Sam Houston vs New Mexico State Prediction, Picks & Odds for October 2 — College Football Week 6

Our Sam Houston vs. New Mexico State predictions suggest that the former's defense won't be able to contain the latter's explosive passing offense.

Douglas Farmer - Betting Analyst at Covers
Douglas Farmer • Betting Analyst
Oct 1, 2025 • 08:27 ET • 4 min read

NCAAF

Match starts: 34 hrs
NMSU
67 %
SHSU
33 %
EXPERT PICK - MONEYLINE
New Mexico State +110 New Mexico State +110
Read Analysis
Logan Fife New Mexico State Aggies Conference USA college football
Photo By - Imagn Images. Logan Fife drops back to pass against Tulsa.

Some things defy understanding. The Sam Houston State Bearkats being favored on the road against the New Mexico State Aggies is one of those things.

Until on-field results explain that line, my Sam Houston State vs. New Mexico State predictions and college football picks will steadfastly believe in the short home underdog. Kickoff comes at 9 ET on Thursday, October 2.

Sam Houston vs New Mexico State prediction

Sam Houston vs New Mexico State best bet: New Mexico State moneyline (+112)

The New Mexico State Aggies should be favored outright. That could be this entire preview.

To put some logic to what should be an obvious statement: New Mexico State throws the ball at the sixth-highest rate in the country, 12.8% more often than would be expected from an average team in a given game state, per cfb-graphs.com.

And given this is New Mexico State we are discussing, the Aggies throw the ball with some impressive explosive abilities. Despite ranking No. 115 in the country in dropback success rate, New Mexico State ranks No. 77 in expected points added (EPA) per dropback. If failing that often, how is that dropback EPA decent? Explosive plays.

And now the Aggies have a home game on a short week against the worst EPA passing defense in the country. There is a reason opponents throw against the Sam Houston State Bearkats at the 12th-highest rate in the country, 7.7% more often than would be expected against an average defense in a given game state. It's because throwing against the Bearkats works.

It should work for New Mexico State. And on top of that, this Aggies defense is better than their offense, furthering the thoughts of this outright upset.

Sam Houston vs New Mexico State same-game parlay

If ever there's a time to trust a scripted drive, it should be in this game. New Mexico State has a short week and an advantageous offensive matchup. Focus on that with a strong opening drive, and the Aggies should be in control early.

At that point, they should keep throwing. As that adds possessions to the game, this Over should cash relatively easily.

Sam Houston vs New Mexico State SGP

  • New Mexico State moneyline
  • Over 52.5
  • New Mexico State first quarter -1.5

Sam Houston vs New Mexico State odds

  • Spread: Sam Houston -2.5 | New Mexico State +2.5
  • Moneyline: Sam Houston -132 | New Mexico State +112
  • Over/Under: Over 52.5 | Under 52.5

Sam Houston vs New Mexico State trend to know

New Mexico State is 2-1 both against the spread and outright as a one-score underdog under second-year head coach Tony Sanchez. Find more college football betting trends for Sam Houston vs New Mexico State.

How to watch Sam Houston vs New Mexico State

Location Aggie Memorial Stadium, Las Cruces, NM
Date Thursday, October 2, 2025
Kickoff 9:00 p.m. ET
TV CBSSN

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Sam Houston vs New Mexico State weather

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Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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Douglas Farmer
Betting Analyst

Douglas Farmer spends his days thinking about college football and his nights thinking about the NBA. His betting habits and coverage follow that same pattern. He covered Notre Dame football for various outlets from 2008 to 2024, most notably spending eight seasons as NBC Sports’ beat writer on the Irish. That was also when his gambling focus took off. Knowing there were veteran beat writers with three decades more experience than he had, Douglas found his niche by best recognizing Notre Dame’s standing in each year’s national landscape, a complex tapestry most easily understood and remembered via betting odds.

In 2021, that interest created a freelance opportunity with Covers, a role that eventually led to Douglas joining the company full-time in 2023. In the fall, Douglas will place five or six dozen bets each week, a disproportionate amount via BetRivers because the operator tends to have lines slightly different than the rest of the market. The same can be said of Circa Sports’ futures markets.

While Douglas is an avid NBA fan and covers the league throughout the year, the vast majority of his bets are on college football, because that is the biggest key to sports betting: Know what you do not know.

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