The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and the Sam Houston State Bearkats meet Wednesday in college football action from Bowers Stadium in Huntsville. Here’s a Sam Houston vs Western Kentucky prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Sam Houston vs Western Kentucky pick.
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Betting Preview
The Hilltoppers didn’t start out the year very well. Each of WKU’s first three games was a loss, starting with the opener versus Nevada. Blowout defeats versus Georgia and Indiana came next before a win over Mercyhurst. Western Kentucky fell back into the loss column during the next game versus New Mexico State however, dropping 34-13 on October 1.
Back on October 8 versus Missouri State, the Hilltoppers were able to get back to their winning ways. Western Kentucky bagged a touchdown in the first quarter, then notched two more in the second quarter. When the dust settled at the end of the game the Hilltoppers had a 34-13 win of their own. QB Brock Glenn notched a 20-of-35 line for 231 yards and a score alongside a rush TD.
Sam Houston State Bearkats Betting Preview
Over on the Sam Houston side, they also started out the season on the skids. The Bearkats lost a couple of close games to begin their campaign, falling to Troy and Tulsa. A 59-0 blowout win over Nicholls came in game three, but since then Sam Houston has dropped another pair of games. Those losses have come versus Texas Tech and Liberty.
In the Liberty matchup on October 8, the Bearkats gave up a couple of touchdowns in the first half and went into the locker room down 14-3. That’s all the scoring that Sam Houston could manage and they ended up falling in a blowout on the road 35-3. QB Landyn Locke was 20-of-30 for138 yards and MJ Dowdy led the run with 11 carries for 42 yards in the defeat.
Sam Houston State Bearkats Player Prop Facts
- Heading into Week 7, Landyn Locke has recorded the longest passing touchdown in a single game this season (94 yards vs Tulsa Golden Hurricane, Week 2).
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Player Prop Facts
- Heading into Week 7, Brock Glenn ranks 1st in the Conference USA for rushing touchdowns (5) this season.
Matchup/League Facts
- Sam Houston State ranks 4th among FBS teams for passing yards allowed per game this season (139.0).
- Sam Houston State ranks T134th among FBS teams for Q4 points per game this season (2.8).
- Western Kentucky has suffered the equal-most road losses by a margin of 10+ points of any FBS team this season (4).
- Western Kentucky has suffered the most road losses by a margin of 15+ points of any FBS team this season (4).
Sam Houston vs Western Kentucky Prediction
I’ll stay with WKU I suppose. Probably not touching it, though. The Hilltoppers didn’t have too many issues with a struggling Missouri State team during their last win, notching 21 first downs and 9-of-17 on third-down tries alongside 464 total yards and zero turnovers on offense. WKU gave up just 4-of-15 on third downs defensively with 340 total yards allowed. Western Kentucky is 2-1 in their last three games after starting with a trio of tough matchups.
As for Sam Houston they got pummeled pretty badly by a good Liberty team in their last outing. The Bearkats put up just 13 first downs and 4-of-13 on third-down tries while giving up 411 yards and 22 first downs on defense. Sam Houston should match up better here in a home game but I don’t see a whole lot of fireworks happening.