The Houston Cougars aren’t traveling far to battle the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Jones AT&T Stadium. Kickoff for this matchup is set for 4:15 p.m. ET and FOX is scheduled to broadcast the action.
Houston Cougars vs. Texas Tech Red Raiders Betting Preview
The Cougars are 1-1 against the spread (ATS) and have gained 1.0 unit so far. The team has posted an O/U record of 1-1. The Red Raiders have lost 1.0 unit for moneyline bettors this season. They’re 1-1 ATS and have an O/U record of 2-0.
The Cougars have gone 2-0 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Red Raiders are 1-1 SU.
When these two teams faced each other last year, Texas Tech won by a field goal 27-24.
The Cougars are hoping to remain unbeaten after a 45-18 victory over Arizona last week. the Cougars completed 19-of-40 passes for 254 yards and four touchdowns. D’Eriq King went 17-for-34 for 246 yards and four touchdowns while Quinten Dormady completed two-of-five for eight yards. Terence Williams (65 yards on 12 rushes) and Patrick Carr (62 yards on eight carries) led the ground attack while Bryson Smith (four receptions, 29 yards, one TD) and Courtney Lark (four catches, 44 yards) shared the receiving duties in the win.
Texas Tech take the field this week following a 77-0 win over Lamar. The defense allowed the Cardinals to run for 102 yards on 42 rush attempts. Dewan Thompson Jr. was a bright spot in the defeat, recording 18 yards on three catches for Lamar. As a group, the Red Raiders collectively completed 30-of-35 passes for 419 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Alan Bowman went 22-for-25 for 282 yards and two touchdowns while Jett Duffey was seven-of-nine for 93 yards and one interception. Demarcus Felton (69 yards on 17 rush attempts, two TDs) and Ta’Zhawn Henry (55 yards on 11 carries, two TDs) spearheaded the running game while KeSean Carter (six receptions, 76 yards) and Antoine Wesley (four catches, 87 yards, one TD) led the receiving corps in the win.
Houston has run the ball on 53.9 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Texas Tech has an overall rush percentage of 49.7 percent. The Cougars have produced 277 rush yards per game and have five touchdowns on the ground this year. The Red Raiders are averaging 214 rushing yards per game and have nine total rush TDs.
It appears that the Cougars may hold an advantage in terms of efficiency in the ground game, as their backfield has logged 7.3 yards per carry while their defense is allowing a YPC of 3.2 to opponents. The Red Raiders have tallied 4.8 yards per carry and allowed 4.5 YPC to opponents.
The Cougars offense has logged 287 yards/game in the air overall and has seven passing scores so far. The Red Raiders have put up an astonishing 371 pass yards per game and have four total pass TDs.
Defensively, Houston has let opponents rush for an average of 149 yards and pass for 337 yards per game. The Texas Tech D has allowed 208 yards per game to opposing passers and 156.0 yards per game to opposing runners. The Red Raiders are giving up an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of just 4.28 to opposing QBs, while the Cougars have allowed a 6.16 ANY/A.
Passing-wise, King has amassed 246 yards this year, and has connected on 17-of-34 attempts with four passing scores and has yet to throw an interception. King has a 9.59 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number sits at 12.17 over the past two games.
Marquez Stevenson (60 rushing yards, 40 receiving yards, one receiving touchdown this season), Keith Corbin (44 receiving yards, one receiving TD) and Patrick Carr (62 rush yards) have all played significant roles of late.
Alan Bowman has connected on 22-of-25 passes for 282 yards, two TDs and zero INTs for Texas Tech. His ANY/A sits at 12.88 for the season and 8.31 over his past two outings.
Look for Bowman to distribute the football early and often in this one. Antoine Wesley (87 receiving yards and one receiving TD this season), KeSean Carter (76 receiving yards), and T.J. Vasher (51 receiving yards) have collectively recorded 380 receiving yards over the last couple of games.
Betting Pick: Houston Cougars vs. Texas Tech Red Raiders
SU Winner – Houston
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Notes
Team Betting Notes
The Texas Tech offense has lost zero fumbles this season while Houston has lost two
Each team defense has tallied four sacks this year.
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