New Buzz Surrounds Houston Football

There is a new era beginning with the Houston Cougars’ football program, and it’s giving fans something to get excited about.

First, UH is starting play in a whole new league. After bouncing around Conference USA and dealing with the uncertainty of the Big East, Houston is one of the founding members of the new American Athletic Conference.

Then there’s the new stadium. Some people are calling TDECU Stadium a “game-changer“, and it could become a place where opponents don’t want to play.

It seats 40,000 (and could be expanded to 60,000 in the future) with a view of the Houston skyline which should provide great shots for TV crews. That is one place Houston has an edge on some AAC schools; big-time recruits love big-time cities and stadiums. Houston now has both.

Robertson Stadium saw some great players and teams in its time, but it was time for a major upgrade from the World War II-era relic. Now the pressure is on for Houston to generate buzz on and off the field to pack its new gem of a stadium.

The Cougars will unveil some new uniforms in their new stadium. A classic look from Nike with two different helmet options. In this age of “who can have the craziest uniforms” it’s nice to see the Scarlet and White shown off in a simple, yet effective way.

But what about what will happen on the field? There’s much to be excited about there as well. Houston has a coach, for the first time in a long time, who doesn’t view this as a stepping stone (I’m looking at you Art Briles and Kevin Sumlin). Tony Levine is entering his third season in what he called “his dream job.”

2013 was an encouraging campaign. The Cougs finished 8-5, but that is deceiving when you take a closer look at the schedule. If you believe in such a thing as a quality loss, then all five of the losses on the Cougars’ schedule certainly qualify. A one-point loss to BYU where UH hung 46 on the other Cougars. Then there was a five-point loss on the road against UCF, a team that only lost one game and won the Fiesta Bowl. There was a pair of seven-point losses to Cincinnati and Louisville; the latter provided a huge scare for Teddy Bridgewater and the 19th-ranked Cardinals. The final loss was to an upstart Vanderbilt team who played so well the last couple years its coach bolted for Penn State.

We will break down the 2014 schedule with a game-by-game preview soon, but combine the 2013 campaign with 19 returning starters and a softer schedule, and there’s no reason to think Houston can’t at least compete for a conference crown. It would be their first since 2006.

New stadium. New uniforms. New conference. New-found confidence after a successful season. It all points to a building buzz surrounding Houston Cougars football.