Tulsa’s Comeback Bid Falls Short at #12 Houston 38-31

Saturday, October 15

Houston, Texas

6:00 p.m. (CT)

Tulsa

4-2 , 1-1

Houston

6-1 , 3-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Tulsa

Houston

Photo by: Aaron Sprecher

Tulsa’s Comeback Bid Falls Short at #12 Houston 38-31

10/15/2016 11:05:00 PM | Football

Box Score

By: Don Tomkalski

Final Stats PDF | Final Stats HTML | Postgame Notes

Houston, Texas –– Tulsa's comeback bid against the 12th-ranked Houston Cougars fell short 38-31 Saturday night in front of 38,221 fans at TDECU Stadium, as the Hurricane was just inches shy of sending the game into overtime. Tulsa fell to 4-2 and 1-1 in the American Athletic Conference, while Houston improved to 6-1 and 3-1 in the AAC.

Tulsa took its final possession, trailing 38-31, with 1:21 to play and 75 yards from the end zone. The Hurricane marched to the Houston one-yard line on a James Flanders 23-yard run. With 0:07 on the clock and 2nd-and-goal from the two-yard line, Dane Evans threw to Jesse Brubaker, but the big defensive lineman, who lined up at tight end, was held a yard shy of the end zone, thus ending the game.

Earlier with the game tied at 31, the Hurricane was marching with less than two minutes on the clock when Evans was stripped of the ball. It was picked up by Emeke Egbule and returned for a 24-yard touchdown to put the Cougars ahead by seven at 38-31 with 1:21 left in the game.

After trailing 17-3 in the second quarter, Tulsa tied the score going into intermission with two touchdowns in the final three minutes of the first half to make the halftime score 17-17.

Just as in the first half, the Cougars scored the first two touchdowns in the second half to take a 31-17 lead with 8:29 remaining in the game. Tulsa wasted little time in going 65 yards in four plays, and taking only 1:26 off the clock, to cut the deficit to seven points, 31-24, as Evans threw a 38-yard strike to Justin Hobbs for the score. The Hurricane took its next possession 53 yards in seven plays to tie the game at 31 with 3:31 remaining.

For the game, Houston totaled 522 yards to Tulsa's 459. The Hurricane had 365 passing yards as Evans completed 27-of-51 passes with one TD, while the Tulsa rushing attack put up 94 yards against the nation's fourth-ranked defense. Flanders had a team-high 70 yards on 19 carries, while Evans' connected eight times to Hobbs for 129 yards.

The Cougars' Greg Ward Jr. totaled 396 yards with 142 on the ground and 254 through the air, but the senior was held without a touchdown after totaling 17 in Houston's first six games.

Houston took the game's opening kickoff 76 yards in eight plays as Dillon Birden raced 17 yards for a 7-0 lead at the 12:37 mark.

After a 3-and-out on their first possession, Tulsa took its next drive 30 yards in 10 plays, but had to settle for a 32-yard Redford Jones field goal.

The Cougars scored the next 10 points, coming on a Ty Cumming 33-yard field goal and a six-yard Mulbah Car run that capped an 11-play, 81-yard drive, putting the Cougars ahead 17-3 with 11:07 left in the second quarter.

Tulsa closed out the first half by scoring 14 points in the final three minutes. The Hurricane took its first score 69 yards in 11 plays as freshman Corey Taylor II scored from two yards out on his first collegiate play, capping the 3:43 drive. After Tulsa's defense held the Cougars to three-and-out, The Hurricane offense took just 1:45 off the clock on a 74-yard, nine-play drive that saw Evans run in from one yard out, and after the PAT, making the score 17-17 with 0:13 left on the first half clock.

The first-half statistics saw Houston with a 295 to 207-yard edge in total offense, while the Cougars gained 133 yards on the ground and 162 passing yards. Tulsa had 160 passing yards and 47 on the ground.

The Golden Hurricane will be back home next week for Homecoming as the Tulane Green Wave come to town for a 2:45 p.m. kickoff.