Houston @ SMU

Scouting Report for Houston Cougars(3-3) vs. SMU Mustangs (2-4)
October 18, 2012- Gerald Ford Stadium, University Park,TX

Houston: After a horrid non-conference showing, the Cougars look like they are ready to take their second and final West division title. The Blazers of UAB couldn't get their act together as they lost 39-17. The Cougars only scored 3 TDS the whole game, but they made the most of their opportunities when Matt Hogan kicked a school record 6 FGs.

David Piland seemed like his usual self going 32 of 44 for 362 yards. His only touchdown pass was to leading receiver Shane Ros (7 rec, 114 YDS) on UH's opening drive of the game. Charles Sims seemed to be stymied when he lost a fumble on his third carry. But Sims overcame that and had a great day himself (26 carries,134 YDS). Houston's defense came brought pressure to Austin Brown. Especially for Derek Mathews. He only had 7 tackles and a sack, but the Blazer offense had a hard time accounting for him and he was instrumental.

SMU: The Ponies had a chance to make the Tulane Green Wave 0-6. But, Ryan Griffin connected with Robert Kelley (16 YD reception) with 35 seconds remaining in the game. And the Mustangs couldn't rally back as they lost 27-26. SMU trailed 20-6 at halftime, but rallied with a 17 point 4th quarter before the inevitable happened.

For the first time this season, Garrett Gilbert had more touchdowns (2) than interceptions (1). Gilbert did manage to complete 49% of his passes for 275 YDS. Zach Line pitched in on the ground with 177 yards on 28 carries. Jeremy Johnson led all receivers with 11 catches for 106 YDS. Darius Joseph also had a touchdown (5 catches, 54 YDS). Despite holding the Tulane run game to 40 yards, the pass defense got lit up. Griffin who returned from a shoulder injury lit the secondary up with 3 TDS. What's worse is that the secondary gave up 9.4 YDS per play.

What to watch for: DeWayne Peace could have a big day against the SMU secondary. Which means for the Mustangs, they need to be creative in their coverage schemes. The Cougars have found their stride on offense. Which means also that Gilbert is going to have continue what he did in New Orleans.

Conclusion: Houston has looked like the team that was run by Kevin Sumlin (currently Texas A&M's head coach). Even if the Mustangs have lost 2 out of their last 3, Gilbert seems to be getting more comfortable in June Jones' offense. UH has done well to balance their attack during this current 3 game winning streak. However, this is the Cougars 1st conference road game.

Given the circumstances of both teams, it looks as if the Cougars should take this game rather easily. And with the Mustangs secondary having trouble against high power offenses this season, it wouldn't be a stretch to say so.

Prediction: Houston by 21.

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