Texas Longhorns vs Houston Cougars Prediction, 10/21/2023 College Football Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Texas Longhorns vs Houston Cougars

Date: Saturday, October 21, 2023

Location: TDECU Stadium in Houston, TX

TV: FOX

Odds/Point Spread: Cougars (+20)

Total/Over-Under: 61.5

The Houston Cougars (3-3) welcome the Texas Longhorns (5-1) at TDECU Stadium on Saturday, October 21, 2023. Texas opens this matchup as 20-point favorites. The betting total is set at 61.5.

The Texas Longhorns step onto the field holding a record of 5-1 for this year. In their last game, the Longhorns played the Oklahoma Sooners and went home with a loss by a final score of 34-30. Quinn Ewers finished 31/37 with 346 yards passing and 1 touchdown. He had a quarterback rate of 160.4 and ended the contest with 2 picks. Jonathon Brooks was the leader on the ground for the Longhorns with 22 carries for 129 yards (5.9 yards per carry). The Texas Longhorns ran the rock 40 different times and recorded 156 yds, which came out to an average of 3.9 yards per attempt. Overall, they tallied 78 plays which gave them 527 yards. Texas surrendered 23 pass completions on 38 tries for 285 yds, and a completion rate of 60.5%. Against the run, the Longhorns conceded 201 yds on 43 tries, which calculates to 4.7 yards per rush allowed.

The Longhorns currently have 2,919 total yards for this campaign. When it comes to distribution of touchdowns, Texas has compiled 11 passing touchdowns and 12 rushing touchdowns. They have given the ball to the opposition 7 different times. Texas has compiled 142 first downs as a team, and they have committed 30 infractions for 244 yards. Offensively they are averaging 185.8 yards on the ground which is 33rd in the country. When it comes to putting points on the board, the Texas Longhorns are averaging 35.0 PPG.

When it comes to yards through the air, the Longhorns are giving up 1,266 yards which has them ranked 33rd in the nation. They have conceded 211.0 yards per game through the air in addition to conceding a completion percentage of 55.0%. For the season, they are allowing 323.3 yards/game which ranks them 25th in the country. They have conceded 5 touchdowns through the air in addition to 5 touchdowns running the ball. Opposing teams are running for an average of 3.4 yards per tote and 112.3 rushing yards per game this year. Overall, they have allowed 674 rushing yards through 6 games. The Longhorns sit in 15th in the country concerning the opposition scoring, giving up 16.3 PPG.

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The Cougars come into this game with a record of 3-3 for this season. In their last game, the Cougars went home victorious with a score of 41-39 when they played the West Virginia Mountaineers. Donovan Smith (4 touchdowns) ended the game with 253 yds on 21/27 passing while his quarterback rating was 205.4. He didn't throw any picks and his average yards per attempt was 9.4. Stacy Sneed carried the football 7 times for 78 yards, walking away from the game with 11.1 yds per carry for Houston. Houston ran for 5.4 yards per carry, finishing the contest with 140 yds on 26 attempts. The Cougars finished with 393 yards while they ran 53 plays (7.4 yds per play). The Cougars passing defense gave up a completion rate of 52.6%, relinquishing 391 yds on 20 out of 38 through the air. Houston allowed 44 running attempts for 154 yards (3.5 yds per rush).

The Houston Cougars have an average of 410.5 yards per contest, which is good for 56th in college football. The Houston offense has compiled 341 yards of penalties on 38 infractions, which ranks them 77th in Division 1 in terms of hurting your team. They average 134.0 yards via the ground game and have run for 804 yards in total. They have thrown 3 interceptions while losing 0 fumbles and they have recorded 131 first downs. When discussing how much they score, the Cougars currently sit 65th in the nation with 29.7 PPG. For the season so far, the Cougars currently sit at 1,659 yards through the air not to mention an average of 276.5 passing yards per game, ranking them 34th in the country.

The Cougars are allowing 31.3 points per contest, ranking them 108th in college football. Houston has surrendered a total of 972 rushing yards (162.0 yards per game) and 13 touchdowns via the rush for the campaign. In total, they have surrendered 188 pts. They have given up 10 touchdowns from the passing game as well as 267.0 yards per game, which has them sitting 117th in the nation. The Cougars defense has taken the field for 421 plays, which has them sitting 64th in the nation. Their defense has 3 fumbles recovered and 7 picks so far this season.

Who will win tonight's Longhorns/Cougars college football game against the spread?

Guy's Pick: Take the Longhorns -20

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