HOUSTON +10.5 - Hawaii finished 6-1 here at home this season, but the only real stiff opponents that they faced were Alabama and Boise State. Boise handed the Warriors their only home loss, and UH only beat Alabama by a 37-29 count, a margin that would not be good enough to cover this fat number. Hawaii also came up short in this very same Bowl game last season, losing outright 36-28 to Tulane as 14-point favorites. I feel that the real key to this game however will be the Houston running game, which averaged a potent 219.2 rushing yards per game this year. If the Cougars just match this effort, they should be able to control Time of Possession, making it that much more difficult for Hawaii to cover a double-digit spot. Finally, should Houston elect to go to the air occasionally, they are averaging a surprising 8.5 yards per pass attempt, which is actually significantly higher than the Warriors average of 6.9 yards per attempt, despite the fact that Hawaii averaged nearly 140 more gross passing yards per game.
