Baylor vs Houston Prediction, Game Preview, and Betting Lines

Originally posted on College Football News
By Pete Fiutak | Last updated Nov 21, 2024 8:37 PM ET

Very, very, VERY quietly, Baylor has been the hottest team going in the Big 12.

After losing in heartbreaking fashion against Colorado, and dropping the dates against BYU and Iowa State on the way to an 0-4 Big 12 start, everything kicked in.

The Bears cranked up the offense, won four straight, and now they’re bowl eligible with this and Kansas to go.

Houston was playing well winning three games in four dates, but the O stalled against Arizona and now there’s a problem.

The Cougars needed that win over the Wildcats, and now they have to win this and win at BYU to be bowl eligible.

Baylor vs Houston: How to Watch and Game Preview

Date: Saturday, November 23, 2024
Game Time: 7:00 pm ET
How To Watch: FS1
Venue: TDECU Stadium, Houston, TX
Teams: Houston (4-6), Baylor (6-4)
CFN Bluesky | CFN X | CFN FB
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Why Baylor Will Win

The running game has gone off. QB Sawyer Robertson has been great on the move, freshman Bryson Washington has been on a rushing tear, and the ground game has cranked out close to 1,000 yards over the last four games.

Now the team is 5-0 when running for over 170 yards, has run for more than 80 yards in every game but two, and Houston is 0-5 when allowing more than 90 yards on the ground.

The Cougars aren’t good enough at keeping things moving. Without the ability to convert third downs on a regular basis they need games to be low scoring grinds. Baylor won’t comply, but …

Why Houston Will Win

It’s all about the turnover margin.

Again, Houston doesn’t have the offense to keep up if Baylor starts to get moving. The defense is decent enough to hold its own, but this has to stay in the 20s or lower.

However, Houston is 4-0 when forcing two takeaways or more - 0-6 when it doesn’t - and Baylor has to start screwing up early on.

That, and Houston has to run well. When it’s good on the ground it doesn’t force things, and the mistakes stop. But …

Baylor vs Houston: Who Will Win?

Baylor isn’t turning it over.

That was a problem over the first half of the season, but the offense has given it away twice over the last five games. It won’t do anything crazy here.

Start running, keep pounding away, accept that Houston’s passing game will put up big numbers, and let this get out of the Cougar comfort zone.

This won’t be the low scoring game Houston needs.