Although it feels as if this line could be a trap, it's difficult to overlook the value on Houston in this spot. The Green Wave are coming off a bowl season and have played great at home. But talent-wise, Houston is probably only behind Memphis in the AAC West division. The Cougars also likely have the conference's most explosive player in QB D'Eriq King. He was injured in this matchup last year and they still rolled. AN underdog spot with a key number is too alluring to pass up.

I like Houston with the points and on the money line. Cougars quarterback D’Eriq King is better than he showed against Oklahoma and Washington State, and Houston is 12-3 ATS in the last 15 meetings. That includes a 6-1 ATS run in New Orleans. Grab the points.

Houston has fared well in two spotlight games: Oklahoma and Washington State. Both were high point spreads that featured minutes of uncertainty on Houston’s side. Thanks to the high spreads the Cougars were able to finish with a flurry in both. But this week look for a smaller number on a lesser known program in Tulane to finally bite Houston. Grab Tulane.

Every once in a while you find a line in which the wrong team is favored. This is one of those times. I have a lot of respect for Willie Fritz and what he's done with this Tulane program, but Houston has more horses than Fritz's team does right now. Houston's defense can be problematic, but when this turns into a shootout, Tulane won't be able to keep the pace.