2009 Armed Forces Bowl: Houston vs. Air Force
Free Pick: Houston -4 -110 Odds
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Houston (10-3) owns by a top-rated passing offense lead by QB Case Keenum, who looks to overcome the Falcons’ top-ranked passing defense in Fort Worth, Texas. Houston ended an eight-game losing streak in bowl games with a 34-28 victory over Air Force (7-5) last year. Keenum threw for one score and ran for two more as the Cougars avenged a 31-28 home loss to the Falcons in the regular season. After throwing 44 touchdowns as a sophomore, Keenum will enter the final game of his junior season leading an offense averaging 450.0 yards per game. QB Keenum had a total of 614 yards passing in the two games against Air Force last season, but the Falcons have improved to own the nation’s top-rated pass defense, yielding only 148.7 passing yards per game. On the other side of the ball, Air Force has lost back-to-back Armed Forces Bowls under Calhoun and have lost three straight bowls since beating Fresno State in the Silicon Valley Bowl in 2000. Air Force’s offense offers a complete contrast to Houston, featuring the fourth-ranked rushing attack in the country at 273.6 rushing yards per game. That’s a poor match-up for the Cougars, who rank 112th in allowing 213.1 yards per game on the ground. If Houston gets the lead, it will be hard for Air Force to make up much ground without using the clock. Air Force was 7-5 during the regular season, but owned a horrible 1-5 record against bowl teams. Air Force enters this off a 21-38 loss to Bowl winning BYU, but will try to rebound knowing they’re 3-23 ATS following a loss by 10 points or more to a Conference rival. 7* Play On Houston