Conference USA
East
UAB
|
UCF
|
East Carolina
|
Marshall
|
Memphis
|
Southern Miss
West
Houston
|
Rice
|
SMU
|
Tulane
|
Tulsa
|
UTEP
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Week
12
C-USA Fearless Predictions. Part 2 | Get
Tickets for These Games
How'd we do so far? Straight up
61-23
... ATS 43-32-2 ATS
Conference USA Game of the Week
East Carolina
(6-4) at
Rice (5-5), 3:00 EST, Saturday, November 18
Why to watch: What looked like a
meaningless, playing-out-the-string type
game just one month ago is now quite
compelling. On Oct. 15, East Carolina
was 2-4 and Rice was 2-5. Today, the
Pirates are one victory from winning the
Eastern Division and the Owls have won
straight, putting them firmly in
contention for one of the league’s seven
bowl agreements. Thanks to an
incendiary offense, Rice is a win away
from, possibly, its first bowl game
since 1961 and has won three straight
league games on the road. Last week’s
upset of defending champ Tulsa in
double-overtime was a signature win for
a program that was 1-10 just last year.
As long as the defense keeps playing
well, East Carolina is going to be tough
to derail. The Pirates have won four
games in-a-row, their longest winning
streak in four years.
Why East Carolina might win:
Forget the Pirates’ overall defensive
numbers, which are pedestrian. Over the
past month, this unit has really come
together, allowing no more than 21
points in a game, while slamming the
door shut on opposing running games.
When faced with Marshall’s Ahmad
Bradshaw last week, East Carolina held
the league’s leading rusher to just 26
yards on ten carries. The up-and-down
Pirate offense will be up versus a Rice
defense that gives up 35 points a game
and is last in the league in total
defense.
Why Rice might win: This is a
very confident bunch that’s done a
complete about-face after taking its
lumps in September. The new spread
offense has been literally unstoppable
over the last weeks, averaging over 37
points a game and getting production
from RB Quinton Smith and the Chase
Clement to Jarrett Dillard
pitch-and-catch combo. East Carolina
gets minimal pressure up front, which
will afford Clement the necessary time
to carve up an ordinary Pirate
secondary.
Who to watch: When Dillard makes
it to the NFL, he ought to send a fruit
basket to Rice AD Bobby May for hiring
head coach Todd Graham, who ditched the
triple-option for the spread attack. In
the new offense, Dillard has flourished
with 71 catches for 958 yards and at
least one touchdown catch in all ten
games.
What will happen: Both teams are
playing well, but Rice has got something
real special going on. The Owls are
hungry, growing in confidence and poised
to bag that magical sixth win. But it’s
not going to happen as ECU comes up with
a tight, hard fought win..
CFN Prediction:
East Carolina 31 … Rice 27 .. Line:
East Carolina -2.5
Must See Rating: (5 skip the
birth of your first born - 1 The
Bachelor: Rome) ... 2.5
Houston
(8-3) at
Memphis
(1-9), 2:00 EST, Saturday, November 18
Why to watch: With last week’s
come-from-behind win over SMU, Houston
secured its first Conference USA Western
Division title, bringing the school one
giant step closer to its first league
title in a decade. The Cougars will
face either East Carolina or Southern
Miss on Dec. 1, but the priority for
Kevin Kolb and the league’s top offense
this Saturday will be to finish strong
and win the division outright. When
Memphis dropped a 26-24 game to UCF in
the Liberty Bowl, it pretty much ensured
that this Tiger team is destined to be
the worst in school history. With this
week’s game and next week’s trip to El
Paso, Memphis is staring down the barrel
of a ten-game losing streak.
Why Houston might win: Aside from
its week two game with I-AA Chattanooga,
Memphis hasn’t stopped anyone in 2006
allowing an average of 413 yards and 32
points a game. Even if the Tigers
played the game on a power play, Houston
would have no problem picking up chunks
of yards and reaching the end zone. The
Cougars’ balance—No. 2 in the league in
passing and rushing—will be way too much
for the overmatched Memphis D.
Why Memphis might win: Let’s
see. Houston just wrapped up a spot in
the league title game and now they have
to hit the road to play 1-9 Memphis?
It’s going to take a door prize to get
these Cougars to show up with much
intensity. The Tigers have lost eight
straight, but they’ve competed week-in
and week-out and have a decent enough
passing game to keep pace with the
Houston offense.
Who to watch: If there was a
rushing efficiency rating, Houston’s
Anthony Alridge would be leading the
country. The definition of a homerun
threat, the former wide receiver is
averaging a ridiculous 12.4 yards a
carry this fall and is closing in on a
1,000-yard season, despite having just
64 carries all year. In his four
100-yard games, Alridge is averaging
16.5 yards on 39 carries, numbers that
would be respectable for a receiver.
What will happen: After playing
Tulsa and SMU in meaningful games, it’s
understandable if Houston is for the
first two quarters. The Cougars will
wake up in the second half, pulling away
on a couple of big plays in the passing
game.
CFN Prediction:
Houston 38 … Memphis 24 .. Line:
Houston -16
Must See Rating: (5 skip the
birth of your first born - 1 The
Bachelor: Rome) ... 1.5
UCF
(3-7) at
Tulane (3-7), 2:00 EST, Saturday, November 18
Why to watch: For the first time
in more than a month, UCF had something
to crow about after beating Memphis and
ending a four-game losing streak. The
catalyst was QB Steven Moffett, who
started for the first time in four
games, and delivered 319 yards and a
pair of touchdown passes. With UAB on
the schedule next week, the Golden
Knights have a chance to carry some
much-needed momentum and positive
tidings into the off-season. When
Tulane can’t count on its offense, you
know it’s in for a long day. Witness
last Saturday’s game with Southern Miss,
a 31-3 loss in which the offense tallied
a season-low 85 yards on 48 plays.
Why UCF might win: The Golden
Knights are getting gradually better.
The Green Wave is getting noticeably
worse. UCF has tightened up on defense
the last two weeks, while Moffett’s
play, coupled with the running of the
nation’s No. 12 rusher, Kevin Smith,
gives hope to the sporadic offense.
Tulane, on the other hand, is in danger
of losing its hinges after reaching a
new low a week ago. The defense is 115th
nationally in points allowed and the
offense has lost leading rusher Matt
Forte with a torn ligament in his left
knee.
Why Tulane might win: If Lester
Ricard is looking to get back on track,
UCF is a convenient place to start. You
can definitely throw on a Golden Knight
D that allows 243 yards passing a game
and has produced just ten sacks over the
last seven games. Ricard was a mess
last week, but that was against USM,
aka, Southern Miss, which is a whole lot
stingier than UCF.
Who to watch: One of the few
shining lights for UCF in 2006 has been
the consistent play of WR Mike Walker,
who leads Conference USA with 75
receptions for 982 yards and five
touchdowns, despite always facing the
other team’s best corner and not getting
any support from other receivers. He’ll
get little resistance from a Tulane pass
defense that’s allowed 22 touchdown
passes and has just eight picks.
What will happen: While Tulane is
clearly out of gas, UCF showed last week
that it’s going to battle until the
season’s final whistle. The Knights
will get a couple of rushing touchdowns
from Smith for win No. 4.
CFN Prediction:
UCF 30 … Tulane 23 ... Line:
Tulane -1.5
Must See Rating: (5 skip the
birth of your first born - 1 The
Bachelor: Rome) ... 1.5
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Week
12
C-USA Fearless Predictions. Part 2 | Get
Tickets for These Games