Houston @ Texas State preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 26, 2015 ) Texas State 14, Houston 59

Texas State will have its hands full in its home opener when No. 7 Houston visits Saturday. The Cougars arrive with a Heisman Trophy candidate in quarterback Greg Ward Jr. and a championship-level defense.

The Cougars are ranked 12th in total defense (257.7 yards) and lead the nation in rushing defense at 38.3 yards. Houston - which has not allowed more than 100 rushing yards in five straight games - has held its three opponents to a total of 3 rushing yards on 39 attempts in the second half. "If you can stop the run, you're going to have a chance to win a lot of football games," Houston coach Tom Herman told the media Monday. "This is a three-week sample size, but all signs point to us being pretty good at that." Texas State is averaging 64 rushing yards - ranked 126th in the country - after gaining 22 yards at Arkansas last week.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPNU. LINE: Houston -34.5

ABOUT HOUSTON (3-0): Ward (657 passing yards and three TDS, 74 rushing yards and two TDs) threw for 326 yards and accounted for three scores against Cincinnati after missing the week before with a shoulder injury. Linell Bonner (15 catches, 228 yards) and Steven Dunbar (11 catches, 150 yards) lead the receiving corps but haven't found the end zone. Senior linebacker Steven Taylor leads the country with 5.5 sacks and had one of the Cougars' two fourth-quarter interceptions returned for a score last week.

ABOUT TEXAS STATE (1-1): Senior quarterback Tyler Jones (501 yards, four TDs, three interceptions) is third in school history in career TD passes (48) and total offense (8,082). Running back Stedman Mayberry has nine catches for 60 yards, joining Eric Luna (11 catches, 99 yards, TD) and Elijah King (eight catches, 129 yards, two TDs) as Jones' favorite targets. Junior-college transfer Gabe Loyd has 18 tackles after recording eight tackles at Arkansas.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Ward has won 16 straight games as the starting quarterback, the longest active streak in FBS.

2. Ward has thrown for more than 300 yards in both of his starts this season after recording one 300-yard passing game last year.

3. Herman and first-year Texas State coach Everett Withers worked together on the same staffs at Texas and Ohio State.

PREDICTION: Houston 45, Texas State 13