FACTS & STATS: Site: Rice Stadium (70,000) -- Houston, Texas. Television: None. Home Record: Tulane 2-5, Rice 1-3. Away Record: Tulane 1-2, Rice 2-4. Neutral Record: Tulane 0-0, Rice 0-0. Conference Record: Tulane 2-4, Rice 3-3. Series Record: Rice leads, 15-13-1.

GAME NOTES: The red-hot Rice Owls will try to remain in the win column when they host the Tulane Green Wave this Saturday afternoon in a Conference-USA tilt at Rice Stadium. The Green Wave come crashing into this matchup fresh off a solid 34-19 victory over UTEP this past weekend. The win snapped a two-game losing skid for Tulane, and it was just the second victory for the squad since the month of September. The Green Wave will close out their 2007 campaign next week when they travel to Greenville to battle the East Carolina Pirates. As for the Owls, they soar into this contest with a two-game winning streak. The most recent win for Rice was a thrilling, 43-42 victory over SMU this past weekend. Since starting the year with four straight losses, the team has posted a steady 3-3 ledger. Surprisingly, the Owls have not played well at home this year, recording a mere 1-3 mark at Rice Stadium. The Owls hold a slim, 15-13-1 edge over Tulane in the all-time series, and have a solid 10-5 mark against the Green Wave at home. Last year the Green Wave captured a 38-24 victory over Rice in a league matchup in Tulane.

Offensively, the Green Wave put forth a lackluster effort throughout the season, and the team comes into this matchup averaging a mediocre 396.0 total ypg, which has led to just 23.6 ppg. The main source of production for this unit has been its ground game, which is churning out 203.7 ypg. In the recent victory over UTEP, the Green Wave put forth an outstanding offensive display, racking up 485 total yards, including 208 rushing yards on 45 carries. Tailback Matt Forte had a sensational outing, as he finished with 172 yards and two touchdowns on 38 totes. With the solid performance against UTEP, Forte is now leading the nation with 1,813 yards on the ground, and has also found the end zone an impressive 17 times. The passing attack has not enjoyed the same success throughout the year, as Anthony Scelfo is averaging a meager 120.0 ypg through the air. Scelfo has thrown just six TDs on the year, but has also tossed six interceptions. In the recent win over UTEP, Scelfo threw for 167 yards and one score.

The defensive play by Tulsa throughout the season has been laughable, as the squad is being abused for 422.6 total ypg. The main problem for this unit has come against the pass, as teams are currently torching Tulsa's secondary for 287.7 ypg. Last weekend, the Wave surrendered 412 total yards to UTEP, including 301 yards through the air. Despite another terrible effort, the Green Wave were still victorious. The Green Wave only forced one turnover in the contest, but was able to get to the quarterback four times. On the season, Tulsa has forced just 17 turnovers, but the team has been able to run down opposing quarterbacks, racking up 27 sacks thus far. Evan Lee has been the top performer for this unit throughout the season and comes into this matchup with 88 tackles and eight TFLs.

For the second straight week the Owls put forth a tremendous offensive effort, racking up 545 total yards en route to a 43-42 victory over SMU. The main source of production came from the passing attack, as quarterback Chase Clement threw for 364 yards and two touchdowns. Surprisingly, Clement also led the ground attack, rushing for 124 yards and two more touchdowns on just 12 carries. Throughout the season Clement has done an impressive job, completing 58.2 percent of his passes for 2,491 yards, to go along with 22 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. His main threat downfield has been one of the best receivers in the country, Jarett Dillard. The junior standout is currently leading the squad with 64 catches, for 881 yards and 11 touchdowns. Dillard was the main option downfield in the win over SMU, finishing the game with 13 catches for 128 yards and two TDs. The success of the passing attack is not shocking, considering Rice is producing 262.3 ypg through the air. As a whole, the Rice offense is posting a mediocre 377.2 total ypg and that has led to 30.3 ppg.

Much like their counterpart, the Owls have been simply horrendous defensively, as the team is being dismantled for a whopping 508.3 total ypg, which has led to an embarrassing 42.2 ppg allowed. The team is being pounded for 196.3 ypg on the ground, but the real problem has come against the pass, as opponents are torching the Owls for 312 ypg. through the air. In the team's recent win over SMU, the Owls did a role reversal, shutting down the Mustangs through the air, while allowing them to gallop on the ground. In the victory, the Owls limited SMU to just 165 passing yards and also recorded two interceptions, but against the run Rice was terrorized for 325 yards on 6.4 ypc. Along with the two takeaways, the Owls also recorded just one sack in the contest. In 10 games this season the team has forced 24 turnovers, but has recorded only 17 sacks.

At this point in the season, Clement and Dillard are red-hot, and the combination should lead the Owls to their third consecutive victory.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Rice 45, Tulane 28

Saturday, November 17th, 3:00 p.m. (et)