Houston vs. Connecticut College Football Week 12 Preview, TV Schedule, Prediction

By Andrew Frosceno
Kyle Postma Houston football

TV Schedule: Saturday November 21, 3:30 p.m. ET ESPNU

Stadium: Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field, East Hartford, Conn.

Line: Not Posted as of this writing

The Houston Cougars (10-0) travel up to Connecticut to take on the Huskies (5-5) as the Cougars look to keep their dream season alive. They have aspirations to win the AAC West and be in a New Year’s Six Bowl game. For UConn, they are trying to end a long bowl drought, as they have not been to one since the 2011 Fiesta Bowl.

The very reason why a line has not been posted yet is the question of the health for Houston star quarterback Greg Ward Jr. Ward had to leave the game against Memphis last week with an ankle injury. Head coach Tom Herman has since insisted that Ward could have returned to the game if needed due to an injury to backup Kyle Postma, according to College Football Talk. However, for now Ward is considered questionable. He reportedly did a light workout at Sunday practice and his status will be known more at the next practice on Tuesday, according to the Houston Chronicle.

Ward’s athletic ability is without question what makes him so special. An ankle injury could hamper what he does best. With the way Postma played in relief on Saturday (236 passing yards plus one touchdown and 49 rushing yards and another score) as he led Houston to an historic 20-point fourth-quarter comeback, the Cougars should still be in good hands. In fact, with all due respect to the Huskies, perhaps Houston can afford to sit Ward and rest him up for a bigger game that awaits. That game comes next week against Navy with the AAC West on the line. Houston must avoid the dreaded trap game performance this weekend against UConn.

UConn needs one more win to get bowl eligible with two games to go. Just getting to five wins is a solid achievement for coach Bob Diaco after the last few seasons the Huskies have had. He has them going in the right direction. They’ve finally found a very serviceable quarterback in Bryant Shirreffs, who has thrown for nearly 2,000 yards and eight scores this year. He also brings a decent threat to run to the table. It’s his seven INTs that have slowed him down though. UConn’s most dangerous player is the emerging star that is sophomore running back Arkeel Newsome. He has taken the starting job and run with it. He has over 600 rushing yards and over 400 receiving yards. He by far is UConn’s most dynamic weapon.

UConn actually has a decent defense as they’ve only allowed 19.3 PPG, but Houston brings in a dynamic offensive attack. It’s going to come down to how many stops the Huskies can get and how many turnovers they can force. Also, if Houston takes them lightly and looks ahead to Navy, UConn could take advantage of that and pull off the upset at home. However, this late into the season it is hard to imagine an undefeated team with so much on the line taking any game lightly.

Prediction: Houston 38, Connecticut 17

Andrew Frosceno covers the New York Giants, college football, college basketball and MLB for www.Rantsports.com. You can follow him on Twitter, Google or Facebook.

Share On FacebookShare StumbleUpon

You May Also Like