Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs Rice Owls Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 11/13/2021

Game Time: 2:00 pm ET, Saturday, November 13, 2021

Venue:  Rice Stadium, Houston, TX

Where to Watch:  ESPN+

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  WKU -18, Rice +18; Over/Under:  61.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  WKU -18.5, Rice +18.5; Over/Under:  61.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  WKU -18.5, Rice +18.5; Over/Under:  62.5 points

 

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers:  5-4 (2nd place, C-USA East)

Rice Owls:  3-6 (5th place, C-USA West)

 

Do not miss out on our expert handicapper analysis! Larry Ness has a CFB 2021: 42-27-2, +$11,217 YTD / 9-3 with CFB 10*s RECORD! Make sure you check out his picks and many more from the expert handicappers featured in the Shop Picks section.

 

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers:  won at home on Nov. 6 against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders 48-21.

Rice Owls:  lost on the road on Nov. 6 against the Charlotte 49ers in overtime 31-24.

 

 

 

WKU is coming into this game with a 5-4 record overall and they are 2-2 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. This will be their 6th conference matchup of the year and they are currently 4-1 in their conference games this season. They are coming into this one on a 4 game winning streak after another win in their last game. Bailey Zappe played great in that game as he completed 29/50 passes for 281 yards and 4 touchdowns. Noah Whittington led the team in rushing with 67 yards on 17 carries. Jerreth Sterns had a nice day as he led the receivers with 110 yards on 11 carries while Mitchell Tinsley had 53 yards and 1 touchdown on 3 receptions. Daewood Davis and Malachi Corley caught the other touchdown passes, Davis with 2 and Corley with 1. Jaden Hunter led the defense in that game with 6 solo tackles and 5 assisted ones. Jeremy Darvin recorded the only sack in that game for them while Beanie Bishop led the defense in interceptions with 2 but Hunter, Demetrius Cain, Davion Williams, and Kahlef Hailassie all had 1 interception as well in that one. They have scored 372 points in their 9 games this season averaging 41.3 PPG and they have allowed their opponents to score 265 points against them allowing 29.4 PPG. Their offense is averaging 513.4 YPG while their defense is allowing 422.9 YPG.

 

 

Rice is coming into this game with a 3-6 record overall and they are 2-2 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. This will be the 6th conference matchup on their schedule this year and they are currently 2-3 in their conference games this season. They have lost 3 of their last 4 games and are coming into this one on a 2 game losing streak after another loss in their last game. Jake Constantine struggled in their last game as he completed 19/35 passes for 253 yards and 1 interception. Ari Broussard had a very nice day on the ground as he led the team in rushing with 186 yards and 2 touchdowns on 20 carries while Jordan Myers also ran in 1 TD in that game. Jake Bailey also had a nice day as he led the receivers with 143 yards on 7 receptions. Antonio Montero led the defense in that game with 4 solo tackles and 2 assisted ones. Montero and Trey Schuman both led the defense in sacks in that game with 1 each while no one on the defense was able to come up with an interception for them in that one. They have scored 174 points in their 9 games this season averaging 19.3 PPG and they have allowed their opponents to score 323 points against them allowing 35.9 PPG. Their offense is averaging 337 YPG while their defense is allowing 415.2 YPG.

 

WKU is coming into this game as an 18 point favorite with the current betting odds according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Western Kentucky has been playing well in their games recently and have really started to excel since hitting conference play. WKU has been defeating their conference opponents by large margins of 20 points or more and their offense is very potent, scoring a lot of points this season. Rice is not very good this season and they have really struggled to score points on offense in their games. There have been a few conference opponents that they were not able to do much against in those games. WKU is a strong team that will be able to pull away from Rice with their offense and keep this game out of reach from them. The best bet to place in this game is on WKU to cover the spread here.

 

Western Kentucky Rice Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, November 13, 2021 (2:00 pm ET start time) is WKU 48 Rice 17.

Don't miss our champion handicappers free picks and expert football picks today.  And if you enjoyed this Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Rice Owls prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our weekly NCAAF predictions and previews.

 

 

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: 14-9 O/U as a favorite of 10.5 to 21 points. 89-77 O/U in all games. 46-34 O/U as a favorite. 56-48 O/U against conference opponents. 59-39 O/U after playing a conference game.

Rice Owls: 26-17 O/U as an underdog of 10.5 to 21 points. 122-90 O/U in all games. 32-29 O/U when the total is between 56.5 and 63. 89-65 O/U as an underdog. 32-28 O/U as a home underdog. 53-47 O/U in home games. 79-64 O/U against conference opponents.

 

 

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers:  J. Simon (TE) Out indefinitely - Knee injury.

Rice Owls:  W. Green (QB) out for season - Leg injury. B. Rozner (WR) Out indefinitely - Undisclosed injury.

 

 

'I think the nation needs to know about' Zappe.” - Tyson Helton on the play of his quarterback Bailey Zappe and the belief he has in him to do well.

 

 

“It was tough to see Wiley hurting.” - Mike Bloomgren on the injuries to his team.

 

 

 

WR Tinsley, Mitchell 

WR Davis, Daewood 

WR Sterns, Jerreth 

TE Beljan, Joey 

QB Zappe, Bailey 

RB Cofield, Adam

 

WR Patterson III, Cedric 

WR Pitre III, August

WR Bailey, Jake 

TE Bradley, Jack 

QB Constantine, Jake 

RB Griffin, Khalan

FB Suckley, Brendan 

 

 

Passing: B. Zappe (3688)

Rushing: A. Cofield (321)

Receiving: J. Sterns (1276)

Touchdowns: J. Sterns (11)

 

Passing: J. Constantine (1059)

Rushing: A. Broussard (472)

Receiving: J. Bailey (576)

Touchdowns: J. Myers (8)

 

Coaches:

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: Tyson Helton (3rd season)

Rice Owls: Mike Bloomgren (4th season)