University of Houston Athletics
Football Daily Practice Report
8/30/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 30, 2005
HOUSTON - It won't be long now for the University of Houston football fans.
With less than 48 hours before the official start of the college season, the Cougars worked out just less than two hours in shorts and shoulder pads Tuesday at the UH Athletics Complex. The team will hold a short walk-through on Wednesday at Reliant Stadium.
The Cougars open the 2005 season at 6 p.m., Thursday, when they play host to Oregon at Reliant Stadium. That game can be heard live on ESPN 790 AM with Tom Franklin handling play-by-play duties and Tony Fitzpatrick providing color analysis.
Fans also can hear the game on the Internet by logging onto www.UHCougars.com. In addition, the game will be the first of a school-record seven Cougar football games in 2005 on television. The showdown against the Ducks will be broadcast live on ESPN2 with Sean McDonough calling the play-by-play action and Mike Gottfried as the color analyst. Dave Ryan will serve as the sideline reporter.
As far as Oregon is concerned, Briles said he is looking forward to a challenge against one of the Pac-10's most successful programs.
"They bring a solid foundation. They are a solid football team and have been good for a long time," said Briles, who begins his third season at the helm of the UH program in 2005. "They have been around the top for a long time."
Besides the importance of starting the season on a positive note, Briles also was eager to match his boys from the Southwest against some of the Northwest's best players.
"They bring some strong, quality football players from that part of the nation - California, Washington, Oregon, the Islands - that we're going to match against our guys from Texas. I like that aspect and challenge of it," Briles said. "I like the opportunity to have a chance to defend what we stand for down here."
If Briles has sounded cocky or brash in the days and weeks leading up to Thursday's season opener, it hasn't been intentional, he said, but he does feel confident about the team.
"I feel good about our football team because I feel good about our players. I have confidence about our players. My confidence, which I hope is not brash, comes from being around guys that I trust and understand," Briles said. "If we are going to play the game, we expect to win. We are going to play Oregon, so we expect to beat them. To me, it's not just saying it; it's feeling it and meaning it. We have the opportunity, so we are going to take advantage of it."
