Conference USA Week Eleven Preview
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Week ten of the college football season brought Louisiana Tech its second bye of the season. The Bulldogs will host Southern Miss in Joe Aillet stadium this Saturday.
C-USA has two televised games this weekend. The Bulldogs will host Southern Miss on CBS Sports Network at 6 p.m. and ECU will host Tulsa Saturday afternoon on Fox Sports 1.
Here's a look at every game involving C-USA including 2014 league members Western Kentucky and Old Dominion plus Tech's non-conference opponents. Each game includes the Vegas line and my pick to win the game. My record currently stands at 59-23.
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9
UAB at Marshall - 11:00 a.m., Not Televised
THE BUZZ: UAB's freshman running back Jordan Howard will lead the Blazers into Edwards Stadium to take on the 5-3 Marshall Thundering Herd on Saturday. Howard nearly led UAB to a victory over Middle Tennessee Saturday but the Blue Raiders were able to mount a fourth quarter rally. Marshall blew out Southern miss by a score of 61-13 Saturday sending the Golden Eagles to 0-8 on the season.
THE LINE: Marshall by 23
THE PICK: Marshall
Western Kentucky at Army - 11:00 a.m., CBS Sports Network
THE BUZZ: Western Kentucky got back on track with a victory over Georgia State last week. The Hilltoppers will be traveling to Michie Stadium to take on Army. The Hilltoppers are sitting at five victories right now, just one victory from bowl eligibility. Army was defeated by Air Force by a score of 42-28 in one of the most anticipated matchups of each and every college football season.
THE LINE: Western Kentucky by 6.5
THE PICK: Western Kentucky
Tulane at UTSA- 1:00p.m., Not Televised
THE BUZZ: The Green Wave dropped one to the FAU Owls Saturday. Tulane's defense, which has been relatively sharp in conference play, allowed 17 points in the fourth quarter to give the game to the Owls. UTSA handily defeated Tulsa by a score of 34-15. UTSA's victory was the first time they've won consecutive games this season and brought the Roadrunners to within two victories from being bowl-eligible.
THE LINE: UTSA by 7.5
THE PICK: Tulane
UTEP at North Texas - 2:30p.m., Not Televised
THE BUZZ: North Texas was victorious in week ten defeating Rice by a score of 28-16. The North Texas defense has solidified itself as the number one defense in Conference USA. UTEP was blown out by Texas A&M. The Miners were defeated by 50 points to fall to 1-7 on the season.
THE LINE: North Texas by 21
THE PICK: North Texas
Tulsa at ECU - 2:45 p.m., Fox Sports 1
THE BUZZ: ECU soundly defeated FIU by a score of 34-13. The Pirates are sitting atop the Eastern division standings right now and have reached bowl eligibility once again. Tulsa dropped one to UTSA in week 10 by a score of 34-15. ECU should continue to move the ball with ease against the defense of the Golden Hurricane which is ranked near the bottom of the NCAA.
THE LINE: ECU by 14
THE PICK: ECU
FIU at Middle Tennessee - 3:00p.m., Not Televised
THE BUZZ: FIU was dropped by the ECU Pirates Saturday by a score of 34-13. Middle Tennessee nearly dropped one to UAB but was able to make an 18 yard field goal as time expired to defeat the Blazers by a score of 24-21. Though the Blue Raiders have been very inconsistent this season it is nearly impossible to pick against them in this matchup. FIU only has one win on the season and it came against Southern Miss.
THE LINE: Middle Tennessee by 18
THE PICK: Middle Tennessee
Old Dominion at Idaho - 4:00 p.m., Not Televised
THE BUZZ: The Old Dominion Monarchs will be facing their fourth FBS opponent of the season. In its past three matchups, Old Dominion has been defeated, but none of those games were against Idaho. The Vandals only have one win on the season, against a Temple team that was also winless at the time, and are ranked near the bottom of every statistical category in the NCAA. The Monarchs have six wins but are not bowl eligible this season.
THE LINE: Old Dominion by 13
THE PICK: Old Dominion
Southern Miss at Louisiana Tech - 6:00 p.m., CBS Sports Network
THE BUZZ: The Bulldogs were off week ten while Southern Miss suffered a 61-13 at the hands of Marshall. The Bulldogs defense has played well in its last two contests; it will be interesting to see how the Bulldogs respond after the bye week. Southern Miss has been decimated by injuries all season. The Golden Eagles could have as many as 11 true freshman play Saturday.
THE LINE: Louisiana Tech by 16.5
THE PICK: Louisiana Tech