The Hawaii Rainbow Warriors and BYU Cougars are set to go at it on the grass at LaVell Edwards Stadium. ESPN2 has the TV rights and the game’s scheduled for 10:15 p.m. ET.
Hawaii Rainbow Warriors vs. BYU Cougars Betting Preview
Hawaii is a big road underdog in this matchup and is currently getting 8 points. The Rainbow Warriors are also receiving +260 moneyline odds while the Cougars are -340. It appears that there will probably be some good in-game betting scenarios in this matchup.
The profitable Rainbow Warriors are 3-3-1 against the spread (ATS) and have gained 14.7 units this season. The team’s posted an O/U record of 4-3. The Cougars have lost 0.1 units so far. The team is 3-3 ATS and has an O/U record of 1-5.
The Rainbow Warriors have gone 6-1 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Cougars are 3-3 SU.
Hawaii enters this contest on a zero-game winless streak while BYU has won each of its last zero. The Rainbow Warriors look to keep it rolling after a 17-13 victory over Wyoming last weekTheir defense allowed the Cowboys to run for 157 yards on 34 rush attempts. Nico Evans had a productive day for the Cowboys in that one with 192 rushing yards on 24 attempts. Offensively, Chevan Cordeiro completed 19 passes for only 148 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Dayton Furuta (101 rushing yards on 16 attempts) and the signal-caller Cordeiro (23 yards on 12 carries) mounted the ground attack in the win. Marcus Armstrong-Brown (six receptions, 49 yards) and John Ursua (five catches, 30 yards) shared the receiving duties.
BYU most-recently fell convincingly 45-20 to Utah State. The team’s defense allowed the Aggies to kill the clock by rushing for 223 yards on 42 attempts, along with one rushing TD. Darwin Thompson put up a good outing in the win, posting 109 rushing yards on 17 attempts for Utah State. For BYU, Tanner Mangum completed 27-of-46 passes for 270 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Lopini Katoa did it all in the loss. Along with 24 rushing yards on eight attempts, Katoa also reeled in six catches for 21 yards and a score.
Hawaii has run the ball on 45.1 percent of its offensive possessions this year while BYU has a rush percentage of 50.0 percent. The Rainbow Warriors have produced 146 rush yards/game and have eight touchdowns via handoffs this year. The Cougars are averaging 117 rush yards per game and have eight total rushing TDs.
It appears that the Rainbow Warriors ought to own the advantage in terms of RB efficiency, since their backfield has logged 4.6 yards per carry while the defense is allowing a YPC of 4.0 to opponents. The Cougars have rushed for 3.7 yards per carry and given up a YPC of 4.4 to opponents.
The Rainbow Warriors offensive scheme has logged 322 yards/contest through the air overall and has 26 passing scores so far. The Cougars have put up 190 pass yards per contest and have seven total pass TDs.
Defensively, Hawaii has let opponents run for an average of 159 yards and pass for 252 yards per game. The BYU defense has allowed 197.0 yards per game to opposing passers and 163.8 yards per game on the ground. The Cougars are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of just 6.04 to opponents, while the Rainbow Warriors have given up an 8.05 ANY/A.
Offensively, McDonald is already up to 2,100 passing yards on the year. He’s connected on 156-of-240 attempts with 24 scores through the air and only two interceptions. McDonald has a 9.48 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number sits at 5.93 over the last two outings.
John Ursua (653 receiving yards, nine receiving touchdowns on the year), Dayton Furuta (290 rush yards) and JoJo Ward (402 receiving yards, four TDs) have each played key roles recently.
In the home locker room, Tanner Mangum has managed to complete 94-of-162 passes for 882 yards, five TDs and three INTs. Mangum’s ANY/A sits at a less-than-ideal 4.90 for the year and 5.56 across his past two games.
Similar to the Rainbow Warriors, expect a balanced attack offensively from BYU this Saturday. Lopini Katoa, Matt Bushman and Talon Shumway have collectively accounted for 373 total yards and two touchdowns over the last couple of outings.
When these two teams met last year, BYU emerged victorious by a score of 30-20.
RELATED: Week 7 College Football Betting Odds and Predictions
NCAA Pick: Hawaii Rainbow Warriors vs. BYU Cougars
SU Winner – BYU, ATS Winner – BYU
Click Here to Start Betting Today!
Notes
Team Betting Trends
The Hawaii defense has more than three times as many sacks as BYU this year (19 to six).
BYU has lost four fumbles in 2018 while Hawaii has let five get away.
The Rainbow Warriors offense has tallied eight pass plays of 40+ yards, while the Cougars have accounted for one such play.
The Hawaii defense has allowed eight pass plays of 40 or more yards, while BYU has given up two such plays.
The Hawaii offense has created seven rushing plays of 20 yards or more, while BYU has created four such runs.
The Rainbow Warriors defense has allowed 13 rushing plays of 20 yards or more, while the Cougars have given up six such runs.
BYU was favored by one point in its last match and the Over/Under going into it was 55. The over cashed and BYU did not cover in that 45-20 loss to Utah State.
Over its last three games, BYU is 1-2 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
In its last three matches, Hawaii is 1-2 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
Hawaii was the underdog by 4 points in its last game and the Over/Under going into it was 51. The under cashed and Hawaii covered in the 17-13 victory over Wyoming.
As a team, Hawaii has rushed for 4.61206896551724 yards per attempt over its last three outings and 3.7 over its last two.
BYU has averaged 2.7 yards per carry over its last three contests and 1.7 over its last two.
*****
