It’s a contest between two mid-major programs when the Tulsa Golden Hurricane storm into the Buckeye State to play the Toledo Rockets on Saturday evening. The game is slated to start on Saturday, September 16th at 7:00 p.m. EST. You can catch the game if you can tune into ESPN3.com. Heading into this affair, the Rockets are a -9 point favorite and the over/under is down five points to 68.
The Tulsa Golden Hurricane evened up their record to 1-1 as they racked up a 66-42 win over Louisiana-Lafayette at home Saturday. The two schools went up and down the field for four quarters before Tulsa put the game to bed. It was a nice rebound after being manhandled by Oklahoma State to kick-off their season.
The Toledo Rockets, favorites to win the MAC Conference in 2017, remained unbeaten after their victory over Nevada 37-24. The Rockets were balanced on both sides of the ball and eventually wore down the Wolfpack by game’s end. Believe it or not, this will be the first time these two programs have met on the gridiron as FBS opponents.
Tulsa Golden Hurricane (1-1)
The Golden Hurricane picked up the victory over the Ragin’ Cajuns, when they hung the most points they’ve scored in a game in coach Philip Montgomery’s tenure. Tulsa took a 38-23 lead at half-time and pulled back away in the fourth quarter. Lafayette had trimmed the Tulsa lead to 10 on two different occasions.
In the triumph, the Golden Hurricane piled on an impressive 667 yards of offense. Unfortunately, the defense also surrendered 596 yards to the Ragin’ Cajuns. The Golden Hurricane also kept a 33-27 advantage in first downs in the game.
Apparently, the Tulsa offense is recovering from the loss of their quarterback Dane Evans. They may have started a little slow out of the gate but they are firing on all cylinders after last week’s performance.
Quarterback Chad President has completed 32 balls for 432 yards and one touchdown. The difference between him and Evans is that he can also move the rock with his feet. So far, President also has 84 rushes on 14 carries and two more touchdowns to show for his work.308 yards per game,
The tail backs for the Tulsa offense are also off to an amazing start. People think pass the pigskin when they think of the Tulsa offense but this isn’t always so. In 2017, three running backs have already eclipsed the century mark. The Golden Hurricane’s leading runner is of course non other than senior DeAngelo Brewer. Brewer has carried the football 60 times for just under 300 yards and three scores.
Wide receivers Justin Hobbs and Keenen Johnson are doing almost all of the damage when Tulsa looks to throw the ball down the field. Both are impressive, with Hobbs catching 13 balls for 174 yards and a touchdown grab. Johnson is the team leader in catches with 13 for 134 but as of yet has failed to score.
I wish I could find something positive to say about the Tulsa defense but unfortunately that is not the case. The other half has been horrible, allowing teams to throw for 308 yards per game. That stat already places Tulsa deep in the cellar at 115th in the nation. Also, the front seven is worse. The Golden Hurricane have yielded an atrocious 309 yards rushing a contest. My goodness, that places the Golden Hurricanes at 124th in the country.
Toledo Rockets (2-0)
Just like Tulsa, the Rockets are flying high offensively this season. The Rockets are 39th in the FBS in passing with 273 yards per game. They also are 40th in rushing by putting up 216.5 yards per contest. Toledo is tied for 27th in scoring offense with an average of 42 points per match. Pretty good if you ask me.
Apparently, he is at it again. In case you didn’t hear, there is a pretty good quarterback over in Toledo who finished out 2016 with some gaudy numbers. Quarterback Logan Woodside tossed the ball around for over 4,000 yards with 45 touchdowns and only 9 picks.
Now, the Fankfurt, Kentucky native has completed 38 passes for 546 yards and two scores with no interceptions. This weekend, he is poise to go off against one of the nation’s worse defenses.
Toledo also likes to keep balance to their offensive attack. The Rockets look to three of their own tail backs to keep the opposing defenses on tilt. All three of them have also eclipsed the 100 yard mark. Art Thompkins leads the team with 153 yards, Shakief Seymour is second with 150 and a touchdown. Senior back Terry Swanson has 137 but has found his way into the end zone four times.
Wide outs Cody Thompson and Diontae Johnson do the damage through the air. Thompson has a team-high 13 catches or 213 yards and a score. Teammate Diontae Johnson has reeled in another eight passes for 155 yards and another touchdown.
Defensively, the Rockets are a lot more solid against opposing offenses than Tulsa. As of now, Toledo is tied for 43rd in scoring defense by allowing 18.5 points per game. They also are 43rd in the country, giving way to only 162 yards through the air. Up front, Toledo is ranked 51st, surrendering 118.5 yards per contest.
Prediction
Obviously, these two teams almost mirror each other offensively. Both Tulsa and Toledo stay balanced by running the ball and passing the ball at impressive rates. The fact of the matter is, that this has the makings of another good ole’ fashioned shoot-out.
A few things I’d like to mention here before I get to my prediction is that Toledo clearly has the more experienced quarterback and has the better defense of the two. That is something to consider if your deciding to play the -9 spread in this one.
The odds gurus have the total at 68 which is up there. But if you took the time to read the information i have provided, this is a no-brainer. Take the over 68 while these two schools keep moving the ball efficiently down the field on each other. If this game doesn’t reach the 80’s I’d be shocked. In fact, the Rainmaker on our Throwdown Podcast made this his drunk play of the week. #moneytreesgrow
Trends
The Golden Hurricane are 12-3 ATS in their last 15 road games.
The Golden Hurricane are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games overall.
The Over is 4-1 in the Golden Hurricane last 5 non-conference games.
The Over is 12-3 in the Golden Hurricane last 15 games in September.
The Rockets are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games overall.
The Rockets are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 home games.
The Under is 3-1-1 in the Rockets last 5 home games.
The Under is 6-2-1 in the Rockets last 9 games overall.
