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It is an AAC battle as Tulsa hosts Rice. It is time to continue our College Football odds series with a Rice-Tulsa prediction, pick, and how-to-watch.
Rice enters the game at 3-3 on the season. They started with a loss to Texas but bounced back with two wins. First, they upset Houston. They were tied with Houston to start the second half. They scored first in the second half, but Houston tied it. Rice scored again and then hit the two-point conversion. Houston scored, but did not hit the two points and Rice won. The next week it was a win over Texas Southern, before opening conference play. They would lose that game to South Florida before beating East Carolina to get to a 1-1 record in conference play. Last time out, it was a loss to UCONN. They were up 14-0 in the first quarter but would be down at the half, and could not come back, losing 38-31.
Meanwhile, Tulsa enters the game at 3-3 on the year. They opened with a win over Arkansas Pine-Bluff, but thye would lose the next two games, facing Washington and Oklahoma. Tulsa would rebound against Northern Illinois. They were down 14-9 in the third quarter, but they scored two field goals and a touchdown to win 22-14. After that, it was a conference win over Temple 47-26. Last time out, they faced FAU. Tulsa was down 17-7 at the half and scored with 5:01 left in the game to make it 20-17, but could not make the full comeback.
Here are the college football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: Rice-Tulsa Odds
Rice: +3.5 (-120)
Tulsa: -3.5 (-102)
Over: 57.5 (-105)
Under: 57.5 (-115)
How to Watch Rice vs. Tulsa Week 8
Time: 7:00 PM ET/ 4:00 PM PT
TV: ESPN2
Stream: FuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why Rice Will Cover The Spread
JT Daniels leads the team at quarterback for Rice. He has completed 131 of 206 passes this year for 1.820 yards and 15 touchdowns. He has made six big-time throws according to Pff, while pushing the ball downfield, with an average depth of target of 8.2 yards downfield. Still, he has five interceptions this year but had eight turnover-worthy passes. Daniels has also struggled holding the ball in the run game, fumbling five times this year.
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The run game has not been solid for Rice today. Dean Connors and Juma Otoviano lead the way rushing the ball for Rice. Connors has run for 180 yards on 41 attempts this year. He has scored once and has forced 13 missed tackles. The major issue has been blocking, with just over a yard before first contact on average this season. Otoviano is second on the team with 127 yards this year on 51 rushes. He has scored twice as well. The most rushing touchdowns have come from Daelen Alexander. He has run 18 times this year, leading to five touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Dean Connors has been solid this year as a receiver out of the backfield as well. He has brought in 24 of 29 targets this year for 306 and two touchdowns. Connors has been great after the catch as well, with 286 yards after the catch. Luke McCaffrey has been a machine for Rice this year. He has brought in 30 of 53 targets this year for 514 yards with 17.1 yards per reception. He has hauled in six touchdowns.
Rice comes in ranked 98th in total defense this year. They gave up 398.8 yards per game this year. The major issue is against the pass. Rice ranks 109th this year against the pass, giving up 260 yards per game, and ten touchdowns this season. That starts with the pass rush. They have just 17 sacks this year, with De'Braylon Carroll leading with four sacks. In coverage, they have just two interceptions with 14 pass breakups this year. Sean Fresch has had a lot of trouble in coverage, allowing 411 yards this year with three touchdowns this season.
Why Tulsa Will Cover The Spread
Cardell Williams leads this Tulsa offense. He has completed 62 of 103 passes for 955 yards and eight touchdowns this year. Williams has made five big-time throws this year, but he has had some trouble protecting the ball. Williams has made 12 turnover-worthy passes this year with seven interceptions this season. Still, Williams has run for 181 yards this year with 25 of them coming from scrambles this year. He also has three touchdowns this year.
Anthony Watkins and Jordan Ford lead the team in rushing this year. Watkins has run for 367 yards this year with two touchdowns. He has been great after first contact this year, with 257 yards after contact on the season. Meanwhile, Jordan Ford has run for 237 yards this season and a touchdown.
Marquis Shoulders is the leading receiver for Tulsa. He has brought in 16 of 27 receptions this year with five touchdowns. He is still questionable for this game. That will lead to Devan Williams and Kamdyn Benjamin having to step up. Williams has brought in 19 of 30 targets this year with 274 yards and two touchdowns. Benjamin has brought in 13 of 20 targets this year for 222 yards, but he has not scored.
For as bad as the Rice defense has been this year, Tulsa has not been any better. They have not been rushing the passer well this year. They have only nine sacks this year, with six of them coming from one man. Ben Kopenski has six sacks with 24 quarterback pressures this season. In overage, they have allowed 12 passing touchdowns and an NFL quarterback rating of 100.2 against them. Still, Tulsa does have seven interceptions this year, with Jaise Oliver having three of them.
Final Rice-Tulsa Prediction & Pick
Rice has a solid pass game, and the Tulsa defense will not be able to slow that down. Further, Tulsa does not have the offensive weapons to keep up in this one. JT Daniels gets to face one of the worst secondaries in college football. He will be able to hit Luke McCaffery for big plays regularly. When Tulsa gets down, they do not have the pass offense to catch backup. Taking Rice on the money line would be a solid play in this game. The only way Tulsa will be able to cover this game would be to keep it low-scoring, but that will not happen in this one.
Final Rice-Tulsa Prediction & Pick: Rice +3 (-120)
