University of Houston
ECU
Game Notes: Houston at ECU
10/9/2018 8:16:00 AM | Football
GAME NOTES HOME | HOUSTON GAME NOTES | ECU GAME NOTES
| THE GAME AT A GLANCE | |
|---|---|
| Date | Saturday, Oct. 13 |
| Time | 6 p.m. CT |
| Location | Greenville, N.C. |
| Venue | Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium |
| Capacity | 50,000 |
| Surface | Grass |
| TV | CBS Sports Network |
| Radio | KPRC 950 AM |
| Live Stats | UHCougars.com |
HITS ON HOUSTON
« Houston (4-1, 1-0 The American) hits the road for the first time in American Athletic Conference play Saturday at 6 p.m. as it faces ECU (2-3, 0-2 The American). Saturday's game will air on CBS Sports Network and KPRC 950 AM with radio pregame coverage starting at 5 p.m.
« Houston enters the game following a 41-26 win over Tulsa, while ECU is coming off a 49-6 loss at Temple.
« Houston is second nationally in total offense with an average of 582.2 yards per game while ranking fourth nationally in scoring offense with 50.0 points per game.
« The new-look Houston offense has opened up the season with five straight games of 40+ points. Houston trails only Alabama (6 games) for the nation's longest active streak of games with 40+ points at five straight games. Houston opened the season with at least 40 points in its first three games for the first time in program history. The current five-game streak of at least 40 points ranks second among such streaks in UH history.
« Houston is the only school in the nation to rank in the top 15 for both passing offense (No. 15 | 317.4) and rushing offense (No. 11 | 264.8).
« The offense ranks seventh nationally with eight plays of 50+ yards while ranking 15th with 37 plays of at least 20+ yards.
« Ed Oliver is in his final season at Houston, having declared for the 2019 NFL Draft last March. The first underclassman to ever win the Outland Trophy, Oliver also earned consensus All-America honors and was named The American's Defensive Player of the Year in 2017.
« Playing tackle in a three-man front, Oliver totaled 39.5 tackles for loss in his first two seasons, the most ever by a defensive tackle through their sophomore season. Oliver more than doubled up the previous best, 19 from Pitt's Aaron Donald in 2010-11.
« Comparing all defensive linemen, ends and tackles, who earned FWAA All-America honors since 2008, Oliver led all with not only his 39.5 tackles for loss, but also his 139 total tackles.
« He started the season off with a bang vs. Rice, totaling 13 tackles (one short of his career high) including 3.5 tackles for loss, tying a career high.
« Oliver leads all active players nationally with a career average of 1.52 tackles for loss per game.
« Despite constant double and triple teams, Oliver leads all defensive linemen nationally with an average of 8.0 tackles per game.
« Quarterback D'Eriq King opened the season by throwing for 320 yards, his second career 300-yard passing game, and tying a then career high with four total touchdowns, three passing and one rushing. That high stood one week until King threw for four TDs and ran for two more vs. Arizona. He tied the mark the following week at Texas Tech with six TDs, five passing and one rushing. The six touchdowns were part of a day that saw the junior complete 30 passes for 431 yards, both career highs along with his five passing touchdowns.
« King and West Virginia's Will Grier are the only quarterbacks in the nation with at least three passing touchdowns in every game this season.
« After five weeks, King leads the nation with an average of 30.4 points responsible for per game and is sixth nationally with 18 passing TDs. He is second in The American and 11th nationally with an average of 317.2 yards of total offense per game and 19th nationally with 272.4 passing yards per game.
« Sophomore receiver Marquez Stevenson has proved to be electrifying with five plays of at least 50 yards, which ranks second nationally, and eight plays of at least 20 yards. He ranks third in The American with an average of 86.4 receiving yards per game and second with six TD receptions.
« The Houston offensive line leads the nation with only one sack allowed through five games and is fifth nationally with only 19 tackles for loss allowed.
« Defensive end Isaiah Chambers took to a football field for the first time since high school in 2015 vs. Rice, and promptly totaled three sacks which led the nation after in the opening weekend of action. Now with 4.5 sacks on the year, Chambers is third in The American.
« Since 2013, Houston leads the nation with 155 takeaways. Louisiana Tech is second in that span with 142.
« Houston leads FBS schools in Texas with 49 wins since the start of the 2013 season. TCU is second with 47 wins in that span. Baylor and Texas A&M are tied for third with 44 wins, while Texas is fifth with 36.
« UH ranks 13th nationally and the best in Texas with nine seasons with at least eight wins since 2006. LSU, Boise State and Oklahoma lead the way with 12 such seasons since 2006 while three teams, Georgia, USC and Wisconsin, are tied with 11 such seasons.
« With its win over No. 3 Louisville in 2016, Houston picked up its fourth straight win over an AP Top 10 team (three of which have come in the last four seasons), which leads the nation among active streaks.
« Houston is one of just four programs nationally with at least 13 wins on two different occasions over the last seven years, joining Alabama, Clemson and Florida State in accomplishing the feat.
« Houston is riding a streak of five straight bowl appearances, the 20th longest active streak in the nation, and second in The American behind the six of Navy.
ABOUT THE COUGARS
« Twenty-three full or part-time starters return. The 2017 leaders in passing, total offense, field goals, scoring, punting, tackles for loss, sacks, interceptions, pass breakups and fumble recoveries return. The program welcomed an incoming signing class of 23 that is comprised of 20 freshmen, two junior college transfers and one graduate transfer in linebacker Darrion Owens from Miami.
« In addition to the 2018 signing class, Houston has also welcomed five other transfers ahead of the fall, all of which are eligible for the 2018 season. Four of the five are graduate transfers - QB Quinten Dormady (Tennessee), WR Raelon Singleton (Utah), CB Nick Watkins (Notre Dame) and RB Terence Williams (Baylor) - while Deontay Anderson joined the program from Ole Miss and was ruled eligible immediately with three years of eligibility remaining.
« Seven members of the 2018 signing class enrolled early and took part of spring action - junior TE Bo Alexander, freshman DL Tahj Brown, senior LB Darrion Owens, sophomore DB Gleson Sprewell, freshman QB Clayton Tune, freshman DB Garrison Vaughn and freshman WR Julon Williams.
« Houston's roster sports 54 upperclassmen and 51 underclassmen. Fourteen players redshirted last season.
« New depth and faces are emerging in 2018 as Houston lost 18 players who accounted for 290 games of starting experience, an average of 16.1 career starts per player. By comparison, the 23 returning players with starting experience combined for 272 career starts, an average of 11.8 career starts per player entering the year.
« Houston is one of three schools nationally, joining New Mexico State and TCU, replacing its top rusher (Duke Catalon), receiver (Steven Dunbar) and tackler (D'Juan Hines) from 2018.
« Since 2013, Houston leads the state of Texas among FBS schools with 49 wins. The Cougars are two wins ahead of TCU, five ahead of Baylor and Texas A&M, and 13 games ahead of Texas in that span.
« Houston and TCU are tied for the lead among state of Texas FBS schools with nine seasons of at least eight wins since 2006. Texas, Texas A&M and Texas Tech are tied for third with seven each in that span.
« Houston entered 2018 atop The American's all-time win list in conference games and currently sits second with 29 wins behind UCF's 30 wins with an extra conference game on Houston this season. Since the league's inception, Memphis and Temple are tied for third with 26 wins.
« After three years of competition, the 2018 senior class is the 11th-most winningest class in Houston football history with 33 wins since 2015. The class is only one win away from moving into the top 10 and five wins away from the record of 38 established by the 2016 senior class.
« Houston enters 2018 riding a streak of five straight bowl appearances, the 20th longest active streak in the nation and second longest in The American behind the six of Navy.
ABOUT ECU
« In its third season under head coach Scottie Montgomery, ECU enters Saturday at 2-3 and 0-2 in The American. After opening the season with a 28-23 loss to North Carolina A&T, the Pirates have alternated wins and losses, defeating North Carolina (41-19) and Old Dominion (37-35) while dropping road games to USF (20-13) and Temple (49-6).
« ECU is led offensively by sophomore quarterback Reid Herring who has completed 118-of-218 passes for 1,273 yards and six touchdowns against five interceptions. Senior Anthony Scott leads in rushing with 228 yards and two touchdowns on 62 attempts while senior Trevon Brown leads in receiving with 23 receptions for 347 yards and two touchdowns.
« Defensively, the Pirates are led by senior linebacker Nate Harvey who has 30 tackles including 14 for a loss and 7.5 sacks. Junior nose tackle Alex Turner is second on the team with seven tackles for loss and three sacks, while senior corner Corey Seargent has the team's two interceptions.
« Saturday's matchup is the 14th meeting between the two schools with ECU owning a 7-6 series lead. Houston won the 2017 meeting, 52-27, with ECU claiming a 48-28 win in 2012 in the last meeting in Greenville.
DEGREES IN HAND
« Twelve Houston student-athletes entered the season having already earned an undergraduate degree. Romello Brooker, Roman Brown, Jerard Carter, Quentin Dormady (Tennessee), Khari Dotson, Isaiah Johnson, Darrion Owens (Miami), Raelon Singleton (Utah), Zach Vaughan, Nick Watkins (Notre Dame), Joeal Williams and Terence Williams (Baylor) have all completed degree requirements prior to this season.
« Houston ranks eighth nationally with 12 players having earned degrees prior to the start of the season.
ON THE OFFENSE
« Since 2006, only Oregon, Oklahoma and Texas Tech have racked up more yards than Houston, which has 79,750 in that span.
Rank Team Total Yards (06-present)
1. Oregon 81,417
2. Oklahoma 81,406
3. Texas Tech 79,777
4. Houston 79,750
« Houston has scored in 229 straight games dating back to Sept. 30, 2000.
« Houston is second nationally in total offense with an average of 582.2 yards per game while ranking fourth nationally and leading The American with an average of 50.0 points per game.
« Houston is the only school in the nation to rank in the top 15 for both passing offense (No. 15 | 317.4) and rushing offense (No. 11 | 264.8).
« The offense ranks seventh nationally with eight plays of 50+ yards while ranking 15th with 37 plays of at least 20+ yards.
« The versatility of the offense is showing as nine different players have receiving TDs and eight different players across three position groups have rushing TDs.
« The new-look offense has opened up the season with five straight games of 40+ points It marks the longest such streak since the first half of the 2016 season.
« Houston's game against Tulsa with 477 yards was the first season UH did not eclipse the 550-yard mark in total offense.
« Houston opened the season with at least 40 points in its first three games of a season for the first time in program history and since expanded the streak. The current streak is tied for second longest in Houston history. Houston and Alabama are the only programs with at least 40 points in their last five games with Alabama owning a nation's best six straight games.
« After 18 of Houston's 53 scoring drives in 2017 lasted less than two minutes, the Cougars have 22 scoring drives of less than two minutes this season with 10 lasting less than one minute. It has 19 scoring drives of five plays or less this season.
« Against Texas Tech, six of Houston's seven scoring drives lasted less than two minutes including two less than 32 seconds.
« With 45 points at Rice and 49 points at Texas Tech, Houston scored 45+ in multiple road games in a season for the first time since scoring 49 at Rutgers and 59 at UTSA in 2013.
« Since 2015, Houston has 16 games with 500+ yards of total offense and seven games with 600+ yards. It has scored more than 40 points 17 times and more than 50 points six times.
« The Houston offense is now overseen by offensive coordinator Kendal Briles who arrived in Houston after one season in the same role at FAU, where the Owls were eighth nationally in scoring offense (40.6 points per game) and ninth nationally in total offense (498.4 yards per game). The offense sported a dangerous ground game, finishing the year sixth nationally in rushing offense (285.3 yards per game).
« Prior to FAU, he spent nine seasons at Baylor including the final two as offensive coordinator. Named a 2015 Broyles Award finalist in 2015, his first season as an offensive coordinator, Baylor led the nation in both scoring (48.1 points per game) and total offense (616.2 yards per game) and finished second nationally in rushing offense (326.7 yards per game). The 2016 offense was no slouch either as it finished the year sixth nationally in total offense (522.7 yards per game).
« As passing game coordinator at Baylor, Briles helped guide a top-five passing attack for four straight seasons from 2011 to 2014 (No. 4 in 2014, No. 5 in 2013, No. 4 in 2012, No. 4 in 2011).
A KING RETURNS FOR HIS CROWN
« D'Eriq King opened up 2018 in style vs. Rice with his second career 300-yard passing game and four total touchdowns, three through the air and one on the ground. He finished the day with 353 yards of total offense - 320 passing and 33 rushing. The game was his second best in terms of total offense, trailing only the 366 yards (141 rushing, 265 passing) vs. Tulane in 2016.
« One week later against Arizona, he accounted for a career-best six touchdowns - throwing a career-high four passing TDs while rushing for two TDs, his fourth game with two scores on the ground.
« King has thrown for at least three touchdowns in every game this season. He and West Virginia's Will Grier are the only two quarterbacks nationally to lay claim to the feat.
« King matched the career-best six touchdowns a week later at Texas Tech, as he had a career day through the air by completing 30-of-51 passes for 431 yards and five touchdowns, all career bests. He also added 47 yards on the ground with a rushing TD.
« With 25 total touchdowns and a two-point conversion through five games, King has been responsible for 152 points and leads the nation with an average of 30.4 points responsible per game.
« He is sixth nationally and leads The American with 18 passing touchdowns.
« King is 11th nationally and second in The American with an average of 317.2 yards of total offense per game while ranking 19th nationally and second in The American with an average of 272.4 passing yards per game.
« The Manvel, Texas, native also ranks 16th nationally and second in The American with passer rating of 168.2.
« With Tulsa taking away the deep passing threat with three safeties, King used his legs in Houston's win, rushing for his second career 100-yard rushing game with 117 yards and two touchdowns on 10 attempts, including a 61-yard fourth-quarter score.
« Three QBs had the opportunity to take over for Greg Ward Jr. in 2017 in Kyle Allen (starts in the first three games), Kyle Postma (starts in the next five games) and King, who took over at QB at USF, starting the final four games. The three helped Houston rank third nationally in completion percentage at 68.4 percent.
« UH was also the only team in the nation with three quarterbacks with 300-yard games in 2017 and the only team with three different quarterbacks with over 600 yards passing.
« In King's four starts, Houston averaged 1.4 more yards per play than the previous eight games while also averaging 18.4 more yards passing per game despite averaging 20 less plays per game.
« King took over the quarterback role on the third drive at USF and never looked back in the game, rushing for a career-high 83 yards and two touchdowns while completing 12-of-20 passes for 137 yards and one score. He was named The American's Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts.
« King made his first career start at quarterback vs. ECU and set a career high with 330 yards and three touchdowns. He also added 14 rushing yards and a touchdown on the ground.
« He had his first career 100-yard rushing game at Tulane, rushing for 141 yards and two touchdowns on 10 attempts. His single-game rushing average of 14.1 yards per attempt ranks eighth in UH history and the highest by a quarterback.
« King added his third game with multiple rushing touchdowns, all coming in the final four games of the season, with two scores vs. Navy.
« In his four games as starting QB, King averaged 337.8 yards of total offense per game, a number that would have ranked second in The American behind the league's offensive player of the year, McKenzie Milton, and seventh nationally.
« Backup Quinten Dormady arrived in Houston after 16 games of action with five starts, all in 2017, at Tennessee and will add to a quarterback room that also includes redshirt-freshman Bryson Smith and freshman Clayton Tune.
NEW FACES, NEW PLACES
« With FAU's offense under new offensive coordinator Kendal Briles ranking sixth in the nation in rushing offense at 285.3 yards per game, Houston has turned to new faces to lead the way with the departure of 2017's starting backs. UH returned 29.1 percent of its rushing yards from 2017 running backs, led by junior Mulbah Car, who finished the year as Houston's second-leading rusher with 388 yards and three TDs on 80 carries.
« He came on strong at the end of 2017, including a career-high 137 yards and one touchdown in an upset win at No. 17 USF. He would later add 72 yards at Tulane as 261 of his 388 yards on the season came in the final five games.
« Baylor graduate transfer Terence Williams joined the program over the summer and looks to replicate his efforts in 2016 when he rushed for 1,048 yards for the Bears to earn honorable mention All-Big 12 honors in the process.
« In all, Williams played in 29 games with 11 starts at Baylor, leaving the program ranked 13th on the career rushing yards chart with 1,859.
« Houston returned one other back with rushing attempts in 2017 in junior Patrick Carr, who rushed eight times for 26 yards. Junior Kevrin Justice, who rushed 34 times for 149 yards and two touchdowns in 2016, also returned.
« Carr surpassed his entire Houston career numbers against Rice, rushing eight times for 74 yards including a 37-yard touchdown.
« Car, who has started all five games, rushed for a career-best 91 yards and a TD against on Tulsa on only 13 attempts. He is seventh in The American with two runs of at least 30 yards.
« Against Texas Southern, freshman Kelan Walker led Houston with 105 rushing yards, including a 72-yard TD, while sophomore Chandler Smith had 11 carries for 80 yards and two touchdowns.
LENDING A HAND OR TWO
« Houston is one of nine schools nationally, and two in The American, to have a 1,000-yard receiver each of the last three seasons as Demarcus Ayers (2015 | 1,222 yards), Linell Bonner (2016 | 1,118) and Steven Dunbar (2017 | 1,070) each accomplished the feat.
« The wide receiver room has new leaders with the graduation of two of the top 10 receivers in UH history. Steven Dunbar and Linell Bonner finished their careers with a combined 61 starts and 85 games played. Dunbar ended his career 10th on the Houston career receptions chart with 180 and 10th on the career receiving yards chart with 2,430, while Bonner closed his career eighth on the career receptions chart with 203 and 11th on the career receiving yards chart with 2,324.
« In all, Houston returned three of eight receivers who caught a pass in 2017, including D'Eriq King who finished the year as the Cougars' third-leading receiver with 29 receptions. Behind King, junior Courtney Lark was second with 13 receptions in 2017, while classmate Keith Corbin had 10 receptions.
« Both Lark, who had four starts in 2017, and Corbin, who had five starts in 2017, along with Marquez Stevenson have stepped up to fill the holes left by the Bonner and Dunbar.
« Stevenson is back on the field after being sidelined for all of 2017 with a preseason injury. He saw action in two games as a true freshman in 2016 before a season-ending injury sidelined the speedy receiver.
« With his 107-yard game vs. Rice, Stevenson quickly made a mark on the Houston offense. The 107 yards were part of 203 total yards he had in the game, rushing for 60 yards, including a 51-yard TD run on a reverse, and a 36-yard kick return. In all, Stevenson had three plays of 30+ yards.
« Stevenson has proved to be electrifying with five plays of 50+ yards, which ranks second nationally, and six plays of at least 30 yards, which ranks seventh nationally.
« He ranks 31st nationally with an average of 125.2 all-purpose yards per game. Stevenson has a team-best 432 receiving yards and 72 kickoff return yards to go along with 122 rushing yards.
« Stevenson is second in The American with 5.8 receptions per game and third with 86.4 receiving yards per game.
« He recorded his second 100-yard receiving game of the season with 177 yards and two touchdowns on nine receptions at Texas Tech.
« After no TD receptions in his first two seasons, Corbin has now pulled in five receiving TDs this season including his first with an 18-yard grab against Arizona.
« He had a career day at Texas Tech, pulling in seven receptions for 103 yards and two touchdowns, both career highs, as he eclipsed the century mark for the first time in his career.
« Lark made his first career start at No. 17 USF in 2017 and pulled in his first career TD, finishing with a career-high 69 yards. He made it back-to-back weeks with a touchdown as he pulled in a 5-yard score vs. ECU.
« Lark doubled up his career touchdown receiving total entering the season with two scores against Rice, a 40-yard score and an 18-yard score.
« Raelon Singleton arrived in Houston over the summer after playing in 34 games over three seasons at Utah with 19 starts. The Crosby, Texas, native was Utah's second-leading receiver as a sophomore and junior. In 2017, he pulled in 36 receptions for 531 yards and four touchdowns while pulling in 27 receptions for 464 yards and four touchdowns in 2016.
« He made his first appearance in a Houston uniform at Texas Tech, pulling in his only reception for an 18-yard touchdown.
« Two explosive redshirt-freshmen made their debut vs. Rice - Bryson Smith, who also spends time in the quarterback room, and Jeremy Singleton. The two dynamic youngsters each had a reception against the Owls, a 25-yard catch by Smith and a 5-yard catch by Singleton.
« Smith topped his efforts vs. Arizona, pulling in his first TD, a 13-yard reception that was part of four catches for 29 yards.
« Junior Terry Mark, who led Lufkin HS to the 2015 Texas State Championship in soccer as the team's goalkeeper, is putting his hands to use with seven receptions for 36 yards and a touchdown this season after totaling three receptions for eight yards in his first two seasons.
« At tight end, Houston turned to senior Romello Brooker on a full-time basis after he split starts with Alex Leslie in 2017, although Brooker did outpace Leslie in receptions, pulling in seven for 45 yards.
« In the first game alone, Brooker had a third of his 2017 receiving yards with 15 yards off two receptions.
« Brooker exploded vs. Arizona, pulling in two receptions for a career-best 76 yards including a career-long 52-yard TD reception.
« The tight end has four receptions of 20+ yards through five games.
LINE ON THE LINE
« For the third straight year, a new offensive line coach has stepped in with options across the front as Randy Clements oversees a group that has a combined 119 career starts and 177 career games played, although it replaced two 2017 day-to-day starters.
« Senior center Will Noble leads the line in terms of starting experience with 37 career starts, including eight in 2015 en route to earning FWAA Freshman All-America honors.
« At left guard, senior Mason Denley mans the spot with 17 games of starting experience.
« Junior Josh Jones stepped into the starting role at left tackle for the 2016 opener and never looked back, starting 28 games at the position over the last three seasons.
« At right guard, junior Braylon Jones has started the last 17 games including all 12 in 2017.
« Junior Jarrid Williams also has experience in a starting role, filling in for an injured Josh Jones in two games in 2017, and has locked down the right tackle spot in 2018.
« The group has started 2018 off right, allowing no sacks in the season's first two games, one of only 12 teams nationally to lay claim to the goose egg through two weeks.
« The line leads the nation in allowing only sack on the season and fifth in only allowing 19 tackles for loss.
THIRD WARD DEFENSE
« The Houston defense is one of just eight nationally to hold opponents to an average of under 25 points scoring per game in each of the last five seasons (2013-17). Taking it down a point further, UH is one of just six schools to hold its opponents under 24 points per game in each of the last five seasons, joining Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Stanford and Wisconsin in accomplishing the feat.
« The defense started 2017 right where it ended in 2016, as it ranked second in The American in scoring defense, allowing 23.8 points per game.
« The Houston defense accomplished the feat despite facing five of the nation's top 23 scoring offenses in its 12 games - No. 2 Memphis, No. 5 Arizona, No. 10 USF, No. 12 SMU and No. 23 Texas Tech.
« Houston held four of the five top-23 scoring offenses it faced to well below their average in No. 5 Arizona (Avg. 41.3 points per game | 16 vs. Houston), No. 10 USF (38.3/game | 24 vs. Houston), No. 12 SMU (37.8/game | 22 vs. Houston) and No. 23 Texas Tech (34.3/game | 27 vs. Houston).
« Houston snapped No. 17 USF's NCAA record 24-game streak of 30+ points as it held the Bulls to 24 points. It was particularly good against USF's No. 7 rushing offense, holding the Bulls to a season-low 137 yards. USF entered the game averaging 305.1 rushing yards per game.
« SMU entered its game at Houston ranked No. 3 nationally in scoring offense with an average of 48.2 points per game and left TDECU Stadium with just 22 points.
« Against Memphis, Houston gave up no points in the first half, marking the first time the Tigers had been held scoreless at halftime since Oct. 13, 2012.
« Against Temple, the Houston defense held the Owls scoreless in the first half, snapping a 51-game streak that Temple had scored in the first 30 minutes.
« Houston held Rice to only three points in 2017, a field goal with 2:47 remaining in the game. It was Rice's lowest scoring output since falling to No. 4 Nebraska, 48-3, on Sept. 20, 2001.
« In its final regular season game, Houston held Navy to only 79 yards of offense in the second half.
TUNROVER U
« Since the start of the 2013 season, no program has taken the ball away from opposing offenses more than Houston with 155 turnovers forced in that time with eight in 2018, 21 in 2017, 18 in 2016, 35 in 2015, 30 in 2014 and 43 in 2013. Houston has a 13-turnover lead on its closest competitors in that stretch - Louisiana Tech and Washington.
« UH has forced multiple turnovers in 52 of its last 77 games.
« Houston has been opportunistic with its turnovers, ranking fourth nationally since 2010 with 41 non-offensive touchdowns including 15 defensive touchdowns over the last six years.
« Ed Oliver is a liability for opposing offenses with bad ball protection, as after only two seasons with UH, he ranks 13th on the program's career forced fumbles chart with five. He needs just two more to climb into the top five.
ED-UCATION
« The American Athletic Conference and the nation were quickly introduced to Houston defensive tackle Ed Oliver as a true freshman in 2016 when he earned seven First-Team All-America honors, FWAA Freshman All-America Honors and was named The American's Rookie of the Year.
« Ranked the nation's No. 2 defensive tackle in the 2016 signing class by ESPN, Oliver did not wait long to make his impression felt for Houston, earning his first career start vs. No. 3 Oklahoma, leading all linemen with seven tackles including two sacks. Oliver finished second nationally in 2016 with 23 tackles for loss.
« He did not disappoint in his follow-up season, becoming the first underclassman to ever win the Outland Trophy while also earning consensus All-America honors and The American's Defensive Player of the Year honor.
« Named the nation's top player by several national outlets entering 2018, the Houston native totaled 13 tackles vs. Tulsa, his sixth career double-digit tackle game and second this season. He also had 13 stops vs. Rice including 3.5 tackles for loss, while adding two quarterback hurries.
« He leads all active players nationally with a career average of 1.52 tackles for loss per game.
« Despite facing constant double and triple teams, Oliver leads all defensive linemen nationally with an average of 8.0 tackles per game and 40 total tackles.
« With 1.5 tackles for loss vs. Tulsa, Oliver recorded his 15th career game with multiple TFLs, and now has 46 career tackles for loss in only 30 games.
« Oliver's 39.5 tackles for loss through a sophomore season ranks second in NCAA history among all players, and first among all defensive tackles.
« While playing the nose spot in a three-man front, he totaled 73 tackles in 12 games, despite missing three quarters of one game and being limited in the next four with a knee injury in 2017.
« He recorded an average of 6.1 tackles per game which ranked third nationally among all defensive linemen.
« He wasted no time to open 2017, totaling 11 tackles at Arizona, his third career game with 10-plus tackles.
« The Houston native saved his best for last vs. Navy in 2017, totaling a career-high 14 tackles, his fourth career double-digit tackle game, including a career-best 3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks.
« He started off 2017 with forced fumbles in the first two games, and now has five in his career, ranking 13th in Houston history. His next forced fumble would move him into eighth and he is five away from tying the Houston career record.
« On one side of Oliver is senior Jerard Carter, who after missing the first seven games of 2017, made an immediate impact upon his return in the final five. While totaling 5.5 tackles for loss on his own in the five games, Carter also opened up room for others as Oliver had 9.5 of his 16.5 TFLs when Carter returned and Leroy Godfrey had 7.5 of his 8.5 stops behind the line. In all, Houston had 42 of its 80 tackles for loss in the five games Carter was in the lineup.
« The other side of the line features sophomore Payton Turner who had a career-best eight tackles vs. Tulsa.
« The line also added TCU transfer Isaiah Chambers, who sat out 2017 in Houston where he was ranked the No. 7 defensive end in the nation in 2016.
« Chambers wasted no time in getting his collegiate career started, racking up three sacks vs. Rice, the first time a Houston defender had three sacks in a game since current Baltimore Raven Tyus Bowser had three vs. Tulane in 2016.
« With 4.5 sacks, Chambers is third in The American and 28th nationally in the category. All 4.5 have come on third down.
PATROLLING THE AIR
« A mix of returners and new faces are in store for the Houston secondary in 2018. Senior safety Garrett Davis led the group with 25 career starts and was second among returners in The American with four interceptions in 2017 but was unfortunately lost with a foot injury suffered at Texas Tech.
« Sophomore transfer Deontay Anderson arrived in Houston in 2018 after one season of action at Ole Miss. Ranked the No. 1 safety in the nation by ESPN in the 2016 recruiting class, he earned Freshman All-SEC honors in 2016.
« Anderson made his mark against Arizona, totaling five tackles including two for a loss. He followed with a career-best nine stops at Texas Tech.
« The transfer made his first turnover in a Houston uniform, picking off a Tulsa pass to set up UH's final TD of the night. He also forced a fumble in the game that was recovered by Emeke Egbule.
« Sophomore Gleson Sprewell replaced Davis at Texas Tech and finished the game with a career-high eight tackles and is expected to fill the role moving forward.
« At corner, seniors Alexander Myres and Isaiah Johnson both return after starting 10 and six games, respectively, in 2017.
« Johnson was Houston's leading returner with nine passes defended in 2017 - seven pass breakups and two interceptions.
« Myres was just behind with seven passes defended in 2017 - six pass breakups and one interception.
« Notre Dame graduate transfer Nick Watkins, who started 10 games for the Fighting Irish, also joined the group and picked up his first start at Houston against Rice.
« Watkins leads Houston and is sixth in The American with five pass breakups on the season.
« Playing in a third-down package, senior Joeal Williams made his first career sack against SMU in 2017, an eight-yard loss on a 3rd-and-13 in the third quarter. He totaled 17 tackles on the year.
« He had over a third of his 2017 tackle total vs. Rice, collecting six stops on the day.
« Williams split time with sophomore Grant Stuard at nickel back vs. Rice. Stuard totaled a career-high four tackles including his first career tackle for loss.
SMASHMOUTH FOOTBALL
« With Houston having a linebacker selected in the NFL Draft for a third consecutive season with Matthew Adams going to the Indianapolis Colts, UH turned to new leadership in 2018.
« Senior Emeke Egbule, who started every game in 2017 at outside linebacker, is Houston's second-leading returning tackler and tops among linebackers with 62 stops in 2017.
« The Houston native made his first career interception vs. Rice.
« With five passes defended, four pass breakups and one interception, Egbule leads all linebackers in The American and ranks seventh regardless of position.
« He leads The American and ranks fifth nationally with two fumble recoveries, both coming against Tulsa.
« With Adams out vs. Memphis and limited vs. USF last season, senior Austin Robinson stepped in the starting lineup, one of four starts on the year, and responded with seven tackles vs. USF including two tackles for loss.
« Robinson continued his hot streak with a career-high 12 stops vs. ECU and finished 2017 with 33 tackles and four TFLs.
« He added his second and third career double-digit tackle game with 10 both vs. Arizona and at Texas Tech this season.
« Robinson was all over the field against Tulsa, finishing with eight tackles including a career-high three tackles loss and two sacks while forcing one fumble.
« Senior Roman Brown, who had four career tackles entering 2018, promptly totaled 11 tackles in the season-opening win over Rice and added 12 more at Texas Tech.
« Brown recorded his third double-digit tackle game of the year vs. Tulsa, totaling a career-best 13 stops.
« Houston's two inside linebackers, Brown and Robinson lead UH and rank second and fifth, respectively, in The American in total tackles. Brown has 46 while Robinson has 45.
« The two each had their second double-digit tackle games of the season at Texas Tech as Brown led the way with 12 stops while Robinson had 10 stops.
« Junior linebacker Leroy Godfrey looks to continue his strong finish to 2017 when he pulled in 32 of his 33 tackles and 7.5 of his 8.5 tackles for loss in the final six games of the season, all starts.
« Playing as a true freshman in 2017, David Anenih picked up two sacks on passing downs.
« Anenih had a career-best two tackles for loss including his first sack of the season vs. Tulsa.
« Redshirt-freshman Derek Parish has made his mark on the Houston defense, picking 1.5 sacks in four games, the second-best total on the team.
« Sophomore Elijah Gooden had a career game vs. Tulsa with a career-best four tackles including his first career sack that resulted in a forced fumble.
« Darrion Owens joined the group after three seasons at Miami where the grad transfer saw action in 39 games but is out for 2-6 weeks after suffering a leg injury vs. Rice.
THE PUNT-AH
« Twenty-nine year old junior punter Dane Roy is back for his third season in America as Houston's starting punter.
« At 29, Roy is the third oldest player in FBS football behind Colorado kicker James Stefanou (31) and Maryland punter Wade Lees (30), both natives of Melbourne, Australia.
« The Bunyip, Australia, native and former Australian rules football player for Richmond Central led The American in 2017 with 25 punts inside the 20 and with 43.1 percent of his punts inside his opponents 20. Twelve of his 55 punts were inside his opponents' 10-yard line.
« Despite leading the league in punts inside the 20, Roy was fifth in The American with an average of 41.8 yards per punt in 2017.
« Roy dropped two-of-three punts at Rice inside the Owls' 20-yard line, forcing three fair catches on the day.
« Prior to arriving in Houston, Roy won the longest kick competition at the AFL grand final in Melbourne, Australia, after booting a torpedo 73 meters, which equates to 79 yards. Roy, who stands 6-7, also has a personal-best hang time of 5.4 seconds.
SPOONMAN
« Sophomore Dalton Witherspoon took over the starting kicking role vs. Arizona and responded with a 35-yard field goal and connecting on all six extra point attempts.
« He had his first career multi-field goal game vs. Tulsa, connecting on kicks from 40 and 33 yards out.
« After connecting on five extra points and the two field goals vs. Tulsa, Witherspoon ranks fifth among kickers in The American with 38 total points.
« Witherspoon is back on the field after setting single-season records for longest field goal (58), most field goals in a season (17) and most points by a kicker (92) at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M in 2016.
« Senior Caden Novikoff walked on to the Houston program in the 2017 fall training camp and finished second in The American with a field goal percentage of 80 percent, hitting 12-of-15 field goals on the year.
« Over the final nine regular season games, Novikoff connected on all eight field goal attempts.
« He was 10-of-11 on the year from within 40 yards as his only three misses on the year were from 38 yards, 45 yards and 46 yards. He did successfully connect on two from over 40 yards, hitting a 44-yard field goal vs. ECU and a 45-yard field goal vs. Texas Tech.
RETURNS DEPARTMENT
« The #HTownTakeover ranked third in The American in kickoff returns in 2017 with 32 returns for 721 yards, an average of 22.5 yards per return. The caveat though is the only player on Houston's 2018 roster with a kick return last season is quarterback D'Eriq King, who had one return for six yards vs. Texas Tech.
« The competition for the kick return role carried over into fall camp after a number of players saw reps during spring practice. Marquez Stevenson and Jeremy Singleton now own the starting duties with Stevenson returning two kicks for 54 yards this season.
« No player on the 2018 Houston roster had a punt return in 2017, however, redshirt-freshman Bryson Smith took over duties vs. Rice and has four returns for 33 yards this season.
« Houston enters its sixth game second in The American in punt returns with an average of 12.6 yards per return and in punt return defense, allowing only 5.2 yards per return.
