SMU vs. Rice: An offensive affair

Because I'm a little backward, I'm going to start with the bottom line on tonight's SMU-Rice game: My beloved Mustangs start the season 0-1. But it'll be a squeaker, much like last year's 43-42 loss to the Owls.

I was there at Ford Stadium last year, and it hurt to see Rice score 16 in the fourth quarter. And it felt worse to see SMU's offense allow two first-half touchdowns off interceptions.

Why am I violating the "Don't bet against your team" rule? Because, despite weeks (months?) of practice, the Mustangs are undoubtedly still getting used to their new Run and Shoot system. And they're a young team, possibly too young to be competitive this season. Thirteen true freshmen (including starting QB Bo Levi Mitchell) on the two-deep. I'm just hoping June has saved enough redshirts to let this recruiting class eventually shine.

We're not going to see all that much on the ground tonight. Combined with SMU's new offense, Rice brings a powerhouse passing-receiving matchup of Chase Clement and Jarett Dillard. Lots of fireworks there.

But the game will come down to defense. SMU's secondary has had some serious holes. We'll see them tested early and often. But they do have Will Bonilla and Bryan McCann returning at linebacker and defensive back. Those guys are good. Relatively speaking, anyway. But safety has been a problem in the past. Again, we'll just have to see.

SMU hasn't won at Rice Stadium since 1986. Going to have to wait until 2010 for that to happen again. Final score tonight: Rice 47, SMU 45.