University of Houston Athletics
Cougars Face Bulldogs In Athens Saturday
9/9/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 9, 2001
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FAST FACTS ON THE GAME
The Coaches -
Dana Dimel heads into his second season as the head coach of the University of Houston program. In a year of adjustment in 2000, Dimel posted a 3-8 record with his young Cougars. Dimel arrived in Houston after three years as the head football coach at Wyoming, where he posted a 23-12 mark and was one of only 10 current Division I-A head coaches to have won at least seven games in those three years. Dimel spent almost 10 seasons at his alma mater, Kansas State, as he had a hand in developing the Wildcat program into one of the more dominant teams of the past decade.
Former Florida State offensive coordinator Mark Richt takes over the storied Georgia football program this year, and so far his debut has been successful. Richt has spent 15 years in college football as an assistant coach, honing his skills to one day take over a Top 25 program. Richt registered two stints at Florida State and one at East Carolina.
FAST FACTS ON THE SERIES
Series Record Overall:
Houston leads, 2-0-1
UH Series Record in Athens:
1-0-1
First Meeting:
November 4, 1967, UH 15, Georgia 14 at Astrodome
Last Meeting:
November 2, 1974, UH 31, Georgia 24 at Sanford Stadium
Last Meeting in Athens:
November 2, 1974, UH 31, Georgia 24 at Sanford Stadium
Series Notes -
The Cougars and Bulldogs renew the series after a 27-year hiatus. UH leads the series 2-0-1, including a win and a tie in Athens. The Cougars began the series with a thrilling 15-14 win over the Bulldogs at the Astrodome in 1967, and then the two teams tied the following year in Athens. In their final meeting in 1974 the Cougars and Bulldogs battled for 60 minutes, with UH prevailing with 10 third quarter points.
RADIO & TELEVISION INFORMATION
Cougars on the Radio
This week's game versus Georgia will be broadcast on KBME AM, 790, beginning with the pregame show one hour prior to kickoff. The "Voice of the Cougars," Craig Ackerman, handles play-by-play duties, while former All-Southwest Conference center, Chuck Brown, will provide the color analysis. All Cougar football games can be heard on the internet by logging onto the UH website at UHCougars.com.
Houston-Georgia Television
No TV for this game.
Dana Dimel on the Radio
Coach Dimel will be live every Wednesday morning on KILT begin-ning at 8:10 a.m. with the 610 Morning Crew. Dimel also will spend Thursday afternoons with Matt Jackson at 2:10 p.m. on KILT. Fi-nally, Dimel will make guest appearances on "KTRH SportsBeat" from 7:30-8 p.m. on Thursday nights during the season.
Cougar Country Recap
Catch all the Cougar highlights on Tuesday nights at 10:30 p.m. on the Cougar Country Recap on KUHT-TV, Channel 8.
Houston travels to Athens, Georgia, to play "Between the Hedges," its first encounter with the Georgia Bulldogs in 27 years.
The tradition-rich Bulldog program heads into Saturday afternoon's clash with the Cougars at 1-1 after falling to South Carolina, 14-9, in a battle of Top 25 teams. Georgia held a 9-7 lead heading into the final minutes of play, before USC scored a touchdown with 1:22 left to play. The Bulldogs had taken the lead on a 27-yard field goal by Billy Bennett with 3:17 left in regulation.
Georgia opened the 2001 season with a convincing 45-17 thrashing of Arkansas State.
The Bulldogs are led on offense by redshirt quarterback David Greene, who has completed 68 percent (42-62) of his passes so far this season for 454 yards and two touchdowns. Greene-who replaced All-SEC quarterback Quincy Carter who is now the starting signal-caller for the NFL's Dallas Cowboys-looks to his wide receivers for the majority of his throws, connecting 11 times with flanker Damien Gary as well as 10 tosses to Terrence Edwards.
Georgia is paced in the backfield by sophomore tailback Musa Smith. Smith is averaging 117.0 yards per game, while rushing for a team-high 234 yards so far after two games. Smith also has rushed for three touchdowns.
Defensively, the Bulldogs rely on middle linebacker Tony Gilbert, nose guard David Jacobs and free safety Terreal Bierria. Gilbert leads the Bulldogs with 17 total tackles, while Jacobs has chipped in 16, including five for losses, and Bierra has 14.
The Cougars and Bulldogs have not met in quite some time, but the three clashes between the two schools have been memorable. In the first meeting in 1967, the Cougars rallied for 15 fourth-quarter points to register one of the biggest wins in Houston history, defeating Georgia, 15-14. Trailing by two touchdowns heading into the final stanza, the Cougars scored early in the fourth on a 25-yard touchdown run by Paul Gipson, who finished the game with a then-school record 229 yards rushing. The Cougars tallied another score with 4:29 left to play when Dick Woodall hooked up with Ken Hebert on a 57-yard touchdown. Instead of a tie, UH head coach went for the big win when Gipson scored a two-point conversion, and the Cougars recovered a late Georgia fumble to seal the win.
In the next game the following year in Athens, the game did end in a tie, 10-10, as the Bulldogs did the late rallying to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. UH scored early on a 32-yard field goal and a 80-yard bomb from Ken Bailey to Elmo Wright. Despite another school record rushing performance by Gipson, this time rushing for 230 yards on 37 carries, the Cougars were unable to put further points on the board. After a Gipson 4th-quarter fumble, the Bulldogs countered quickly, as quarterback Mike Cavan (now the head coach at SMU) hooked up with Brad Johnson for a six-yard score. With time running out Jim McCullough nailed a 38-yard field goal to seal the tie.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN THIS WEEK'S GAME
- UH senior wide receiver Orlando Iglesias will extend his consecutive game reception streak with his first catch against the Bulldogs.
- After only seven yards rushing versus Rice, look for the Cougars to try to establish the running game to take pressure off of the passing attack.
- With one game under his belt, junior quarterback Kelly Robertson hopes to continue efficiency exhibited in the last quarter-and-a-half against Rice.
- The Cougar receivers will not drop 10 passes against Georgia.
- Special teams will try to keep explosive Georgia return men at bay with heady coverage.
- Punter Jimmy McClary could be a key in the game, as his punts pinned Rice inside the 20 three times and hang time allowed UH coverage units time to get down and cover the kick.
- True freshman Matt Schirmer will get more playing time as both a blocking fullback and inside runner.
- UH offensive line will have its hands full in trying to hold back Bulldog rush. Cougars allowed five sacks versus Rice, but only one was the fault of an offensive lineman.
- Secondary will have to come up with turnovers, as Bulldogs are averaging almost 280 yards passing per game and UGA quarterbacks are completing 65 percent of their passes.
- Watch senior cornerback Jason Parker covering UGA wide receiver Terrence Edwards.
