← Matchups

Houston

B12 · 2-0 · power +13.9 · #61
Our numberUTAH -14.4 no book has priced this game

Utah

B12 · 2-0 · power +30.1 · #6
Our side
MoneylineUTAH to win ours 86%
Projected score 19–34 HOU – UTAH
2026-10-24 · kickoff TBD Rice-Eccles Stadium · Salt Lake City, UT B12 game Early season

The books 1 account books · tap any price — the ticket builds at that book

Book HOU spreadUTAH spread OverUnder HOU winUTAH win HOU TT overHOU TT under UTAH TT overUTAH TT under
DraftKings

The gold price is the best available on that side; a gold marks the side our number implies — a read, not a pick. TT is a team total — that team’s own points, not the game’s; columns are empty where no book hangs one. Send to book opens whichever book you tapped, not the one we would have picked. Prices are the books’ own.

Series Houston lead 5–0 · 5 meetings since 1966
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game edge Utah Utes 106 ranks
Houston Cougars #244 rush offense Utah Utes #138 run defense
Pass game edge Utah Utes 74 ranks
Houston Cougars #81 pass offense Utah Utes #7 pass defense
Run game edge Utah Utes 83 ranks
Utah Utes #3 rush offense Houston Cougars #86 run defense
Pass game edge Utah Utes 60 ranks
Utah Utes #40 pass offense Houston Cougars #100 pass defense
Houston Cougars Run-heavy · 63% run Avg pace Dual-threat QB · 54 rush ypg Utah Utes Balanced · 57% run Avg pace Dual-threat QB · 62 rush ypg
Willie Fritz · 77-62 · defense-minded Morgan Scalley · 1-0

Ranked by team-unit strength (rush & pass offense vs. run & pass defense) across all 265 D1 teams, not by individual players. Identity, tempo and unit strength are measured from the 2025 season.

The evidence 2025 production and power ratings · supporting the number above

Who carried each team in 2025
Houston Cougars
WR Amare Thomas 11 rec · 162 yds · 2 TD #73 WR
TE Patrick Overmyer 8 rec · 100 yds · 1 TD #30 TE
DB Jordan Allen 5 tkl · 4 PD · 1 INT #162 DB
DB Jalen Mayo 9 tkl · 2 PD #271 DB
Utah Utes
RB Wayshawn Parker 124 rush yds · 3 TD · 8 rec #8 RB
TE Noah Bennee 5 rec · 148 yds · 2 TD #8 TE
QB Devon Dampier 437 pass yds · 5 TD · 1 INT #9 QB
DL Jireh Moe 8 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 2.0 TFL #105 DL

Top-rated players from last season, ranked within their position across D1. A grade measures what a player produced, and no 2026 game has been played yet — so this is who produced for these programs in 2025, not a claim about who is on the field this year.

Power breakdown
TeamPowerOffDefRank
Houston CougarsB12 +13.9 +9.8 +4.1 #61
Utah UtesB12 +30.1 +18.4 +11.7 #6

Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).

Where the number comes from
Houston offense vs Utah defense-1.8 pts
Utah offense vs Houston defense+14.3 pts
Travel · context onlyAway team travels 1,200 mi
Altitude · context only1,405 m higher than the visitor's home elevation

An efficiency adjustment from season-to-date EPA and success rate applies once teams have played enough games; before then it is 0 and the number is the power rating alone.

Situational spots are shown for context, not baked in: travel, altitude and rest were tested against 6,000+ games and the power and efficiency ratings already account for them. Adding them again would double-count.