Houston Cougars vs Memphis Tigers Betting Odds, Predictions, Lines & Picks
On Saturday, Houston (3-3 SU, 3-3 ATS) will travel to Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium to take on Memphis (5-3 SU, 2-6) in one of the most interesting unranked clashes this week. This will be the seventh consecutive matchup between the two in the last seven years. Last year, the Tigers won convincingly, 45-27, after entering the game as the -9.5 favorites. Memphis has covered the spread in the last four matchups.
Houston Cougars vs Memphis Tigers Betting Line Movement
Houston opened as the -2.5 favorites, but with a lot of action coming their way, the line has moved to -5 in most NCAAF sportsbooks. The total saw a little drop and stands at 62.5 at the moment after being as high as 64.5 earlier this week.
Notes On The Houston Cougars
Houston season has been completely turned upside-down due to the Covid-19 and it’s been hard for them to establish any consistency. The first four games were canceled, and after taking the field six times between October 3rd and November 14th, the Cougars missed the next two scheduled games against Tulsa and SMU. That makes it almost a month without a game before the matchup on Saturday. In their last game, the Cougars dominated South Florida, scoring a season-high 56 points.
Junior quarterback Clayton Tune proved in this game what a dual-threat he can be, throwing for 163 yards and 3 touchdowns on 14 from 25 passing and adding 120 rushing yards and 2 TDs on the ground. The passing offense has been pretty reliable for Houston all season, ranking 34th in the country and averaging 267.8 yards per contest, while the rushing attack is a bit behind, ranking 71st. The defensive side of the ball could use some improvement, though, as the Cougars are allowing 33 points per game so far.
Notes On The Memphis Tigers
Unlike Houston, Memphis managed to have more or less regular outings this season playing seven games in the last eight weeks. Last Saturday, they snapped their three-game winning streak, losing to Tulane. They are undefeated at home, though, going 5-0 this year and haven’t been defeated in front of their own fans since October 2018.
The game against Tulane was the second in a row where the Tigers’ offense struggled to get anything going. They have tallied only 31 points in their last two games. Before those two games, the offense was working fine, especially the passing attack, led by senior quarterback Brady White, which ranks 15th in the nation. White is likely starting for the last time in college and will be extremely motivated as he’s just 56 yards shy of overcoming Danny Wimprine and becoming Memphis’ all-time leader in passing yards. He is having a good season, throwing for a total of 2.850 yards and 26 touchdowns. His favorite receiver, Calvin Austin III, is nearing 1.000 yards for the season and is currently second in the AAC in the receiving yards.
Houston Cougars vs Memphis Tigers Betting Pick & Predictions: Over 62.5
On Saturday we’ll see two solid offenses and two not-so-solid defenses. We can expect that Brady White and the Tigers’ offense will get their groove back playing at home, and the Cougars could easily score over 30 points themselves. The four of the last five games between the two in Memphis have gone OVER.
