← Matchups

Southern

· 1-2 (0-1) · power -19.5 · #373
Our numberHOU -41.4 no book has priced this game

Houston

B12 · 2-0 · power +13.9 · #61
Final SOU 6 · HOU 77 ML W our logged sides, graded on the record
Our side
MoneylineHOU to win logged ours 99%

Our number: HOU by 46.3 — HOU to win.

Projected score 10–51 SOU – HOU
2026-09-12 · 7:00 PM TDECU Stadium · Houston, TX Early season

The books

No book has priced this game. Nothing to compare, and no ticket to build.

Series Houston lead 2–0 · 2 meetings since 2008
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game even 27 ranks apart
Southern Jaguars #113 rush offense Houston Cougars #86 run defense
Pass game edge Houston Cougars 119 ranks
Southern Jaguars #219 pass offense Houston Cougars #100 pass defense
Run game even 42 ranks apart
Houston Cougars #244 rush offense Southern Jaguars #202 run defense
Pass game edge Houston Cougars 101 ranks
Houston Cougars #81 pass offense Southern Jaguars #182 pass defense
Southern Jaguars Run-heavy · 65% run Ball-control Houston Cougars Run-heavy · 63% run Avg pace Dual-threat QB · 54 rush ypg
Willie Fritz · 77-62 · defense-minded

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
Southern Jaguars
DB Tay James 8 tkl · 1 INT #79 DB
DL Ckelby Givens 6 tkl · 2.0 sacks · 4.0 TFL #119 DL
RB Trey Holly 141 rush yds · 2 TD · 5 rec #184 RB
DB Ty Lee 9 tkl · 1 PD #525 DB
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

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
Southern Jaguars -19.5 -8.4 -11.1 #373
Houston CougarsB12 +13.9 +9.8 +4.1 #61

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

Where the number comes from
Southern offense vs Houston defense-12.5 pts
Houston offense vs Southern defense+21.0 pts

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.