Utah vs Houston prediction & betting tips - October 26th | college football Week 9

The Utah vs Houston game is set for Saturday at 7 p.m. ET. The Cougars (2-5, 1-3 Big 12 Conference) will host the Utes (4-3, 1-3) in a Week 9 matchup between two teams trying to get their seasons back on track.

Utah got out to a strong start this season, winning its first four games and receiving a consistent ranking in the AP Top 25 Poll. However, things have gone off the rails since as the Utes have lost three consecutive games, including a 13-7 defeat against TCU on Saturday.

Houston has struggled to get its footing, only pulling off two wins. The team has not been able to perform on offense or defense with any kind of consistency. The Cougars lost 42-14 to Kansas on Saturday after an open week.

Utah vs Houston prediction

Despite the difference in their records, the sportsbooks and analytical models agree that this will be a close matchup. However, both favor Utah to get back in the win column.

With the Utes losing three in a row, all hopes of a conference title are gone despite the strong start. Their biggest issue has been their offense. Outside of scoring 49 points in Week 1 and 38 points in Week 3, they have not scored more than 22 in any game this season. In their three-game losing streak, they have scored 36 points combined.

However, the defense has been a steady presence all season as Utah has not allowed opponents to score more than 27 points. It has limited opponents to less than 20 points four times.

Houston has also struggled offensively for most of the year. It has eclipsed 30 points only twice and was shut out in back-to-back games against Cincinnati and No. 10-ranked Iowa State.

The defense has been better, allowing the Cougars to stay in games. They have held opponents to less than 30 points in all but two games and 20 points or less four times.

Data Skrive predicts that this will be a low-scoring matchup that comes down to the wire. It has Utah winning 20-18.

Utah vs Houston betting tips

Tip #1: Bet on Utah to win the game (-168).

Tip #2: Bet on Houston's side of the +3.5 point spread (-115).

Tip #3: Bet over the total of 37.5 points (-111).

Utah vs Houston head-to-head

Utah vs Houston is not a storied rivalry and have only met four times previously. Their last game was in 1978 with a final score of 42-25. Despite Utah being favored to win in Week 9, Houston has dominated the matchup, winning all four games.

It will be interesting to see if Utah can get its first-ever win against Houston on Saturday.