The Houston Cougars are in a place not many thought they would be a month ago: tied for first place.
Just when it seemed the 2014 season was crashing Hindenburg-style, the Cougars went on the prowl and climbed all the way to a five-way tie at the top of the AAC. They did it by discovering a power running game and re-discovering a smothering defense which has given up only 37 points during the three-game winning streak.
Now people are buzzing about the Coogs being a conference title contender. And why not? Houston is clearly playing its best football of the season and some of the best football in the conference.
Up next: Tulane. Seems like a walk, right? The Green Wave are just 2-6 and have had recent problems scoring. But beware, Cougars, this walk may be right into a trap door.
So in honor of the three-game winning streak, here are three keys to avoiding a letdown.
1. One Game at a Time
It is one of the all-time overused cliches: take it one game at a time. That’s been the company line coming out of the Houston locker room. Head coach Tony Levine and running back Kenneth Farrow both preached that credo minutes after the win at USF. It would be easy for the Cougars to look ahead. They’ve just won three straight games and the next three teams on the schedule have a combined record of 6-23. So you can’t blame the Coogs if they get caught peeking.
The problem is, this team isn’t good enough to do that. Again, it wasn’t long ago this team was in a free fall; failing to score points with zero consistency week-to-week. So let’s ease up on the title talk just a bit and focus more on Tulane talk.
And maybe this is the best week to go “one game at a time.” It’s homecoming in Houston, and the hoopla includes throwback jerseys to honor the 1989 team led by Andre Ware.
A look at the 1989 throwback jerseys to be worn this week by @UHCougarFB. #GoCoogs pic.twitter.com/n8WK9hpR1y
— Houston Football (@UHCougarFB) November 4, 2014
2. Mix it Up
The Cougars new-found success has come thanks, in big part, to the running game. Last week UH scored three touchdowns on the ground. Tulane is giving up more than 200 rushing yards per game, and in his news conference Tuesday, Tulane head coach Curtis Johnson said, “One thing that I’ve been concerned all year about is I don’t think our defensive front is as physical as we need them to be in this league compared to a year ago.”
Sounds like a great opportunity for the Coogs to ground-and-pound, but, with apologies to Lee Corso, not so fast my friend. Houston needs to make sure the offense is balanced. Greg Ward, Jr. has been a pass-completing machine since taking over the starting job, but many of them have been “dink-and-dunk” passes. Last week, Ward completed 15 passes, but only had 89 yards. Opening up the field would go a long way for the Cougars to not become one-dimensional.
3. Dominating Defense
This seems like a no-brainer, because defense is where Houston hangs its hat. The “Third Ward Defense” gave up just 222 yards against USF. Levine says the goal every game is to have less than 10 missed tackles and less than 10 missed assignments. Last week those numbers were six and (a season low) two.
The defense only created one turnover, however, and it was a late-game interception. That may seem like nitpicking, but turnovers keep this team on the tracks. By swarming to the ball and not missing tackles, the turnovers will come. That being said, it’s something they need to keep an eye on against a Green Wave offense that can put up points, even though they haven’t done that much lately.
This is a Houston team playing at a very high level right now. Tulane shouldn’t be a problem, but the Cougars simply can’t rest at this point. The AAC has proven to be unpredictable, as the once-struggling Cougars being in first place indicates.
In this week’s news conference, Levine said, “Like I’ve said in weeks past, the game will be about us, our execution and taking care of the football. We’re glad to be back in TDECU Stadium. It’s fun. It will be homecoming with an afternoon kickoff. The weather should be beautiful. We’re looking forward to Saturday.”
Sounds like boring coach speak, but it really is how Houston needs to look at this game to avoid a letdown.
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