Tulsa-Houston Football Game Preview

Tulsa-Houston Football Game Preview

10/14/2016 6:12:00 PM | Football

By: Don Tomkalski

Game 6: Tulsa (4-1, 1-0 The American) vs. Houston (5-1, 2-1 The American)
Date/Time:	Saturday, Oct. 15/ 6:05 p.m. (CT)
Site:	Tulsa, Oklahoma
Stadium:	TDECU Stadium (40,000)
Coaches:	Tulsa – Philip Montgomery (Tarleton State '95), 2^nd year Houston – Tom Herman (Cal Lutheran '97), 2^nd year
TV:	ESPN2
Talent:	Jason Benetti (pxp), Kelly Stouffer (analyst), Paul Carcaterra (sidelines)
Radio:	Big Country 99.5 FM
Talent:	Bruce Howard (pxp), Rick Couri (analyst), Jeremie Poplin (sidelines)
Live Stats:	Live Stats
Series:	Houston leads 22-18
First Meeting:	Dec. 2, 1950, Tulsa won 28-21 @ Houston, Texas
Last Meeting:	Oct. 3, 2015, Houston won 38-24 @ Tulsa, Okla.
Game Notes:	Tulsa \| Houston \| American Conference

Two of the most potent offenses in the American Athletic Conference clash Saturday night as the Tulsa Golden Hurricane visits the Houston Cougars at TDECU Stadium. The teams come in with just one loss apiece, as the Hurricane is coming off of a 43-40 overtime win over SMU and Houston comes back from a road loss at Navy.

Tulsa averages 474.4 yards total offense and 39.4 points, while the Cougars averaged 502.3 yards and 43.5 points in its six games this season.

The Tulsa offense will have its hands full against a Cougars defense that is one of the best in the NCAA. Houston has allowed the opposition only 272 yards per game to rank seventh nationally, 86.0 yards for an NCAA rank of fourth and 17.0 points per game to rank 14^th in the nation. Houston is The American's top defensive team in all three categories.

Returning from injury after missing last week's game is linebacker Steven Taylor, who patrols the field from sideline to sideline. He has 27 tackles, six TFLs, 5.5 sacks, two QB hurries, and one interception, pass break-up and forced fumble. Fellow linebacker Matthew Adams has a team-leading 36 tackles and six TFLs.

Brandon Wilson, one of the nation's top kickoff returners, is back after missing two games to lead the Houston secondary from his cornerback slot, while safety Khalil Williams has 26 tackles and corner Howard Wilson has 20 stops and three interceptions to lead the Cougars.

The Cougars defensive line is led by perhaps the nation's top freshman defender Ed Oliver, who has tallied 31 stops and a team-high 7.5 TFLs for 23 yards, in addition to three pass breakups. Oliver, Taylor and Adams lead that front seven that has held five of its six opponents to 70 yards or less rushing.

The Tulsa ground game, which has rushed for 300+ yards in three games this year, will face its stiffest test of the year.

D'Angelo Brewer leads The American with 716 yards on the ground for a 5.3 average and a 143-yard average per game, while senior James Flanders has 390 yards and a 6.3 average per carry to rank fifth among the league's rushing leaders.

Quarterback Dane Evans is moving closer to becoming Tulsa's all-time leading passer, and this year has thrown for 1,135 yards and nine touchdowns. He now has 9,467 passing yards and 61 touchdowns in his career.

Evans favorite targets have been fellow seniors Keevan Lucas and Josh Atkinson. Lucas and Atkinson are both coming off back-to-back 100-yard receiving games. Lucas averages 101.6 yards and has five TDs on 36 receptions, while Atkinson has caught 32 passes for 354 yards.

The offensive line is anchored by sophomore center Chandler Miller, senior guard Blake Belcher and junior tackle Evan Plagg.

The explosive Houston offense is led by Greg Ward Jr., quarterbacking the Cougars. The senior causes havoc for opposing defenses with both his running and passing ability, rushing for 272 yards and six TDs and passing for another 1,684 yards and 11 touchdowns. He has completed nearly 70-percent of his passes and has a 158.29 passing efficiency.

Ward has targeted 15 different players this year, while three of his main targets have each gained over 350 yards receiving, led by Linell Bonner's 42 catches for 556 yards and two touchdowns and Steven Dunbar's 438 yards and three TDs on 30 receptions.

The run game gets a boost this week as Duke Catalon returns after missing two games with an injury. Catalon has rushed for 225 yards and a 4.7-yard average in three contests this season behind a young offensive line.

The Tulsa defense will have its hands full trying to contain Ward. The Hurricane has held the opposition to 387.4 yards of total offense, including 155 on the ground and 232 through the air.

Senior linebacker Trent Martin leads the Hurricane with 35 tackles this year and totaled a team-best 11 tackles, 1.5 TFLs for -6 yards and tipped a pass that ended up as an interception return for a touchdown in the season opener against San Jose State. Senior Matt Linscott and junior Craig Suits have tallied 34 and 32 tackles, respectively, and have combined for seven TFLs for -21 yards.

The Tulsa defensive line has used nine players so far this season. Tackles Jerry Uwaezuoke and Hayden Carman and ends Jeremy Smith and Jesse Brubaker will be the starters up front for the Hurricane. The foursome has combined to total 66 tackles and 13 TFLs for -44 yards through the first five games.

Senior safety Jeremy Brady headlines the defensive secondary for the Hurricane. Brady has tallied 34 tackles, two pass-breakups and one interception, while fellow safeties McKinley Whitfield and Jordan Mitchell have 31 stops and four pass break-ups between them. Patrolling the corners are juniors Kerwin Thomas and Keanu Hill. Thomas has 15 tackles and three pass breakups, while Hill has totaled 14 stops and a team-high five pass breakups.

The game kicks off at 6:05 p.m. from Houston, Texas, and can be seen on ESPN2. Fans in Tulsa can join the Official Watch Party at Mamadou's Restaurant and Sports Bar in downtown Tulsa at the Aloft Hotel.

Follow the Golden Hurricane throughout the season at www.TulsaHurricane.com.