Two prolific offenses will be on display in this one as the Southern Methodist Mustangs (1-4) take on the Houston Cougars (4-0). The AAC’s third-leading passer, Matt Davis (1,182 yards, 8 TDs), will be featured in this game. It kicks off Thursday, Oct 8 at 8:00 p.m. ET and will be shown on ESP2.
In last week’s matchup, Houston defeated Tulsa 38-24. Kenneth Farrow had a huge game running the ball in the victory, rushing 19 times for 159 yards and two TDs. Greg Ward Jr. had 273 yards through the air. SMU is hoping for a different outcome after had an ugly loss against East Carolina 49-23. Jeremiah Gaines had a great game for the Mustangs, pulling in four receptions for 96 yards and one TD.
The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is currently not available and the Mustangs are a big 21-point underdog.
Sitting at 4-0 Straight Up (SU) and 3-1 Against The Spread (ATS), the Cougars will look to improve heading into Week 6. A focal point of Houston’s offense is the running game, which ranks seventh in the country with 307.2 rushing yards per game. Turning to the Cougars defense, there are several areas to keep an eye on. Expect the Mustangs to have a tough time running against the eighth-ranked Cougars run defense, which gives up 82 yards per game on the ground. The Mustangs will need to stop Houston’s defense from getting to their quarterbacks in order to be successful in this game. The Cougars rank 12th in the nation in sacks with 3.2 per game. In the first quarter, Houston is tough to stop, putting up 10.5 points in the first 15 minutes.
In the other locker room, the Mustangs fare well ATS, sitting at 3-2. However, they are only 1-4 SU this season. Chances are SMU will rely on its passing attack against a defense that allows 316.2 passing yards per game, ranking 125th in the nation. Teams need to stay focused in the first quarter against the fast-starting Mustangs, who average 10.2 points in the first 15 minutes. SMU is good at avoiding penalties this season. The team only receives 4.8 per game on average, the 19th-fewest in the country.
Predictions: SU Winner – Houston, ATS Winner – Houston
Notes
Houston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Houston’s last 6 games.
Houston is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Houston’s last 5 games at home.
Houston is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games when playing Southern Methodist.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Houston’s last 6 games when playing Southern Methodist.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Houston’s last 5 games when playing at home against Southern Methodist.
Houston is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Southern Methodist.
SMU is 1-1 SU when leading at the half this season. Houston is 3-0 SU when taking a lead into halftime.
SMU is winless (0-4 SU) this season when allowing at least 3.0 sacks in a game. The Houston defense has averaged 3.2 sacks over the last five games.
Among all FBS teams, the Houston offensive passing game is ranked 21st in the country, while the SMU pass defense is only ranked 124th. The Mustangs passing attack is ranked 50th, compared to the 125th-ranked pass defense of the Cougars.
