The No. 17 Houston Cougars (-13.5) aren’t traveling far to take on their conference foe SMU Mustangs at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. The game is scheduled to get going at 7:00 p.m. ET and ESPNU will broadcast the action.
Houston Cougars at SMU Mustangs Betting Preview
In this Saturday American Athletic Conference game, Houston is tabbed as the heavy favorite and is currently giving up 13.5 points. If they are wanting to take the moneyline, bettors would currently have to wager $600 in order to net $100 back on the Cougars (-600). The Mustangs are getting +425 moneyline odds. If one side gets out in front early it’ll generate a nice betting opportunity in-game. Oddsmakers have placed the over/under (O/U) sky-high at 73.5 points.
The opening line was 13 while the total hasn’t moved since it opened at 73.5.
Each of these teams has posted a good return this season as the Cougars have gained 4.0 units while the Mustangs are up 3.0 units.
The Cougars have gone 7-1 straight up (SU), including 4-0 SU against conference opponents. The Mustangs are 3-5 SU overall and are also 2-2 SU in conference play.
The Cougars are coming off a resounding 57-36 victory over South Florida last week where D’Eriq King completed 28-of-41 passes for 419 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions. Patrick Carr (68 rushing yards on 16 attempts) and the signal-caller King (132 yards on 12 carries, two TDs) mounted the ground attack. Marquez Stevenson (six receptions, 106 yards, two TDs) and Jeremy Singleton (five catches, 125 yards, one TD) shared the receiving duties in the win.
One week ago, Cincinnati knocked off this SMU crew by a score of 26-20. Ben Hicks completed 22-of-43 passes for 328 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Braeden West (16 rushing yards on 11 attempts) led the running game while Reggie Roberson, Jr. (seven receptions, 147 yards, two TDs) and James Proche (six catches, 72 yards) led the pass-catching attack in the loss.
Houston has run the ball on 51.1 percent of its offensive possessions this year while SMU has a rush percentage of 47.7 percent. The Cougars have produced 238 rush yards per game (including 222 per game against American Athletic Conference opponents) and have 22 touchdowns on the ground this year. The Mustangs are totaling 99 rush yards per game (75 in conference) and have eight total rushing TDs.
Judging by the numbers so far, it appears the Cougars may hold an advantage in terms of efficiency in the ground game, as their running backs has generated 6.0 yards per carry while their defense is allowing 3.5 yards per rush attempt to opponents. The Mustangs have ran for 3.0 yards per carry and allowed 4.1 YPC to opponents.
The Cougars offensive scheme has tallied 334 yards per contest through the air overall (312 per game versus conference opposition) and has 31 passing scores so far. The Mustangs have put up 250 pass yards per outing (255.5 in the AAC) and have 19 total pass TDs.
Houston has allowed opponents to rush for an average of 156 yards and pass for 325 yards per game. The SMU defense has allowed 238.5 yards per game to opposing passers and 182.8 yards per game to opposing runners. Both teams allow similar adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) to opponents, as the Cougars have given up an ANY/A of 6.51 to opposing QBs, while the Mustangs are yielding an ANY/A of 6.32.
Offensively, King has amassed 1,990 passing yards this season, and has connected on 64 percent of his 225 attempts with 25 scores through the air and only five interceptions. King has a sparkling 9.81 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number sits at 11.42 over the past two outings.
Ben Hicks has completed 85-of-159 passes for 1,034 yards, eight TDs and three INTs for SMU. His ANY/A sits at 5.65 for the year and 6.74 across his past two games.
When these two schools faced each other last year, Houston earned the win 35-22.
RELATED: Week 10 College Football Betting Odds and Predictions
NCAA Tip: Houston Cougars vs. SMU Mustangs
SU Winner – Houston, ATS Winner – Houston, O/U – Over
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Notes
Team Betting Trends
The Houston defense has sacked opposing QBs 17 times this season. SMU has produced 16 sacks.
Both teams have lost four fumbles this year.
The Cougars offense has created 13 pass plays of 40+ yards, while the Mustangs have put up 11 such plays.
The Houston defense has allowed eight pass plays of 40 or more yards, while SMU has given up three such plays.
The Houston offense has created 18 rushing plays of 20 yards or more, while SMU has created seven such runs.
The Cougars defense has allowed six rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while the Mustangs have given up nine such runs.
The O/U for SMU’s previous outing was 52. The under cashed in the 26-20 loss to Cincinnati.
Over its last three matchups, SMU is 2-1 ATS and the under cashed in each of those three.
Over its last three matchups, Houston is 3-0 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
The Over/Under for Houston’s last game was 74.5. The over cashed in the team’s 57-36 victory over South Florida.
Houston has produced 4.9 yards per carry over its past three games and 5.7 over its last two.
SMU has averaged 1.5 yards per carry over its last three outings and 1.1 over its last two.
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