University of Houston Athletics
Cougars Get Back to Work
9/2/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 2, 2002
Two days after snapping their 15-game losing streak against cross-town rival Rice, the University of Houston football team returned to practice this afternoon, putting in a two-hour practice on Labor Day.
By reclaiming the Bayou Bucket, the Cougars are off to their first 1-0 start since the 1999 season, looking to go 2-0 for the first time since 1990, when Conference USA foe Tulane invades Houston next week. For UH head coach Dana Dimel, it is back to work for his staff and his team.
"I think it is important after a win like that in your opening ballgame that you get your focus back up," said Dimel. "The big thing is that we have to play a conference game in week two, so having to play a conference game this early in the season is something that requires a lot of focus and being as crisp as you can be.
"So, the thing for us is to realize that we did get a win, but we have to learn from our mistakes that we made in the ball game. We are going to switch gears a lot when we face Tulane, because now we go from a predominately running team in Rice to a predominately passing team in Tulane, so far as our defense goes.
"That is going to be a really big part of us making the transition to stopping the passing game Tulane brings to the table. Offensively, we have to stay as balanced as we can between the run and the pass, and hopefully we can do that through week two."
Tulane threw for almost 200 yards and rushed for an additional 240 in their season-opening win against Southern. As for the Cougars, not only did they hold Rice to fewer than 100 yards passing, but also they stuffed the Owl triple option attack to less than 200 yards, which is 100 yards less than they averaged a season ago. On offense, Houston rode the broad shoulders of redshirt freshman Barrick Nealy, as the Cougars generated 305 yards on the ground-including 155 from senior running back Joffrey Reynolds-and 161 through the air.
As mentioned, the Cougars open their home season by facing the Green Wave on Saturday, September 7, at "The Quinn."
-UHCougars.com-
