University of Houston Athletics
Short Week Preparation In Full Swing
9/20/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 20, 2004
HOUSTON - The turnaround from a Saturday game to a Thursday game is one of the toughest things to prepare for in NCAA football, so the Cougars aren't wasting any time in preparing for No. 4 Miami.
One day after their win over Army, the Cougars were back on the practice field Sunday night beginning their game preparations for the upcoming showdown at Reliant Stadium on Thursday with the Hurricanes.
"Everything is accelerated," said head coach Art Briles about the quick turnaround. "We just have to turn two days into one a couple of times this week, but we will get it done and our guys will be focused and ready to get it done Thursday night."
To get the team prepared in a short week the coaching staff and players are taking on a double dose of film and practice. Acceleration and cramming the same amount of preparation that normally comes in a full week into just a few days.
"You just crank everything into shorter time frames," said Brile. "(The team) adjusts, you have to adjust on the football field and you have to adjust to the practice schedule."
The upcoming game against Miami marks the second top-4 team the Cougars will face in three weeks, but a 35-21 win over Army on Saturday helps to show that the Cougars are improving, and improvement is the main goal of the coaching staff.
"We are playing to become a better football team. We are working hard to get better and we are getting better," said Briles. "We're getting on the right track so we are just anxious to get back out there and see how much we have grown since the last game."
"It doesn't matter who we are playing," Briles continued. "Every time we get out there to play we are going to try and perform better and represent the University of Houston and our football team."
The team is a little banged up after the first three weeks of the season. Some of the players are not expected to play in Thursday's game due to soreness and injury.
Ultimately Briles and the Cougars feel confident that they will be ready at kick off to put their best foot forward against the Canes and gain some more experience before heading into the conference schedule.
"After this game we get into the thick of our conference games and we have to be at the top of our level to see where we stand and where we stack up," said Briles.
The Cougars and Canes get underway at Reliant Stadium on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
