FACTS & STATS: Site: Rice Stadium (70,000) -- Houston, Texas. Television: None. Home Record: Tulsa 5-1, Rice 1-4. Away Record: Tulsa 3-2, Rice 2-4. Neutral Record: Tulsa 0-0, Rice 0-0. Conference Record: Tulsa 5-2, Rice 3-4. Series Record: Rice leads, 7-4-1.

GAME NOTES: The red-hot Tulsa Golden Hurricane travel to Houston to wrap up the regular season schedule in a Conference-USA matchup against the Rice Owls. Tulsa is coming off a 49-39 win at Army last weekend. It was the fourth straight win for the Golden Hurricane, who now find themselves in second place in their division, a game behind Houston. Although most of Tulsa's success has come at home (5-1) this year, the team is facing a very beatable opponent this weekend in Rice. However, the Owls will not go quietly. They took Rice to two overtimes in last season's meeting, and recently strung together back-to-back wins for the first time this season. Last weekend, however, that streak was snapped in the Owls' 45-31 loss to Tulane. While Tulsa has been near perfect at home, the Owls have struggled at Rice Stadium, posting a 1-4 record on the season. In terms of the head-to-head series between these two schools, Rice moved to 7-4-1 with last year's double-overtime victory.

Quarterback Paul Smith headlined a huge day for the Tulsa offense in last week's win over Army. The senior signal-caller threw for 390 yards and two touchdowns, as the Golden Hurricane piled up 622 yards of total offense. It was the fourth straight game of 40-plus points for the Golden Hurricane, who are finding their groove at the right time of year. Trae Johnson caught nine passes for 119 yards and a touchdown, while Tarrion Adams led the ground attack with 118 yards and two touchdowns. Tulsa leads the nation in total offense, averaging 544.64 ypg. The team ranks third in passing offense (362.82 ypg) and 10th in scoring offense (40 ppg).

The defense, on the other hand, continues to be a work in progress. The Golden Hurricane rank 104th in total defense (451 ypg) and 100th in scoring defense (33.91 ppg). While it's certainly not the approach coach Todd Graham had envisioned in his first year at Tulsa, it certainly has led to some entertaining shootouts. Army, which will not be confused for an offensive powerhouse any time soon, racked up 25 first downs and 491 total yards last week. The Tulsa secondary was tagged for 328 yards and three touchdowns through the air, as the defensive backs had a tough time containing Jeremy Trimble, who had 11 catches for 167 yards and two scores.

While the Owls are by no means an offensive juggernaut, one thing they can do exceptionally well is throw the football. The defensive backs had better be prepared for Rice quarterback Chase Clement, who has thrown for 2,836 yards and 26 touchdowns on the season. He holds the school record for total offense in a season. Clement has a dangerous weapon on the receiving corps in Jarett Dillard, who has amassed 73 catches, 968 yards and 13 touchdowns through 11 games. Still, the Owls have virtually no running game, as Clement leads the team with 43.2 rushing yards per game. Rice enters this contest with the nation's 105th-ranked rushing offense.

Across the board, the Owls rank as one of the worst defenses in major college football. They are giving up 503.45 ypg, which ranks 116th out of 119 FBS programs. And they are being tagged for 42.45 ppg, which ranks second-to-last in the nation. Last weekend, the Owls had no answer for Tulane running back Matt Forte, who ran wild for 194 yards and five touchdowns. Two weeks ago, the Owls were able to notch a comeback win at SMU despite giving up 320 yards on the ground. But with Adams coming off an exceptional game in the Tulsa backfield, the Owls will need to make some major adjustments if they are to close out the season with a win.

Plenty of points will be scored in this one. However, the day will likely belong to Adams and Smith, as the Golden Hurricane look to close out the season with five straight wins.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Tulsa 45, Rice 35

Saturday, November 24th, 3:00 p.m. (et)