College football betting line handicappers have seen a dramatic change in the dynamics for the Houston Cougars now that quarterback Case Keenum is out with a knee injury.
Humbled Houston will host struggling Tulane in a key Conference USA Matchup on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 3:35 PM Eastern and the game can be seen on CBS College Sports. SBG global opened with Houston as a 19.5-point home favorite and with an over/under of 60.
Back to Earth
The Houston Cougars went into UCLA last week as one of the trendy selections as a 5.5-point road favorite and as a team that was considered to be a potential BCS buster. They left the Rose Bowl humbled as 31-13 losers and without their starting quarterback as Keenum is lost for the season after injuring his knee while trying to make a tackle after tossing his 2nd interception of the game. To make matters worse Keenum’s backup, Cotton Turner, broke his clavicle and is also lost for the season. The Houston defense allowed almost 400 yards and the team was physically dominated. The ability of Houston to cover big college football lines is a legitimate question for handicappers to consider. Houston will limp into this matchup 2-1 straight up and 1-2 against the spread with 2 overs in 3 games.
A Wave of Optimism?
The Green Wave of Tulane now has a legitimate chance to cover the college football betting line against a team that just one week ago would have been considered a near certainty to blow them out. Tulane is 1-1 both straight up and against the spread and is coming off a bye week that followed a 27-13 home loss to Ole Miss as 20.5-point dogs. Head coach Bob Toledo is in his 4th season on the job and a win at Houston would do much for his long term prospects. Tulane’s offense has been dismal, ranking 111th in the country, but should find Houston’s 84th ranked defense inviting.
Trends
Houston has beaten the college football lines in 7 consecutive games against Tulane with the last 6 meetings being blowout payoffs by the Cougars. The last 3 meetings between these two teams have gone under the total. Houston has gotten the money in 7 out of their last 9 home games.