Cougar Gridders Travel to Memphis

10/25/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football

Oct. 25, 2010

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GAME 8
Houston (4-3, 3-1 C-USA) at Memphis (1-6, 0-4 C-USA)
Oct. 30, 2010 // Liberty Bowl (61,000)
6 p.m. CT // Memphis, Tennessee // CSS

RADIO BROADCAST
The Houston/ISP Radio Network will carry the radio broadcast with its pregame show beginning at 5:00 p.m. CT. Calling the action will be Tom Franklin (play-by-play), Ted Pardee (color analyst) and Chuck Brown (sideline). The broadcast can be heard on 790-AM KMBE and six affiliates (see page 13 of game notes for list of affiliates). The postgame show lasts 30-minutes after game conclusion.

TELEVISION BROADCAST
This Saturday's game vs. Memphis will be televised by Comcast Sports -- Channel 129. Handling the play-by-play is Matt Stewart along with analyst Derek Rackley.

FAST FACT ON THE SERIES
Series Record Overall: Houston leads 10-9
Series Record at Memphis: Houston leads 6-5
Series Record at Home: Series tied 4-4
First Meeting: Nov. 30, 1963; Memphis 29, Houston 6 (Memphis)
Last Meeting: Nov. 21, 2009; Houston 55, Memphis 14 (Robertson Stadium)

THE SERIES
• This weekend's contest will be the 19th meeting between Memphis and Houston.
• The Cougars have recorded a 6-5 record versus the Tigers while members of Conference USA.
• UH head coach Kevin Sumlin is 1-0 vs. Memphis with the only game played in 2009, a 55-14 victory at Robertson.
• There are no members of the Houston team hailing from the state of Tennessee.

FOR OPENERS
• With his two rushing touchdowns at SMU, junior running back Bryce Beall broke the school career record for rushing touchdowns with 32, topping Jackie Battle's 31 scored from 2003-06. Beall also has 12 rushing touchdowns for the season which is three away from the school single-season record of 15.
• Houston ranks in the top-25 nationally in total, passing and scoring offense. With 39.6 points per game, UH is ninth in the NCAA in scoring, while 284.4 passing yards per contest is 17th. The UH total offense is ranked 24th with 442.6 yards per game.
• In Houston's four wins, the Cougars have outscored their opponents by an average of 28.5 points. UH won by 40 in the season opener vs. Texas State, by 30 over UTEP, were 19-point winners over Tulane and won by 25 at SMU.
• UH has started true freshmen quarterbacks the past four games -- David Piland vs. Mississippi State, at Rice and at SMU and Terrance Broadway against Tulane. Until the fourth game of the season, UH had not started a true freshman quarterback since Kevin Kolb in 2003.
• UH has put together four-straight attendance marks of 32,000-plus tickets sold, the biggest crowds in Robertson Stadium history. It is also the first time the Cougars have sold out four straight games at Robertson Stadium.
• Twelve (12) true-freshmen have played for the Cougars this season opener -- TE Kenneth Bibbins, Jr., QB Terrance Broadway, DB Kent Brooks, DL Jeremiah Farley, DB Aaron Johnson, DB D.J. Jones, WR Darian Lazard, P Richie Leone, DB Zach McMillan, LB Efrem Oliphant, QB David Piland and LB Austin Wilson.
• Houston football is in its 65th season of the program.
• With last year's trip to the Air Force Bowl, the Cougars have been to a school-record five straight bowl games and six bowl games in seven seasons.
• One UH opponent became bowl eligible after this weekend's games -- Mississippi State (6-2).
• Houston is the only FBS team in the NCAA with a minority head coach, offensive coordinator and defensive coordinator.

CONFERENCE LEADERS
Houston or Cougar players lead the conference in:
- Bryce Beall, RB, scoring (10.3 pts per game)
- Bryce Beall, RB, touchdown scoring (1.7 per game)
- Patrick Edwards, WR, punt returns (12.1 per return)
- Sammy Brown, LB, tackles for loss (1.79 per game)
- Matt Nicholson, LB, fumbles recovered (0.43 rpg)
- Team, scoring offense (39.6 ppg)
- Team, Third-Down Conversions (55.1 pct)
- Red Zone Defense (78.1 percent)

LEADING THE WAY
• Head coach Kevin Sumlin is in his third season at Houston in 2010. In only two-plus seasons, the Cougar coach has established himself as one of the nation's premier collegiate leaders, compiling a 22-12 (.647) record and back-to-back bowl appearances.
• He is the only head coach in school history to lead the Cougars to bowl appearances in each of his first two seasons.
• Entering the 2010 season, Sumlin currently has the highest winning percentage in school history and ranks seventh in total wins. He is tied for sixth on that list, along with Jack Pardee's 22 wins from 1987-89.
• In June, Sumlin was honored by the Black Coaches and Administrators as its Fritz Pollard Male Coach of the Year.
• Sumlin has an undefeated record vs. ranked opponents with wins over No. 5 Oklahoma State in 2009 and over No. 23 East Carolina and No. 24 Tulsa in 2008.

OFFENSIVE NOTES
• Houston ranks ninth nationally in scoring offense with 39.6 points per game and leads Conference USA. The total offense average of 442.6 ranks in the top 20 at No. 17. The passing and total offense are the second-best in the league through seven games and both are in the nation's top 25.
• The Cougars are 89.0 percent in the red zone this season, scoring 33 times in 37 tries. Among those scores are 26 touchdowns and seven field goals.
• Houston leads the conference and fourth in the NCAA in third-down coversions at 55.1 percent (54-of-98).
• Four different Houston quarterbacks have completed passes to 14 different receivers this season.
• UH has scored 19 rushing touchdowns through seven games. The school record for rushing touchdowns in a season is 36 in 1968. Bryce Beall broke the school career record for rushing touchdowns with 32.
• Junior running back Bryce Beall was named the Conference USA's Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 13 for his 195-yard rushing performance in the league-opening 54-24 win over UTEP. In the game, he averaged 10.3 yards per carry and scored three touchdowns.
• Beall leads the conference in scoring and ranks 10th nationally with 10.3 points per game. He has 12 rushing touchdowns in seven games. He is second in Conference USA with 89.9 rushing yards per game. He has rushed for over 100 yards in three games this season (at Rice, vs. UTEP and Tulane, with a career-best 195 yards vs. the Miners.)
• True-freshman quarterback David Piland led the UH offense on a 99-yard drive vs. Rice, the longest of the season, which ended in a 49-yard touchdown pass to Patrick Edwards.
• In three games, Piland has thrown six touchdown passes and averaged 272.0 passing yards per contest.
• The first-team offense was on the field for seven minutes in the season opener vs. Texas State. In 7:21, the offense scored 48 points, scored seven touchdowns, accumulated 342 yards of total offense and completed 17 passes including big plays of 63, 40 and 35 yards.

GROUND SURGE
The Houston offense has always been known for its explosive passing game, but through six games, the run game has become just as successful. With the 1-2 punch of junior running backs Bryce Beall and Michael Hayes, the Cougars are averaging 158.1 yards per game. Against UTEP, UH recorded 308 rushing yards, marking the first time the Cougars have topped 300 on the ground since Nov. 24, 2007 vs. Texas Southern (377).

Hayes and Beall have worked as a two-headed tailback and combined have posted 886 yards in seven games, 126.6 yards per game on 184 carries. The pair have scored 19 touchdowns. Beall also topped 2,000 yards rushing for his career and now ranks seventh on the school's all-time rushing list as a junior. He needs just 50 yards to move up to sixth.

Beall put up a career-best 195 yards against UTEP, and had 100-yard games vs. Tulane and at Rice. Beall ranks second in the league 89.9-yard average and is averaging 5.7 yards per carry. He also leads the conference and ranks 10th nationally in scoring with 10.3 points per game, 12 touchdowns. Hayes has seven touchdowns, ranking seventh in Conference USA with 6.9 points per game.

DEFENSIVE CHANGES
Sumlin made changes to the defensive coaching staff during the offseason, bringing in long-time professional and college coach Brian Stewart to serve as defensive coordinator. Stewart spent the past nine years in the NFL ranks, including a three-year stint as defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys. He brought with him the 3-4 style, which has differed from the 4-3 run by the Cougars in Sumlin's first two seasons.

QUICK DRAW McGRAW
Junior linebacker Marcus McGraw is in his third year as a starter and leads the team in tackles for the second straight year with 9.3 per game. In 2009 he averaged 11.1 per game and ranked fifth nationally and led Conference USA. This season, he has 65 tackles, ranking seventh in the league, along with 1.5 sacks, one interception and two forced and recovered fumbles including one 33-yard return. He has led the UH defense in tackles in four of the seven games played this season. McGraw leads Conference USA in fumble recoveries per game and ranks second in forced fumbles. He topped 300 in career tackles and now has 324 in three seasons.

DEFENSIVE NOTES
• Sammy Brown has come on strong in the past two games, recording nine tackles for a loss of 41 yards and four quarterback sacks (-27 yards). He lead the team with eight tackles in Houston's win over SMU and had eight against Rice.
• Houston's new aggressive play has paid off through five games with 48 tackles for loss and 13 quarterback sacks. The Cougars are averaging 6.9 tackles for loss per game after only posting 4.6 per contest in 2009.
• Seven different UH player have recorded nine interceptions this season. Loyce Means has a team high three, and Jeremy Smith, Matt Nicholson, Nick Saenz, Phillip Steward, Marcus McGraw and Jacky Candy each have one.
• The Houston defense has forced 14 turnovers in seven games, five fumbles and nine interceptions. The Cougars have scored 58 points off turnovers. The offense has scored seven times off turnovers, and the defense has returned two interceptions for touchdowns. Senior linebacker Matt Nicholson had an interception return 42 yards for a touchdown vs. Texas State and senior corner Loyce Means had a 42-yard return vs. Tulane.
• Senior cornerback Loyce Means was named the Conference USA's Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 27 for his two-interception performance in the Cougars' 42-23 win over Tulane. Leading by five points, Means' two picks led to two scores, including his own 42-yard touchdown return, to ensure the win.
• Means ranks second in Conference USA in interceptions with 0.43 per game and is third in the conference in passes defended with 1.17 per game. He has recorded three interceptions and knocked away another five passes.
• Against UCLA, the defense was given a short field to work with. The average starting field position for the Bruins was the Houston 44 yard line. UCLA only averaged 5.4 yards per play vs. the UH defense. The Bruins were held under 100 yards passing with just 99 on 17 attempts.

INJURY UPDATE
Senior starting quarterback Case Keenum will miss the remainder of 2010 with a season-ending torn ACL knee injury. Additionally, junior back-up Cotton Turner suffered a fractured clavicle also resulting in the end of his play this year. Both quarterbacks sustained injuries in UH's game vs. UCLA on Sept. 18. Keenum left at the four-minute mark of the second quarter, while Turner went down at 4:09 in the third quarter.

The Cougars are also without two defensive linemen when nose guard Matangi Tonga went down with a knee injury vs. Mississippi State with a diagnosis of four weeks out. Before the Rice game, defensive end Radermon Scypion suffered a broken leg and is out for the season.

EDWARDS DEFYING THE ODDS
Houston's leading receiver Patrick Edwards knows the word adversity. He came to UH as a walk-on and earned a scholarship from head coach Kevin Sumlin in 2008. That same year, he suffered a devastating broken leg in a game against Marshall. However in 2010, Edwards leads the team with 38 receptions for 561 yards. He has twice posted 100-yard games, at Rice and vs. UTEP. Against Rice he topped the 2,000-career receiving yard mark, becoming one of only nine Cougar receivers to hit that milestone. He caught three touchdown passes vs. the Owls and now has six for the season. He ranks third in the conference in receiving yards and sixth in receptions per game.

SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
• Through seven games, sophomore placekicker Matt Hogan is 7-for-9 on field goal attempts. His seven field goals combined with 34 extra points made gives him 55 points scored for the season, which is an average of 7.9 per game. That average ranks fifth in Conference USA in total scoring and is fourth in kick scoring. He has also made 19-of-21 field goals in his career at Houston, for 90.4 percent.
• Senior tight end Wesley Scourten blocked two field goal attempts vs. Mississippi State, bringing his season total of field goal blocks to three (one vs. Tulane). The 6-6 block specialist also blocked two field goals and a punt in 2008. He missed the 2009 season with an injury. He now has six blocks for his career.
• The Houston special teams have blocked three kicks this season, bringing the total under Coach Sumlin to 14 in two-plus seasons.
• Starting punter true-freshman Richie Leone has averaged 42.5 yards on 21 punts, including 10 inside the 20 yard line and four over 50 yards. Against Tulane, he averaged 50.5 yards with punts of 63, 54 and 51 yards.
• Junior receiver Patrick Edwards leads the conference and ranks 20th nationally with his 12.1-yard average on punt returns. He has returned 13 punts in seven games, including a long of 40 vs. Texas State.
• The duo of Jordan Mannisto and Leone have combined for 50 kickoffs in seven games, 11 of which have gone for touchbacks. Mannisto averaged 64.4 yards on his 18 kickoffs, with six touchbacks and Leone has a 64.6 average with five touchbacks.
• Junior receiver/kick returner Tyron Carrier was named the Conference USA's Preseason Special Teams Player of the Year.

CATCHES STREAK
Junior receiver Tyron Carrier has caught a pass in every game of his college career, 34, which ranks fourth among active receivers in the NCAA. 44 - Scotty McKnight (Colorado, Sr.)
38 - Dwayne Harris (East Carolina, Sr.)
35 - Jock Sanders (West Virginia, Sr.)
34 - Tyron Carrier (Houston, Jr.); Greg Salas (Hawaii, Sr.)
33 - Damaris Johnson (Tulsa, Jr.);
32 - Ryan Broyles (Oklahoma, Jr.); Kito Poblah (Central Michigan, Sr.); Kendall Wright (Baylor, Jr.); Kris Adams (UTEP, Sr.)

TAKING IT TO THE HOUSE
As talented as junior Tyron Carrier has been as a wide receiver, he is just as impressive with his abilities on special teams. With his 91-yard kickoff return for a touchdown at SMU, Carrier recorded his sixth touchdown off kickoffs. In 2009, Carrier led the Cougars and the nation with four kickoff returns for touchdowns, including a 79-yard effort against Air Force during the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl. He is the only player in school history with multiple kickoff return scores in a single season. Carrier is now just one touchdown from tying Clemson's C.J. Spiller's NCAA record of seven kickoff return touchdowns set from 2006 to 2009. In seven games, Carrier has returned 28 kicks for 680 yards, a 24.3 yard per return average. He has 5,033 all-purpose yards in three years, becoming only the third player in school history to hit 5,000.

OFFENSIVE ACCOMPLISHMENTS UNDER SUMLIN
• Houston became only the third team in NCAA history to have a 5,000-yard passer and three 1,000-yard receivers when it accomplished the feat in 2009. The other two teams are Texas Tech (2002) and Tulsa (2007).
• Case Keenum was only the second quarterback in NCAA history to pass for over 5,000 yards in two different seasons (2008, 2009). The other was Texas Tech's Graham Harrell in 2007 and 2008.
• In 2008, Keenum passed for over 5,000 yards, running back Bryce Beall rushed for over 1,000 and receiver Tyron Carrier caught for over 1,000 yards, marking only the second time in NCAA history.
• UH became the fourth team in NCAA history to have three 1,000-yard receivers when Tyron Carrier, James Cleveland and Patrick Edwards each eclipsed the mark --the other teams were Texas Tech 2002, Hawaii in 2007 and Tulsa in 2007.

POSITION CHANGE
With the start of the season, one player will be making a position change in 2010. After competing for three seasons on the defensive side of the ball, senior Isaiah Thompson will make the move to left guard in 2010. In three seasons at nose tackle, Thompson competed in 31 games, racking up 75 tackles and a fumble recovery. In his final game on the defensive line, he tallied a career-high nine tackles against Air Force at the 2009 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl. Thompson has started all seven games of 2010 at left guard and the offensive line has helped a balanced UH offense rank in the top-25 nationally in total, passing and scoring offense.

EARLY ENROLLEES
Two Cougars used the spring season as a head start for fall training camp. Senior defensive tackle Matangi Tonga (College of San Mateo) and junior linebacker Sammy Brown (Mississippi Gulf Coast CC) wore the Scarlet and White for the first time.

TOUGH TO BEAT AT THE ROB
Dating back to the 2005 season finale vs. Rice, the Cougars have taken advantage of playing at home on John O'Quinn Field at Robertson Stadium. The Cougars lost to Mississippi State on Oct. 9, 24-47, but still have a 27-3 (.900) record at home in their last 30 games. Even more impressive, the Cougars' margin of victory in those 27 wins is a remarkable 24.4 points per game (659 points in 27 wins).

EXCITEMENT FOR THE SEASON
• There is a different feel around the University of Houston campus in 2010. The first four games at Robertson Stadium have been sell outs (32,000) marking the first time in Robertson Stadium history that the Cougars have sold out four consecutive games.
• The season ticket base for 2009 was 6,310 and one year later that number has increased 82 percent to 11,477, the largest increase in the NCAA this season.

KEENUM'S ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Prior to his season-ending injury, senior quarterback Case Keenun was in the race to break NCAA career records for total offense, passing yards, touchdowns, pass attempts and completions. After two-plus games played in 2010, Keenum will wrap up the year with 14,448 career yards of total offense (7th), 13,586 passing yards (5th), 107 touchdown passes (8th), 1,626 pass attempts (10th), 1,118 pass completions (7th).

Keenum passed for 274 yards and recorded 22 pass attempts vs. Texas State and with both he became the Houston career record holder in each, passing Kevin Kolb (2003-06). He is the school record holder in passing yards, total offense, passing touchowns, attempts and completions. Keenum also holds Houston's single-season records for completions, attempts, passing yards and total offense.

Keenum finished eighth in the 2009 Heisman trophy voting, and led the nation in passing offense and total offense in 2009 and ranked No. 1 in total offense and second in passing in 2008. He led Houston to a No. 1 ranking in the NCAA in passing offense, total offense and scoring offense in 2009.

He passed for 5,671 yards in 2009, the third-highest passing total in NCAA Division I-FBS single-season history and joined Texas Tech's Graham Harrell as one of only two players to pass for 5,000 yards in two seasons.

Keenum had 25 300-yard passing performances during his career and led Houston to 14 career come-from-behind victories.

COUGAR SUCCESS ACROSS THE BOARD
First-year Cougar volleyball coach Molly Alvey and her squad has won seven of their last nine matches and 7-4 record in Conference USA. In wins over SMU, UAB, USM (2), UTEP, Tulane and UCF, the squad has only dropped four sets. With 13 wins, the team has already surpassed its nine total victories from a year ago.

The UH women's soccer team is off to its best start in program history with its 11-4-3 record. Head coach Susan Bush's squad have won eight out of their last 11 matches and has only allowed seven goals in league play. In the past 12 matches, the Coogs are outscoring their opponents 22-7.