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It is time to continue our college football odds series with Houston-BYU predictions and a pick. Find out how to watch Houston-BYU.
While most college football teams play rivalry games this weekend, BYU — having already faced archrival Utah — concludes its regular-season slate in the Big 12 with a game against newcomer Houston. These teams have proud college football traditions. They both developed a robust football brand in the late 1970s and early-to-mid 1980s. Houston was a few years earlier than BYU, winning the Southwest Conference in the 1976 season and winning the 1977 Cotton Bowl. BYU owned the Western Athletic Conference and became a regular visitor to the Holiday Bowl in San Diego, playing epic games against Lee Corso and Indiana and winning game on a Hail Mary versus SMU.
In the 1984 season, BYU won the national championship while Houston won another Southwest Conference championship and advanced to the Cotton Bowl to face Heisman Trophy winner Doug Flutie. Both of these programs have risen to great heights in the past.
This season, BYU has enjoyed a better-than-expected campaign, though one which has been knocked off course with losses the past two weeks to Kansas and Arizona State. BYU was in prime position to make the Big 12 Championship Game and compete for a spot in the College Football Playoff. Now, BYU does not control its fate. It needs at least one loss from either Arizona State or Iowa State, preferrably both. If ASU and ISU both win, BYU won't make the Big 12 title game, and that will be the end of the Cougars' championship chances, either in the Big 12 or on a national level.
Still: This is a game in which BYU is playing for a 10th win this season. That's a significant achievement if the Cougars can pull it off. They face a Houston team which has struggled in the first season under coach Willie Fritz. Everyone in the industry knows how good a coach Fritz is. This is the time to get Houston. UH is likely to get a lot better next year and beyond.
Houston-BYU Last Game – Matchup History
The last time these two teams met was in 2020. BYU won, 43-26.
Overall Series: BYU leads the all-time series, 3-0.
Here are the Houston-BYU College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: Houston-BYU Odds
Houston: +13.5 (-114)
Moneyline: +400
BYU: -13.5 (-106)
Moneyline: -550
Over: 41.5 (-110)
Under: 41.5 (-110)
Article Continues Below
How to Watch Houston vs BYU
Time: 10:15 p.m. ET/7:15 p.m. PT
TV: ESPN
Stream: fuboTV (Free trial)
Why Houston Could Cover The Spread/Win
You have seen how bad BYU has been the past few weeks. The boys in blue were fortunate to scrape by Utah. Then they lost at home to Kansas and trailed Arizona State by 19 on the road before rallying to lose by only five. This team has run out of steam and looks spent. Houston can keep the game close and will play hard in its 2024 finale.
Why BYU Could Cover The Spread/Win
The Blue Cougars – as opposed to Houston's Red Cougars — have played bad football for three weeks. It's about time for BYU to play well again. Houston is a weak opponent BYU can curb-stomp. BYU just has to win by two touchdowns. Against Houston at home, that shouldn't be too difficult.
Final Houston-BYU Prediction & Pick
The lean is to BYU, but we're just not willing to risk money on Big 12 football outcomes this year. This conference has gone absolutely crazy, and we're just not going to put our finger on a hot stove any longer. We've been burned a lot.
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Final Houston-BYU Prediction & Pick: BYU -13.5
