A showdown is on the way Saturday within the ACC which could determine who will make a conference championship appearance.

The Houston Cougars will face the SMU Mustangs Saturday, which marks the first matchup between opponents with one or no losses at TDECU Stadium this late in the season since Nov. 14, 2015. The game should be a good one as both teams are undefeated in the ACC and both teams have the top records in the country.

WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN FOR HOUSTON TO WIN

The Cougars can’t start slow this game if they want to defend their conference winning streak. The Mustangs can be beaten but they can’t be taken for granted. Despite losing program superstar Shane Buechele, SMU still has a very good offense and a stellar quarterback, former Oklahoma player Tanner Mordecai.

Mordecai is a great passer which could become a problem for Houston. It’s all about defending the pass against SMU which means the defense needs to be on their A-game. Coach Doug Belk has done exceptionally well with the defense and has players like Logan Hall, Donavan Mutin, and Damarion Williams. The defense can easily get sacks and interceptions when playing hard-core 3rd-Ward D.

The Mustangs’ defense allows 22.7 points per game, conversion on 34 percent of third downs, and has given up just 13 touchdowns on 25 red zone trips.

The Cougars should only be worried about Clayton Tune passing as he did in the first couple of games of the season. Houston has some of the best pass rushers in the country, Tune needs to use all of his weapons. This means his top receivers like Nathaniel Dell “Tank” and more in order to take the Mustangs defense out.

PREDICTION:

SMU has a better offense but Houston has a better defense, so the main question is how can Houston win this game? It comes down to turnovers, in my opinion, if this Houston team can prevent turnovers the Cougars will move the ball and win the game.

Prediction: Houston 30, SMU 24