Rice and Houston meet Saturday in college football action from Rice Stadium. Here’s a Houston vs Rice prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Houston Cougars vs Rice Owls pick.
Dominant Start for Houston
It was a dominant start for Houston in the first game of the season. The Cougars faced off Stephen F Austin, and they scored 27 points on the way to the victory. The offense was good, but even more impressive was the defense that gave up a grand total of zero points. Under center for Houston was Conner Weigman and he had some things that he could improve upon. He completed 15 of his 24 passes for 159 yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions. He was fine, but being a little more dynamic through the air with some longer passes is going to be key.
On defense, they gave up zero points, and they were all around dominant. Stephen F Austin had 105 passing yards and only 39 rushing yards. In this game, Houston believes they can be as dominant, and they are going to need the defense to step up in a major way again here.
Why Houston Will Beat Rice
- Houston has won four of its last five games in Texas.
- Rice has lost 28 of its last 31 September games as an underdog.
- Houston has covered the spread in four of its last five games against non-conference opponents.
Rice Somehow Pulled it Out
It wasn’t the most dominant game against Louisiana, but they were somehow able to come away with the victory. All 14 points for Rice came in the second quarter, and in the second half they held on for the 14-12 victory. Starting quarterback Chase Jenkins completed 7 of his 9 passes for 45 yards. Running back Quinton Jackson was the star of the offense putting up 22 carries for 119 yards and a touchdown. Daelen Alexander finished with 15 carries for 74 yards. In this game, the running game is going to need to be strong, but even more important is going to need to be the quarterback play. Jenkins is going to need to make a couple of key throws.
Why Rice Will Beat Houston
- The underdog has won five of Rice’s last six games at Rice Stadium.
- Houston has lost each of its last four September road games against non-AP-ranked teams.
- The underdog has covered the spread in each of Rice’s last five games.
- Houston has failed to cover the spread in four of its last five September road games against non-AP-ranked teams.
Matchup/League Facts
- One of Rice’s one games this season have been decided by a margin of seven points or less – equal-most amongst FBS teams.
- One of Rice’s one games this season have been decided by a margin of three points or less – equal-most amongst FBS teams.
- Houston ranks T1st among FBS teams for Q2 opponent points per game this season (0.0).
- Houston ranks T1st among FBS teams for Q3 opponent points per game this season (0.0).
Rice vs Houston Prediction
Houston is going on the road here in an interstate game, something that could end up being a trap, but I don’t have a strong play on the side. That being said, Rice’s defense was strong in the first game, and they are going to find a way to slow down Houston. That being said, I am not sold on Jenkins under center for Rice, and he’s going to really struggle against the Houston defense. I don’t see Rice going under 10 points, and this game is going to end up staying under the total. Back the under to cash.