Oregon State Beavers vs Houston Cougars Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 09/05/2026

Game Time: 12:00 pm ET, Saturday, September 5, 2026

Venue:  TDECU Stadium, Houston, TX

Where to Watch:  ESPN

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Oregon State +20.5, Houston -20.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Oregon State +20.5, Houston -20.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Oregon State +20.5, Houston -20.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

Oregon State Beavers:  0-0 (0-0) (Pac-12)

Houston Cougars:  0-0 (0-0) (Big 12)

Do not miss out on our expert handicapper analysis! Brian Bitler is coming off a HOT YEAR in CFB, going 85-56-4 for +$23,820 PROFIT! Make sure you check out his picks and many more from the expert handicappers featured in the Shop Picks section.

Oregon State Beavers:  N/A

Houston Cougars:  N/A

Oregon State finished last season with a 2-10 record overall and they had a 1-1 record in their conference games too.  They were 2-5 in their home games, 0-5 in their road games, and they were also 0-0 in their neutral site games last season, but they will be on the road for this season opener. Last season, their offense was averaging 18.2 points scored per game while their defense was allowing an average of 29.4 points per game. Their offense also averaged 349.8 yards per game while their defense was allowing an average of 379.6 yards per game. Maalik Murphy led the team in passing yards with 1,805, Anthony Hankerson led the team in rushing yards with 1,086, and Trent Walker led the team in receiving yards with 823.

 

 

 

Houston finished last season with a 10-3 record overall and they had a 6-3 record in their conference games too.  They were 3-3 in their home games, 6-0 in their road games, and they were also 1-0 in their neutral site games last season, but they will be at home for this season opener. Last season, their offense was averaging 29.1 points scored per game while their defense was allowing an average of 22.8 points per game. Their offense also averaged 394.5 yards per game while their defense was allowing an average of 347.8 yards per game. Conner Weigman led the team in passing yards with 2,705, Dean Connors led the team in rushing yards with 977, and Amare Thomas led the team in receiving yards with 966.

The current betting odds have Houston listed as a 20.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Houston is coming off a great season winning 10 games and they have been building a solid program under Fritz. They are returning their starting QB along with some other talent and they will be looking to build on last season. They were near the top of the Big 12 last season, but this year they do have the potential to be one of the best teams in the conference. Meanwhile, Oregon State is coming off a terrible season in which they were 2-10 and they didn't really have a real conference to play in either. That season was definitely a write off, but now the Pac-12 is back with some new faces and Oregon State has something to be motivated about with the Pac-12 making a comeback. Oregon State has also hired a new head coach for this season, but there has been a lot of changes for them and it is still going to be a tough year for them considering some of the other teams that have joined the conference. This isn't an easy game to start the season with on the road against a Houston program that has been improving under Fritz the last 2 seasons. Houston wasn't great at home last season, going 3-3, but they will be looking to improve that record this season and make a statement in this 1st game. Houston is still the more talented team here and their defense was also really good last year. Oregon State will have trouble moving the ball in this one and that Houston offense should see an improvement with Weigman returning too. The best way to place a bet here is on Houston to cover the spread in this game. 

Oregon State Houston Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, September 5, 2026 (12:00 pm ET start time) is Houston 38 Oregon State 14.

Don't miss our champion handicappers free picks and expert football picks today. And if you enjoyed this Oregon State Beavers Houston Cougars prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our weekly NCAAF predictions and previews.

Oregon State Beavers: 6-16 ATS against FBS division opponents. 4-10 ATS as an underdog. 2-8 ATS in road lined games. 8-1 UNDER in road lined games. 5-0 UNDER as a road underdog.

Houston Cougars: 7-3 ATS as a favorite. 5-2 ATS in non-conference games. 9-3 UNDER in home lined games. 7-0 UNDER when the total is between 49.5 and 56. 

Oregon State Beavers:  None.

Houston Cougars:  None.

“I felt like Braden really made some really good throws out there at times. (He) pushed the ball down the field a couple of times and really showed that he can get the ball out on time, not taking sacks.” JaMarcus Shephard on Braden Atkinson winning the starting QB job.

“We’ve got to build off it and not live off it. Some people are like: ‘We won 10 games last year. That’s going to happen this year.’ No, we’re going into Week 1 0-0. We’ve go to go and play an even better brand of football than we did last year, but we’re in a good spot right now.” - Conner Weigman on their mindset coming into this new college football season.

WR Freauff, Eddie

WR Noland, Xayvion

WR Butler, Aaron

TE Olsen, Eric

QB Atkinson, Braden

RB Hatcher Jr., Cornell 

WR Young, Koby

WR Walker, Trent

WR Thomas, Amare

TE Overmyer, Patrick

QB Weigman, Conner

RB Hughes, Makhi

Passing: N/A

Rushing: N/A

Receiving: N/A

Touchdowns: N/A

Passing: N/A

Rushing: N/A

Receiving: N/A

Touchdowns: N/A

Coaches:

Oregon State Beavers: JaMarcus Shephard (1st season)

Houston Cougars: Willie Fritz (3rd season)