University of Houston Athletics
Quarterback Al Pena Leaves Cougar Football Program
8/22/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 22, 2007
HOUSTON, Texas - University of Houston senior quarterback Al Pena has left the Cougar Football program to pursue a coaching job, head coach Art Briles announced Wednesday afternoon.
"We as a Cougar family really appreciate Al's sacrifice to come here," said Briles. "He gave this a shot and did great job. He was a great teammate (and) a very positive individual. He's a good football player. He just felt that he wanted to take of his wife and go down (to South Texas) and coach with his dad and start that phase of his life.
"We're glad he came down here and gave this a chance, and we wish him the best in the future."
Pena, who was in a battle with sophomore Blake Joseph and redshirt freshman Case Keenum for the starting nod in 2007, decided to coach high school football with his father in Hidalgo, Texas.
"Pena graduated from Oklahoma State in the spring of 2007 but had one year of athletics eligibility remaining. After receiving a waiver from the NCAA, Pena was immediately eligible to compete at UH.
A native of Leander and a product of Leander High, Pena threw for 1,600 yards and rushed for 1,200 more with 24 total touchdowns during his prep career. After graduating from high school a semester early, he attended Georgia Tech in the spring of 2003 but transferred to Oklahoma State and sat out the 2003 season as a redshirt.
As a redshirt freshman in 2004, he served as the backup quarterback and completed 7-of-11 passes during the season. A year later, he played in seven games, throwing for eight touchdowns on 89-of-179. Pena did not play in any games during the 2006 season, including a 34-25 loss to the Cougars at Robertson Stadium.
The Cougars open their season at 2:30 p.m. (CDT), Sept. 1 when they meet Pacific-10 Conference member Oregon at Autzen Stadium. Fans can hear the game live on 790 AM The Sports Animal with Tom Franklin calling the play-by-play action, David Klingler providing color analysis and Chuck Brown reporting from the sideline. The pregame show is slated to begin one hour before kickoff.
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