University of Houston Athletics
Game Notes Week 5 - Houston at UTEP
9/27/2011 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 27, 2011
Todd Harris, play-by-play
Doug Chapman, analyst
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Tom Franklin, play-by-play
Ted Pardee, analyst
Chuck Brown, sideline
Game Notes Central
Houston Game Notes UTEP Game Notes Conference USA Game Notes
Fast Facts on the Series
Series Record Overall Series Tied, 4-4
Series Record in El Paso, UTEP leads 4-1
Series Record in Houston, Houston leads 3-0
First Meeting, UTEP 21, Houston 7 (Oct. 26, 1046)
Last Meeting, Houston 54, UTEP 24 (Sept. 10, 2010)
THE SERIES
Thursday's game marks the ninth game between the two teams and the rubber match in the series with each team winning four games.
Head coach Kevin Sumlin is 2-1 against UTEP in his three previous meetings, while UTEP head coach Mike Price is 2-6 vs. Houston.
Sumlin's first coaching position was under Price as a graduate assistant at Washington State.
UH Director of Athletics Mack Rhoades was the executive senior associate athletic director at UTEP for seven years from 2000-06.
COUGARS VS. THE MINERS
This Thursday's game will be the fifth for senior quarterback Case Keenum against UTEP. In those four games, Keenum has completed 70.2 percent of his throws on 120-for-171 passing. He has totaled 1,311 yards and nine touchdowns. Twice he has topped the 400-yard passing mark with 536 yards in 2009. In last season's game vs. the Miners, Keenum suffered a mild concussion and left the game in the third quarter with 279 passing yards, but it snapped his 31-game touchdown pass streak.
Senior running back Bryce Beall has rushed for two 100-yard games against UTEP in his career (2010, 2008). He has carried the ball 52 times for 430 yards and four touchdowns. His best game vs. the Miners was in 2010 -- 195 yards and three touchdowns, 10.2 yards per carry.
Receiver Tyron Carrier has two 100-yard receiving games against UTEP (2009, 2008). He has caught 22 passes for 266 yards and two touchdowns. His best game was in 2008 with 141 yards on nine catches and a score.
Senior receiver Patrick Edwards has only played in two game against UTEP with 14 receptions for 198 yards, an average of 14 yards a catch.
Senior linebacker Marcus McGraw has recorded 24 tackles in his three previous games against the Miners. Other highlights include a fumble recovery for 33 yards, a tackle for loss and two passes broken up.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Case Keenum, QB, SR.
Case Keenum is now the winningest quarterback in school history with a 28-13 record leading the Cougars. Keenum has a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 12-2. He recorded his 14th 400-yard game of his career with his 415 yards passing against Georgia State in three quarters of play. He has returned to the elite in college football leading the NCAA in total offense and second in passing.
Bryce Beall, RB, SR.
Senior running back Bryce Beall has had great games against UTEP with his 195 yards rushing last season. In three games vs. UTEP he has totaled 430 yards and four touchdowns. He has averaged 8.3 yards per carry vs. the Miners. Beall has nine 100-yard games in his career and holds the UH record for rushing and total touchdowns.
FOR OPENERS
With Saturday's win, the Cougars improved to 4-0 for the seventh time in school history. It is the first time since 2006 and only the second time since 1990. Other Houston teams that started 4-0 were: 1989, 1979, 1973, and 1966.
Through four games, Houston is back as the NCAA's top passing team with 446.3 yards per game. The team also ranks third in total offense with 585.0 per contest and 11th in scoring offense at 44.25 points per game. All three of those numbers are the best in Conference USA.
Senior linebacker Sammy Brown leads the NCAA and Conference USA in tackles for loss with 9.5 through four games. Dating back the last 11 games (to Rice in 2010), Brown has recorded 27 tackles for loss, an average of 2.45 TFL per game.
As a team Houston ranks third the NCAA in net punting with 44.07 yards per game.
After the fourth week of play, Houston is receiving 25 votes in the Associated Press poll for 27th and 70 votes in the USA Today Coaches' Poll, good enough for No. 26.
Keenum needs 911 yards to break the NCAA career total offense record and 674 passing yards to move to No. 2 on the NCAA all-time passing yardage list, past Graham Harrell of Texas Tech.
The Cougars have been to six bowl games in the last eight seasons.
TEAM NOTES
In Houston's 48-23 win over North Texas, the Cougars outscored the Mean Green 28-6 in the second half and 28-14 in the second half in their 35-34 win over Louisiana Tech.
Saturday's win vs. Georgia State was the biggest since a 73-14 win against Rice on Nov. 28, 2009.
In the season opener, the Cougars started nine new players, including the entire defensive secondary with junior college transfers Chevy Bennett at FS, D.J. Hayden at CB, Texas A&M transfer Colton Valencia at SS and sophomore Zach McMillian at CB. The defense also had first-time starters at middle linebacker in true-freshman Derrick Mathews and junior college transfer noseguard Dominic Smith. On the offensive side, there were three new faces on the offensive line in right tackle Rowdy Harper, and guards Ty Cloud and Kevin Forsch.
CARDIAC COOGS
In Houston's 35-34 win over Louisiana Tech, the Cougars had to overcome a 27-point deficit, the largest in school history. It topped the previous record of 19 points (down 28-9, 3:46 left in 3rd quarter) vs. Conference USA-rival UTEP in a 42-37 win on Nov. 22, 2008.
It was the biggest come-from-behind road win since a 31-30 win against Rice (down 30-14, 6:20 left in 3rd quarter) on Sept. 2, 2006.
The comeback began with 4:27 in the thrid quarter when Case Keenum connected with Patrick Edwards for a 50-yard touchdown in a drive which only took 44 seconds off the clock. UH continued with three touchdowns in the fourth quarter, including a back-of-the-end zone grab by Edwards with 1:36 left to go in the game. The defense held Louisiana Tech to 69 yards in the fourth quarter and forced two turnovers as well as a fourth-down stand.
With Saturday's win, Keenum has engineered three of the top four biggest comebacks in Houston history:
- 27 points down at Louisiana Tech in a 35-34 win (Sept. 17, 2011)
- 19 points down vs. UTEP in a 42-37 win (Nov. 22, 2008)
- 17 points down vs. UAB in a 45-20 win (Oct. 9, 2008)
KEENUM CHASES NCAA RECORDS
After throwing for 5,020 yards as a sophomore in 2008 and 5,671 in 2009, senior quarterback Case Keenum has the chance to become the first quarterback in FBS history to have three seasons with at least 5,000 yards passing. Through four games in 2011, he has passed for 1,552 yards.
Keenum threw for 415 yards against Georgia State to improve to third on the NCAA career passing yardage passing BYU's Ty Detmer's 15,031 yards.
Keenum totaled 404 yards of total offense against Georgia State to move past both Graham Harrell of Texas Tech and Dan LeFevour of Central Michigan for second on the NCAA's career total offense chart. He is 910 yards shy of Hawaii's Timmy Chang and the NCAA record.
Keenum threw two touchdown passes against Georgia State to take over sole possession of fourth on the NCAA all-time touchdown pass list with 119.
NCAA FBS All-Time Total OffenseRk. Player School Years Yards1. Timmy Chang Hawaii 2000-04 16,9102. Case Keenum Houston 2007- 16,000
NCAA FBS All-Time Passing YardageRk. Player School Years Yards1. Timmy Chang Hawaii 2000-04 17,0722. Graham Harrell Texas Tech 2005-08 15,7933. Case Keenum Houston 2007- 15,120
NCAA FBS All-Time Touchdown PassesRk. Player School Years Yards1. Graham Harrell Texas Tech 2005-08 1342. Colt Brennan Hawaii 2005-07 1313. Ty Detmer BYU 1988-91 1214. Case Keenum Houston 2007- 119
SIXTH TIMES THE CHARM
Senior quarterback Case Keenum learned in January 2011 he had been granted a sixth season of eligibility after suffering a torn ACL vs. UCLA in the third game of the 2010 season. Keenum returns to captain a UH team which has won 28 games with him at the helm in four years as a starter.
KEENUM'S ACCOMPLISHMENTS
After leading the nation in total offense in 2008 and 2009, quarterback Case Keenum is back at the top with the No. 1 ranking through four games with 388.0 yards per game. He currently ranks second in passing offense with 383.5 yards per contest.
In 2008, he ranked No. 1 with 403.2 yards per game and repeated in the category with 416.4 yards in 2009. He also led the nation in passing in 2009. Keenum is only the seventh quarterback in FBS history to lead the nation in total offense in consecutive seasons, and the last since Hawaii's Colt Brennan accomplished the feat in 2005-06. If Keenum matches that success in 2011, he could join Louisiana Tech's Tim Rattay (1997-99) as the only quarterback to lead the nation in total offense three years in his career.
Keenum is the school record holder in passing yards, total offense, passing touchowns, attempts and completions. He 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 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 has had 29 300-yard passing performances in his career, 14 over 400 yards, and has led Houston to 15 career come-from-behind victories. He has also completed passes to 30 different receivers in his five-year career as a starter.
START ME UP FOR KEENUM
Quarterback Case Keenum has 28 wins as the starting quarterback for the Cougars, breaking Kevin Kolb record for most wins by a UH quarterback. Keenum is 28-13 as a starter, winning 68 percent of his games. He also has the second most wins of all active NCAA quarterbacks, behind only Kellen Moore's 41 wins at Boise State.
Most Wins - Active FBS QuarterbacksRk. Name School Wins1. Kellen Moore Boise State 412. Case Keenum Houston 283. Andrew Luck Stanford 23Tim Jefferson Air Force 235. Russell Wilson Wisconsin 22 (18 wins came at N.C. State / 4 at Wisconsin)6. Austin Davis Southern Miss 21Landry Jones Oklahoma 218. Matt Barkley USC 20Stephen Garcia South Carolina 20Jordan Jefferson LSU 2011. Kirk Cousins Michigan State 19
Best Winning Percentage - Active FBS QuarterbacksRk Name School Pct. (W-L)1. Kellen Moore Boise State .953 (41-2)2. Andrew Luck Stanford .821 (23-5)3. Landry Jones Oklahoma .778 (21-6)4. Jordan Jefferson LSU .741 (20-7)5. Matt Barkley USC .714 (20-8)6. Case Keenum Houston .683 (28-13)7. Tim Jefferson Air Force .676 (23-11)8. Kirk Cousins Michigan State .655 (19-10)9. Austin Davis Southern Miss .600 (21-14)10. G.J. Kinne Tulsa .552 (16-13)
GOING FOR THE TRI-FECTA
Senior receivers Tyron Carrier and Patrick Edwards have both posted two 1,000-yard receiving seasons. If either, or both, receivers record a third 1,000-yard season they will accomplish something no previous Cougar has.
Edwards, the former walk-on, missed four games of the 2008 season after a devastating leg injury. One year later (2009), he posted 1,021 receiving yards on 85 catches. In 2010 he followed up his performance with 1,100 (71 catches). He has 17 catches for 365 yards in four games, including a career-best performance of 178 yards vs. North Texas. He ranks third Conference USA in receiving yards and ranks 36th nationally.
Carrier recorded his two 1,000-yard seasons in 2008 and 2009 with 1,026 and 1,029, respectively. He got off to a great start in 2011 with a 10-catch performance for 138 yards in the season opener vs. UCLA. He has 27 receptions for 326 yards through four games and ranks fourth in C-USA in receiving yards.
The duo both rank in the UH top-10 all-time receiving yards -- Edwards fourth with 3,120 yards and Carrier sixth with 2,861.
RUSH HOUR
UH has been known for its passing offense, however have a stable of running backs to strengthen the ground game.The Cougars return three running backs -- seniors Bryce Beall and Michael Hayes and sophomore Charles Sims -- with starting experience and a combined career yardage of 4,604. Among the three, Beall (2008) and Sims (2009) were honored as Conference USA Freshmen of the Year in their respective seasons.
In each of the first four games, the three have rushed for over 100 yards with a best of 148 yards against Georgia State. Beall has rushed for five touchdowns and Hayes another four.
BEALL'S A RINGING
Senior running back Bryce Beall has 3,011 rushing yards in three-plus years at UH, which currently ranks third on the school's career rushing yards list. He needs 626 yards in his senior season to become Houston's all-time rusher and surpass record-holder Ketric Sanford's (1996-99) 3,636 yards. Beall ran for 1,247 yards as a freshman, 670 as a sophomore in 2009 and 870 last year. He has rushed for 160 yards this season.
Beall earned first-team All-Conference USA honors in 2010 and broke the UH career record for total and rushing touchdowns after scoring 12 last season. In three-plus seasons, he has rushed for 37 touchdowns and has 44 total for his career. He also has averaged 5.6 yards per rush.
CAREER 100-YARD RUSHING GAMES (Active Players):1. 21 Montel Harris, Sr., Boston College2. 20 LaMichael James, Jr., Oregon3. 17 Lance Dunbar, Sr., North Texas4. 15 Bobby Rainey, Sr., Western Kentucky5. 14 Rodney Stewart, Sr., Colorado 14 Chris Polk, Jr., Washington7. 12 Cyrus Gray, Sr., Texas A&M 12 Bernard Pierce, Jr., Temple 12 Denard Robinson, Jr., Michigan10. 10 Doug Martin, Sr., Boise State 10 Alfred Morris, Sr., FAU 10 Ronnie Hillman, Soph., San Diego State 10 Robert Turbin, Jr., Utah State14. 9 Bryce Beall, Sr., Houston
THE OFFENSE UNDER SUMLIN
In three-plus seasons at Houston, Kevin Sumlin has created an offense with gaudy numbers ranked among the nation's best each season. It's tough to match the numbers posted in 2009 when three phases ranked No. 1 nationally. However, through four games, UH has returned to the top of the rankings in passing offense and ranks third in total offense.
Year Passing (Rk) Total (Rk) Scoring (Rk)2011 446.3 (1st) 585.0 (3rd) 44.3 (11th)2010 327.2 (5th) 480.5 (11th) 37.7 (13th)2009 433.7 (1st) 563.4 (1st) 42.2 (1st)2008 401.6 (2nd) 562.8 (2nd) 40.6 (10th)
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 is 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.
GOIN' STREAKING
Senior receivers Tyron Carrier and Patrick Edwards have caught a pass in every game of their college careers. Carrier is on a streak of 43 consecutive games with a catch, which is tied for most in the country. Edwards ranks fourth nationally with 38 straight games played with a reception.
43 -- Tyron Carrier (Houston, Sr.)
42 -- Ryan Broyles (Oklahoma, Sr.)
40 -- Kendall Wright (Baylor, Sr.)
38 -- Patrick Edwards (Houston, Sr.); Joe Adams (Arkansas, Sr.); B.J. Cunningham (Michigan State, Sr.)
36 -- Jeff Fuller (Texas A&M, Sr.)
EDWARDS DEFYING THE ODDS
Houston 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 led the team with 70 receptions for 1,100 yards.
Edwards has topped the 2,000-career receiving yard mark, becoming one of only nine Cougar receivers to hit that milestone. If he puts together another 1,000-yard season, he could become the school's all-time receiving yards record holder.
OFFENSIVE NOTES
Houston leads Conference USA in first downs with 29.0 per game and third-down conversions with a rate of 60.3 percent.
Houston finished the game against Georgia State with 709 yards of total offense. It was the Cougars' highest offensive output since posting 750 yards (191 rush, 559 pass) during a 50-43 win against Southern Miss on Oct. 31, 2009.
With a win over Louisiana Tech, quarterback Case Keenum became the University of Houston's all-time winningest quarterback passing former UH and current Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kevin Kolb. Keenum has won 28 games in 41 starts.
Keenum's 415 yards vs. Georgia State was his 14th 400-yard passing performance of his career.
Senior receiver Tyron Carrier posted his first 100-yard performance since the 2009 season with his 10 catches for 138 yards in the season opener against UCLA.
The University of Houston offense has led the nation in total offense seven times, which is the most in the NCAA, tied with Arizona State and Tulsa. UH has been the national total offense leader in 2009, 1992, 1990, 1989, 1968, 1967 and 1966 .
The Cougars' offense is led by coordinators Jason Phillips and Kliff Kingsbury. Both enjoyed illustrious collegiate careers which led to time in the NFL. Phillips was an All-America receiver at the University of Houston, leading the nation in receiving yards in both 1987 and `88. He was drafted by Detroit in 1989 and went on to an eight-year career in the NFL. Kingsbury recorded more than 12,000 yards passing in his All-America career at Texas Tech. He was a sixth-round draft pick by the New England Patriots.
Senior receiver Patrick Edwards earned Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week honors for his 187-yard performance in Houston's 48-23 win over North Texas. He averaged 23.4 yards per catch and scored on a 46-yard pass from Keenum.
Keenum has twice this season been named the Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week. The first for his 310-yard, two touchdown performance vs. UCLA in the season opener when he completed 75 percent of his passes. The second was after he led UH from a 27-point deficit to defeat Louisiana Tech, 35-34. In that game, he passed for 351 yards and three touchdowns.
QUICK DRAW MCGRAW
Linebacker Marcus McGraw has started 43 straight games, every contest of his collegiate career, dating back to his true freshman season in 2008. With 394 total career tackles, McGraw ranks third in the UH record books, needing 98 to break the all-time mark held by Ryan McCoy (1990-93). He has gotten his senior season off to a great start with 41 total tackles in the first four games, which ranks 22nd in the NCAA and seventh in Conference USA.
He has topped the century mark in tackles in three consecutive seasons with 103 as a freshman, 156 as a sophomore and 110 in 2010. McGraw has also led the team in tackles three straight years, joining a group of only three other UH players who have accomplished that feat. He could be the second defender in school history to be the team leader in tackles all four years of college.
As a sophomore he led the conference and ranked fifth in the NCAA in tackles with 11.1 per game. McGraw was named Second Team All-Conference USA in both 2009 and 2010 as one of the league's top defensive players.
DEFENSIVE NOTES
The 56-0 victory over Georgia State was the Cougars' first shutout since a 45-0 win against Louisiana-Lafayette on Sept. 18, 1999 - a streak of 146 games.
Georgia State's 133 passing yards was the fewest by a Cougar opponent since Memphis recorded 92 yards on Oct. 30, 2010. GSU's 241 yards of total offense (108 rush, 133 pass) was the fewest by a Cougar opponent since Texas Southern finished with 179 yards (48 rush, 131 pass) on Nov. 24, 2007.
The Houston defense has been a strong second-half team. It held UNT to six second-half points and allowed only 107 yards of total offense in the final two quarters (46 rushing and 61 passing) in UH's 48-23 win over the Mean Green. Against Louisiana Tech, the defense kept the Bulldogs from scoring in 6-of-8 drives in the final two quarters.
Senior linebacker Sammy Brown has picked up where he left off in 2010 adding 9.5 tackles for loss in the first four games in 2011. Dating back the last 11 games (to Rice in 2010), Brown has recorded 27 tackles for loss, an average of 2.45 TFL per game. He currently leads the NCAA and Conference USA (also led the league in 2010).
The UH defense has recorded four interceptions in the first four games. Junior D.J. Hayden recorded his first collegiate interception in the Cougars' win over North Texas, which also marked the first by the UH defense in 2011. Against Louisiana Tech, back-up cornerback Thomas Bates aided the defense with two picks, the first two of his career. Marcus McGraw added his second career interception against Georgia State.
BLOCK PARTY
In three-plus seasons under head coach Kevin Sumlin, the UH football team has blocked 18 kicks, second-most in the country during that time span. The 18 blocks have come from eight different players and include eight field goals, seven extra point attempts and three punts.
In the 2011 season opener vs. UCLA, the Cougars had a crucial blocked kick on a Bruin extra-point attempt in the fourth quarter. UCLA had a chance to get the score within three points after a late touchdown, but the UH block kept the margin at four points, which was the final score difference for the win, 38-34. UH followed up that performance with another blocked extra point at North Texas.
MOST BLOCKED KICKS SINCE 2008
22 -- Fresno State
18 -- Houston, Middle Tennessee
17 -- Florida, Texas
15 -- USC
12 -- UL-Lafayette
11 -- Rutgers, Air Force
CARRIER TAKING IT TO THE HOUSE
Senior kick returner Tyron Carrier has six returns for touchdowns over his four years at Houston, including four during the 2009 season. In 2010, he added another touchdown to his total with a 91-yard return at SMU. 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 former Clemson running back C.J. Spiller's NCAA record of seven kickoff return touchdowns set from 2006 to 2009. Carrier had the school's most kickoff return yardage in a single season in 2010 with 1,174 yards on 50 returns.
He has 6,295 all-purpose yards in four years, and with his 180 yards in the season opener he broke the school career record. Here is a list of Carrier's six returns:
1st - 93 yards vs. Tulsa, 11/15/08
2nd - 92 yards vs. SMU, 10/24/09
3rd - 98 yards at Tulsa, 11/7/09
4th - 99 yards vs. Rice, 11/28/09
5th - 79 yards vs. Air Force, 12/31/09 (Bell Helicopter Armed Forced Bowl)
6th - 91 yds at SMU, 10/23/10
SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
Placekicker Matt Hogan is perfect this season hitting all three of his field goal attempts, while also going 24-for-24 in extra points.
Hogan hit his 29 career field goals and is now 29-of-32 in his three years at Houston, connecting on 90.6 percent of his attempts. He has connected on 116 career extra points in 125 attempts. He is just the fourth UH placekicker to surpass 100 made PATs. Hogan leads Conference USA in kick scoring, field goal percentage and PAT percentage.
Punter Richie Leone has averaged 47.9 yards on 14 punts, including seven over 50 yards. He ranks second in the NCAA rankings. He has landed four punts inside the 20 yard line and seven have been fair caught. Of the 14 punts only four have been returned for an average of just 3.5 yards per return.
POSITION CHANGES
After starting 36 games at offensive guard for Houston the past three years, senior Chris Thompson has moved to center. He has started 40 career games at UH. In the season opener vs. UCLA he scored a touchdown on a fumble recovery. Thompson has been a part of offensive lines that led the nation in total offense in 2008 and 2009 and ranked in the top-15 in 2010. With four games played, UH is back as the NCAA's No. 1 passing team and ranks No. 3 in total offense.
Junior Kelvin King played two seasons at linebacker before being moved full-time to defensive end. In two years at linebacker, he totaled 6.5 tackles for a loss of 34 yards and three sacks. This season, he has seven tackles, two for loss and a sack.
JUCO NATIONAL TITLES
The Cougars have five players on the roster who are no strangers to winning national titles. Junior college transfers DL Dominic Miller, RB Michael Hayes and OL Josh McNeil from Blinn (Brenham, Texas) won a title in 2009. Defensive backs Chevy Bennett and D.J. Hayden transferred from Navarro (Corsicana, Texas) after winning the title in 2010.
TOUGH TO BEAT AT THE ROB
The Cougars have taken advantage of playing at home at Robertson Stadium. Dating back to the 2006 season, UH is 28-5 record (.848) at home. Even more impressive, the Cougars' margin of victory in those 27 wins is a remarkable 24.7 points per game (694 in 28 wins).
AGAINST NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS
Kevin Sumlin has a 10-6 (11-7 including bowl games) in his first three-plus years at UH against nonconference opponents. Outside of Houston's eight conference games on the schedule in 2011, the Cougars battle schools from the Pac-10 (UCLA, W, 38-34), Sun Belt (North Texas, W, 48-23), WAC (Louisiana Tech, W, 35-34) and one independent (Georgia State, W, 56-0).
Conference Record Under Sumlin Team (Result, Year)Big 12 2-2 Oklahoma State (L, 37-56, 2008; W, 45-35, 2009) Texas Tech (W, 29-28, 2009; L, 20-35)Independent 1-0 Georgia State (W, 56-0)MWC 1-3 Air Force (L, 28-31, 2008; W, 34-28, 2008*; L, 20-47, 2009*) Colorado State (L, 25-28, 2008)Pac-12 1-1 UCLA (W, 38-34, 2011; L, 13-31, 2010)SEC 1-1 Mississippi State (W, 31-24, 2009; L, 24-47, 2010)Southland 2-0 Northwestern State (W, 55-7, 2009); Texas State (W, 68-28, 2010)Sun Belt 1-0 North Texas (W, 48-23, 2011)SWAC 1-0 Southern (W, 55-3, 2008)WAC 1-0 Louisiana Tech (W, 35-34, 2011)
RECORD CROWDS AT ROBERTSON
In 2010, Houston sold out five of its six home games, and posted its two largest attendances inRobertson Stadium in the first two games of the season vs. Texas State and UTEP. In the 2011 opener vs.UCLA, UH posted the 11th-largest crowd in stadium history and its second game vs. Georgia State wasthe seventh-best. Each of the top-seven crowds have been recorded in the past three years. Ten of thetop-15 attendance numbers have come during Sumlin's four years as head coach.
Top-15 Crowds at Robertston Stadium1. 32,119 vs. UTEP 9/10/10 Sumlin 32,119 vs. Texas State 9/4/10 Sumlin3. 32,114 vs. Texas Tech 9/26/09 Sumlin4. 32,067 vs. Mississippi State 10/9/10 Sumlin5. 32,009 vs. Tulane 9/25/10 Sumlin6. 32,008 vs. UCF 11/5/10 Sumlin7. 32,005 vs. Georgia State 9/24/11 Sumlin8. 31,818 vs. Southern Miss 12/1/06 Briles9. 31,784 vs. Texas 9/22/01 Dimel 31,784 vs. Rice 9/4/99 Helton11. 31,144 vs. UCLA 9/3/11 Sumlin12. 30,046 vs. Tulsa 11/13/10 Sumlin13. 28,260 vs. Oklahoma State 9/23/06 Briles14. 28,243 vs. Rice 11/28/09 Sumlin15. 27,302 vs. Grambling State 9/16/06 Briles
