Iowa State Cyclones vs Houston Cougars Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 09/28/2024

Game Time: 7:00 pm ET, Saturday, September 28, 2024

Venue:  TDECU Stadium, Houston, TX

Where to Watch:  Fox Sports 1

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  ISU -13.5, Houston +13.5; Over/Under:  43 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  ISU -13.5, Houston +13.5; Over/Under:  43 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  ISU -13.5, Houston +13.5; Over/Under:  43 points

Iowa State Cyclones:  3-0 (0-0) (8th place, Big 12)

Houston Cougars:  1-3 (0-1) (16th place, Big 12)

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Iowa State Cyclones:  won their last game at home against the Arkansas State Red Wolves 52-7.

Houston Cougars:  lost their last game on the road against the Cincinnati Bearcats 34-0.

Iowa State is entering this game with a 3-0 record overall and they have a 0-0 record in their conference games too. They are 2-0 in their home games, 1-0 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be on the road for this game. They won their last game against Arkansas State 52-7. Rocco Becht was the starting QB and he completed 11/18 passes for 204 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Carson Hansen led the team in rushing yards with 58 and 2 TDs. Benjamin Brahmer led the receivers with 73 receiving yards on 3 receptions. Beau Freyler led the defense in that game with 2 solo tackles and 4 assisted tackles while Kenard Snyder, Joey Petersen, Ikenna Ezeogu, and Kooper Ebel each led the defense in sacks with 1. Jeremiah Cooper and Malik Verdon each came away with 1 interception for them in that one.

 

 

 

Houston is entering this game with a 1-3 record overall and they have a 0-1 record in their conference games too. They are 1-1 in their home games, 0-2 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at home for this game. They lost their last game against Cincinnati 34-0. Donovan Smith was the starting QB and he completed 11/16 passes for 73 passing yards, 0 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Re'Shaun Sanford II led the team in rushing yards with 62. Joseph Manjack IV led the receivers with 51 receiving yards on 2 receptions. A.J. Haulcy led the defense in that game with 5 solo tackles and 6 assisted tackles while Xavier Stillman led the defense in sacks with 1. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that one.

The current betting odds have Iowa State listed as a 13.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Iowa State has looked really good in their games this season with their 3-0 record overall. Their only real test this season was a road win against Iowa, but that gave them a ton of momentum last week as they blew out Arkansas State at home. Meanwhile, Houston has looked terrible in their games this season with their 1-3 record overall and their 0-1 conference record. They are coming off that conference loss last week, and they looked terrible as they were shut out on the road against Cincinnati who isn't even one of the strong teams in the Big 12. Now they are going to be back at home but they have a ranked team coming into town, and Fritz just hasn't been able to get this team going in his 1st season as head coach. Even with the home advantage here, Houston is going to struggle to put up points with that terrible offense and Iowa State has shown that they can put up a ton of points. Everything points to Iowa State in this first conference game with Houston still trying to figure things out as a team. The best way to place a bet here is on Iowa State to cover the spread in this game. 

Iowa State Houston Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, September 28, 2024 (7:00 pm ET start time) is Iowa State 38 Houston 13.

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Iowa State Cyclones: 4-8 1H ATS in road lined games. 0-5 1H ATS off a home win by 17 points or more. 3-11 1H ATS after playing a game at home. 6-3 UNDER in games played on turf. 5-2 1H UNDER after a win by 17 or more points. 

Houston Cougars: 4-1 ATS after a loss by 17 or more points. 4-1 1H ATS as a home underdog. 5-0 1H ATS after scoring 14 points or less last game. 7-1 UNDER versus good offensive teams - averaging 5.9 yards/play or more. 6-3 1H UNDER off a loss against a conference rival. 9-5 1H UNDER after 1 or more consecutive straight up losses.

Iowa State Cyclones:  J. Travis (OL) Questionable - Undisclosed. D. Surges (DB) Questionable - Undisclosed. C. Bacon (LB) Questionable - Leg. D. Jackson (WR) Out - Leg.

Houston Cougars:  T. Mathis (RB) Out - Knee. K. Young (WR) Questionable - Undisclosed. T. Wilk (DB) Questionable - Undisclosed. Z. Chriss (QB) Questionable - Shoulder. S. Smith (RB) Questionable - Ankle. M. Byrnes (TE) Questionable - Groin. C. McMickle (QB) Out - Knee. S. Polk (RB) Out - Achilles.

"Really important still in this world today is team. This is not about any individual. To be able to be at one place with so many great people for as long as I have, I'm just grateful for that. We have great coaches, great players, obviously great administration at the president's level. That's what has made it a joy to be here." - Matt Campbell after his team’s win against Arkansas State in their last game. 

“We would get moving a little bit, then we’d have some plays that were self destructive. I told the guys five or six times, we’re not good enough to just throw the ball out there and win. We’re going to have to do things right.” - Willie Fritz after his team’s loss against Cincinnati in their last game. 

WR Higgins, Jayden 

WR Ngoyi, Beni

WR Noel, Jaylin 

TE Brahmer, Benjamin 

TE Klotz, Stevo 

QB Becht, Rocco

RB Sama III, Abu 

WR Manjack IV, Joseph

WR Wilson, Jonah 

WR Johnson, Stephon 

TE York, Jayden 

QB Smith, Donovan 

RB Jenkins, Parker 

Passing: R. Becht (743)

Rushing: A. Sama (124)

Receiving: J. Noel (317)

Touchdowns: J. Higgins (3)

Passing: D. Smith (610)

Rushing: R. Sanford (166)

Receiving: J. Manjack (146)

Touchdowns: J. Manjack (2)

Coaches:

Iowa State Cyclones: Matt Campbell (9th season)

Houston Cougars: Willie Fritz (1st season)