HOUSTON – In a live Spokesman-Review podcast that was taped Wednesday afternoon at the Spokane County Interstate Fair, I refrained from divulging my score prediction for this Cougars v. Cougars showdown at NRG Stadium.

I did, however, posit what I thought would be a reasonable point total for the game itself, surmising Washington State and Houston would score at least 100 points Friday night. So, for any of the fairgoers, cotton candy vendors or Alaskan racing pigs that may have been listening, I’ll at least stick to that prediction.

As for my victor?

Let’s throw it to some sound from Houston coach Dana Holgorsen’s Monday news conference: “The thing that’s different with this (WSU) program is that defense is really good. They were really good two years ago, they lost their coordinator, which we talked about coach (Alex) Grinch couple weeks ago. Then you turn on this video and it just looks the same.”

Houston’s defense, meanwhile, still has a way to go. While I believe both offenses will score enough to keep the fans engaged, WSU’s defense is the unit that’s more capable of making the stop, or forcing the turnover, that could decide the game.

The pick: Washington State 55, Houston 45