← Matchups

Southern

· 1-2 (0-1) · power -19.5 · #373
Our numberTXSO -3.2 no book has priced this game

Texas Southern

· 1-2 (0-1) · power -19.5 · #374
Our side
MoneylineTXSO to win ours 58%
Projected score 28–31 SOU – TXSO
2026-10-24 · 3:00 PM Shell Energy Stadium · Houston, TX Conference game Early season

The books

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

Series Southern lead 13–6–1 · 20 meetings since 1977
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game even 3 ranks apart
Southern Jaguars #113 rush offense Texas Southern Tigers #116 run defense
Pass game edge Texas Southern Tigers 71 ranks
Southern Jaguars #219 pass offense Texas Southern Tigers #148 pass defense
Run game edge Texas Southern Tigers 105 ranks
Texas Southern Tigers #97 rush offense Southern Jaguars #202 run defense
Pass game even 22 ranks apart
Texas Southern Tigers #204 pass offense Southern Jaguars #182 pass defense
Southern Jaguars Run-heavy · 65% run Ball-control Texas Southern Tigers Run-heavy · 62% run Ball-control

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
Texas Southern Tigers
LB Donovan Jones 22 tkl · 2.5 TFL #76 LB
DL Jordan Thompson 10 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 2.0 TFL #143 DL
RB Athean Renfro Jr. 293 rush yds · 2 TD · 3 rec #63 RB
DL Thurman Rayborn 5 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 2.0 TFL #176 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
Southern Jaguars -19.5 -8.4 -11.1 #373
Texas Southern Tigers -19.5 -8.1 -11.5 #374

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 Texas Southern defense+3.1 pts
Texas Southern offense vs Southern defense+3.1 pts
Efficiency adjustment · EPA, success rate, explosiveness+0.3 pts
Power projection before adjustment+2.9

The projection carries an efficiency adjustment — a residual from season-to-date EPA, success rate and explosiveness, which earned its place by walk-forward test (margin error 12.90 → 12.72 across seven held-out seasons).