each team came away with an ATS push in this game, as Rice was favored by 3. The under hit in this matchup, with a pre-game over/under line of 47 points.

The Rice Owls take on the Texas State with a 6-6 record, including 2-3 on the road and 2-3 at home.

So far, Rice has been favored four times and the underdog in five games. This has led to an ATS record of 6-3-1 and an average scoring differential of +3.6. Rice has put together an over/under record of 4-6 throughout this season. The average combined score in their games has been 56.9 points, and the standard over/under line has stood at 52.8 points.

Texas State Offense Breakdown

Heading into their matchup vs. Rice, the Bobcats’ offense is averaging 192.2 rushing yards per game, along with 4 yards per attempt. They currently hold the 25th rank in rushing yards and 28th rank in passing yards, amassing an average of 280.8 yards per game. In terms of scoring, Texas State is at 36 points per game, which is 20th in the NCAA.

The top passer for Texas State is TJ Finley, who has accumulated 3188 passing yards and boasts a completion rate of 68.6%. He’s currently averaging 8.3 yards per passing attempt.

Rice Offense Breakdown

Rice enters the game on offense with an average of 30.2, ranking them 45th in the NCAA. Their passing game has them at 41st in the nation, with an average of 264.2 passing yards per game. On the ground, they’re at 111th in rushing yards, with an average of 347 rushing attempts per game this season.

JT Daniels is the team’s leading passer this season, racking up 2443 yards while averaging 13.5 per completion. His completion rate for the year stands at 63.1%, with 21 touchdowns.

Texas State Team Defense

On defense, Texas State comes into the game ranked 58th in passing yards per game. Opponents are throwing the ball an average of 32.6 times per contest vs. the Bobcats. Overall, they are giving up 33.8 points per game, which is 142nd in college football. Against the run, they are 99th in the NCAA in rushing yards allowed.

Rice Team Defense

Coming into this week’s game, the Rice defense is 102nd in points allowed at 26.7 points per game. So far, team’s have averaged 217.2 passing yards per game vs. the unit (80th). On the ground, they are giving up 154.9 rushing yards, putting them 91st in college football.

Texas State vs Rice Trends

• When playing on the road, Texas State has an ATS mark of 5-5 vs. the spread.
• At home, Rice has gone 2-1 against the spread (last three).
• Owls is 4-1 in their last five games as underdogs.
• The previous ten time that Texas State was favored, they are 5-5 against the spread.

Texas State vs Rice Prediction

Like they have done all season, Texas State will be heading into this game looking to establish the run. I like them to have a good game on the ground and to cover the spread over Rice.

Games featuring Texas State this season have averaged 69.8 points in total. Considering the over/under line at 60.5, I’m backing the over.

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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.