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UCF

B12 · 1-1 · power +13.6 · #63
Our numberHOU -3.7 no book has priced this game

Houston

B12 · 2-0 · power +13.9 · #61
Our side
MoneylineHOU to win ours 55%
Projected score 22–25 UCF – HOU
2026-10-03 · kickoff TBD TDECU Stadium · Houston, TX B12 game Early season

The books

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

Series UCF lead 8–4 · 12 meetings since 2005
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game even 25 ranks apart
UCF Knights #111 rush offense Houston Cougars #86 run defense
Pass game edge Houston Cougars 80 ranks
UCF Knights #180 pass offense Houston Cougars #100 pass defense
Run game edge UCF Knights 65 ranks
Houston Cougars #244 rush offense UCF Knights #179 run defense
Pass game even 42 ranks apart
Houston Cougars #81 pass offense UCF Knights #39 pass defense
UCF Knights Balanced · 48% run Ball-control Houston Cougars Run-heavy · 63% run Avg pace Dual-threat QB · 54 rush ypg
Scott Frost · 40-45 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
UCF Knights
DB Jayden Williams 5 tkl · 1 INT #124 DB
DL Sincere Edwards 7 tkl · 2.0 TFL #205 DL
LB Lewis Carter 15 tkl · 0.5 TFL #172 LB
LB Tackett Curtis 13 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 2.0 TFL #200 LB
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
UCF KnightsB12 +13.6 +2.3 +11.3 #63
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
UCF offense vs Houston defense-1.8 pts
Houston offense vs UCF defense-1.4 pts
Travel · context onlyAway team travels 857 mi

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.