The Tulane Green Wave (2-1) and Houston Cougars (0-0) square off at John O’Quinn Field at TDECU Stadium in Houston for a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff Thursday (on ESPN). Below, we analyze the Tulane-Houston college football betting odds and lines, with picks and best bets.
Tulane at Houston: Betting odds and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Houston -239 (bet $239 to win $100) | Tulane +195 (bet $100 to win $195)
- Against the spread/ATS: Houston -6.5 (-110) | Tulane +6.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: 58.5 (O: -115 | U: -106)
Tulane at Houston: Three things to know
- Houston will be making its season debut after a long wait. While the Cougars haven’t had any internal COVID-19 issues, Memphis, Baylor and North Texas each had to bow out of previously scheduled games. Needless to say, the Cougs are rested and raring to go.
- Tulane rolled up 430 rushing yards and 572 total yards of offense in an impressive 66-24 victory over Southern Mississippi Sept. 26, pushing its record to 2-1.
- The Cougars are looking for revenge after falling to the Green Wave by a 38-31 count last season. Tulane is just 2-6 ATS in its past eight trips to Houston, and 4-12 ATS in the previous 16 meetings. The Under is also 4-1 in the past five in the head-to-head series.
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Tulane at Houston: Odds, betting lines and picks
Prediction
Houston 34, Tulane 30
Money line (ML)
There are just too many unknowns here for Houston (-239), as we haven’t seen what the 2020 version of the Cougars will look like. We’ve seen Tulane several times, and it can run the ball well. This figures to be a close battle, and there is just too much risk with the favorite. AVOID.
Against the spread (ATS)
TULANE +6.5 (-110) catching points is the way to go, as the Green Wave showed they can run the ball with authority last time out. QB Clayton Tune and the Cougars ‘should’ be able to move the ball well through the air, but rust is likely to be there early for Houston.
I’d go much bigger on this if it were seven and a hook, but I like the dogs here regardless.
Over/Under (O/U)
OVER 58.5 (-110) is the play, as Houston’s offense is expected to be high-octane, and we’ve already seen Tulane’s offense can roll up big numbers.
The Green Wave are averaging 300.3 rushing yards per game to check in fourth in the country, and they have posted 39.0 points per game to rank 16th in the nation. Look for an entertaining AAC battle to kick off Week 6 of the college football season.
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