The UTEP Miners will travel to take on their in-state rival Rice Owls in a Thursday night Conference USA college football matchup. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our college football odds series, which includes a UTEP-Rice prediction and pick, laid out below.
UTEP has fought their way to a 4-5 record after losing their first two games of the season. The Miners have fared better at home, going 3-2 at Sun Bowl Stadium. Head coach Dana Dimel made a bowl game for the first time as a head coach last season and may be building a solid program at UTEP.
Rice has matched their win total from last season, going 4-4 so far, including a 2-2 record in the Conference USA. Rice has been good at home, going 3-1 at Rice Stadium. Head coach Mike Bloomgren has yet to break into a bowl game with Rice, but momentum is steadily building in Houston.
Here are the UTEP-Rice college football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: UTEP-Rice Odds
UTEP Miners: +3.5 (-110)
Rice Owls: -3.5 (-110)
Over: 47.5 (-110)
Under: 47.5 (-110)
Why UTEP Could Cover The Spread
Gavin Hardison is now in his third season as the starting quarterback for UTEP. Hardison has completed 52.5 percent of his passes for 1,941 yards with ten touchdowns and eight interceptions. Hardison has also rushed for a touchdown. Deion Hankins leads the team with 547 rushing yards and two touchdowns, with Ronald Awatt ranking second with 538 rushing yards and two touchdowns. UTEP has totaled 1,264 rushing yards and seven touchdowns. Tyrin Smith leads the team with 56 catches for 803 yards and five touchdowns. Trent Thompson has hauled in two touchdowns. Reynaldo Flores is second with 42 catches for 472 yards, catching one touchdown pass. UTEP is averaging 21.3 points and 364.7 yards of offense per game.
UTEP's defense has been unreliable, allowing 27.4 and 355.4 yards of offense per game. Tyrice Knight leads the team with 74 tackles, registering six for a loss, one sack, one interception, and one fumble recovery. Knight returned that fumble for a touchdown. Jadrian Taylor leads the team with eight sacks, with Cal Wallerstedt ranking second with five and a half. UTEP has totaled twenty sacks as a team. Taylor has also returned a fumble for a touchdown.
Why Rice Could Cover The Spread
TJ McMahon is in his first season as the starting quarterback, completing 58.5 percent of his passes for 1,703 yards with sixteen touchdowns and eleven interceptions. McMahon has also rushed for two touchdowns. Carson Montgomery leads the team with 333 rushing yards but has not crossed the endzone. Ari Broussard is second with 251 rushing yards and leads the team with nine rushing touchdowns. Rice has totaled 1,191 rushing yards and thirteen touchdowns. Luke McCaffrey leads the team with 47 catches for 613 yards, ranking second with six touchdown catches. Bradley Rozner is second with 579 receiving yards and leads the team with seven touchdown catches. Rice has scored 29.1 points and averaged 370.9 yards of offense per game.
Rice's defense has…struggled, allowing 33.6 points and 370.1 yards of offense per game. Chris Conti leads the team with 47 tackles, including three for a loss and one sack. Josh Pearcy leads the team with five and a half sacks, while the Owls have totaled 21 sacks. Gabriel Taylor leads the team with two interceptions, and the Owls have totaled six on the season.
Final UTEP-Rice Prediction & Pick
Rice is too good at home to bet against, plus two bad defenses leads to a lot of points.
Final UTEP-Rice Prediction & Pick: Rice +3.5 (-110), over 47.5 (-110)
Follow Us
Subscribe