One of the marquee matchups of the first week of college football takes place at NRG Stadium when the Oklahoma Sooners and Houston Cougars clash Saturday. The ranked opponents will surely put on a show, but Houston has dominated when underestimated. Houston is 12-1-1 ATS in their past 14 games as underdogs – which includes a SU win against FSU in the Peach Bowl last season.
- The OVER went 6-2 in Oklahoma’s final eight games last season.
- Greg Ward Jr. averaged a combined 281 yards from scrimmage per game last season.
- Samaje Perine has averaged just 55 yards during Week 1 in his collegiate career.
Head coach Tom Herman got the best out of quarterback Greg Ward Jr. last season and created a superstar. Ward was one of only two quarterbacks in the nation last year to throw for over 2000 yards and rush for over 1000 – the other being Deshaun Watson. The offense may need to lean on Ward even more with the running back situation in question following Kenneth Farrow’s graduation.
Oklahoma could sport one of the most exciting offenses in the country this season with Baker Mayfield airing it out and the duo of Samaje Perine and Joe Mixon running the ball. The Sooners’ D sports what could be one of the best defensive backfields in football, but they need a few players to step up at linebacker.
Sportsbook Odds & Computer Pick
The Oklahoma Sooners were listed as -10-point favorites on the Sportsbook NCAA football line at Sportsbook and most sportsbooks tracked by Odds Shark. No total was available early in the week, check out the odds pages here or Sportsbook for updates.
Odds Shark score prediction models pick a 45-33 result in favor of the Sooners on Saturday. View the computer score prediction and who will win the pick on the moneyline for all upcoming NCAAF matchups here.
Oklahoma Sooners vs Houston Cougars Matchup
Team Betting Records & Power Rankings
Houston bring a 0-0 record (0-0 ATS) to the Week 1 betting matchup against the 0-0 Oklahoma Sooners, who are 0-0 ATS against the spread. Over under betting has seen Houston go 0-0 so far and the Sooners go 0-0. Stay Informed: follow us on Twitter for odds specials, betting line moves and Houston vs Oklahoma injuries news.
The Houston Cougars sit at No. 12 in the current College Football Power Rankings here at Odds Shark, while the Oklahoma Sooners are at No. 3 on that chart.
Statistical Matchup
The game also pits Houston's No. -ranked offense, averaging PPG, against a Oklahoma defense that ranks No. this week at PPG. The Houston aerial game is averaging yards per game, more than the Oklahoma Sooners secondary allows through the air, YPG per game.
Defensively, the Oklahoma Sooners feature the league's No. 49-rated road run defense, allowing 163.57 yards per game. Houston, meanwhile, ranks No. 21 in rushing offense at home.
Recent Outings Betting Recap
In Oklahoma's last outing, Baker Mayfield threw for 311 yards in a losing cause against the Tigers, 37-17 at Sun Life Stadium.
The Cougars grabbed a Week P victory over the Seminoles in their last game, winning 38-24 at Georgia Dome.
- Oklahoma is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games
- Oklahoma is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
- The total has gone OVER in 6 of Oklahoma's last 8 games
- Houston is 9-4 ATS in its last 13 games
- Houston is 14-1 SU in its last 15 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Houston's last 7 games
Next Betting Matchups
Oklahoma home to Louisiana-Monroe, Saturday, September 10th
Houston home to Lamar, Saturday, September 10th
