Louisiana and Rice meet Saturday in college football action from Cajun Stadium. Here’s a Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns vs Rice Owls prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Louisiana vs Rice pick.
Will a New Coach Solve the Issues for Rice?
Rice historically has been a hard place to win football games, and it might take a while for this program to be turned around, but if nothing else, this should be a fun team to watch this season. Scott Abell was named the 20th head coach in team history back in November, and he has at least created a buzz around this team. He comes over from the Davidson Wildcats, where they ran an elite spread-option style offense. Last year’s quarterback EJ Warner, left for Fresno State, but there are three talented quarterbacks left on this roster. Chase Jenkins has all kinds of speed and he could be a real weapon for this team in this offense. Running back Quinton Jackson is also back and should be in line for a big season.
The defense has to be excited about the new offense, and getting off the field on third down should end up being a whole lot easier. Last season the run defense was inconsistent at best, and they are going to need to find a way to slow down the run in this game.
Why Rice Will Beat Louisiana
- Rice has covered the spread in eight of its last nine games against teams from Louisiana.
- Louisiana has failed to cover the spread in four of its last five home openers.
Louisiana Has High expectations
Louisiana has all kinds of expectations for this season, and a slip-up here would be devastating for this team. This is a run-first squad, and they have some real playmakers in the backfield. Bill Davis rushed for almost 800 yards last season, and he’s only going to be a sophomore this season. We also can’t forget about Zylan Perry who rushed for almost six yards per carry last season. Under center, Louisiana brought in Walker Howard from Ole Miss, and they are going to need him to be good, but the running game should also take some major pressure off him here.
On defense, Louisiana is going to need the pass rush to be a whole lot better. Even with the struggles, Louisiana still had the second-best-ranked defense in the conference. Creating a couple of turnovers in this game would be very helpful for their chances.
Why Louisiana Will Beat Rice
- Louisiana has won 13 of its last 14 games against non-conference opponents at Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium.
- Rice has lost each of its last six road games against non-AP-ranked teams.
- Rice has failed to cover the spread in four of its last five season openers.
- The home team has covered the spread in three of Rice’s last four games.
Louisiana vs Rice Prediction
Rice should be good this season, at least improved, but I am not sold on their run defense, and that is going to be the difference. Louisiana is the best rushing team in the entire conference, and that will end up being the difference here. Bill Davis and Zylan Perry are both going to have huge games where they run wild. At halftime, Louisiana will be covering the number, and in the second half, it’s going to get even worse. Back Louisiana to win this game and cover the spread.