Oct. 8, 2008

GAME 6
UAB Blazers (1-5, 0-2 C-USA East) at Houston Cougars (2-3, 1-0 C-USA West)
Oct. 9, 2008 • John O'Quinn Field at Robertson Stadium (32,000) • Houston, Texas • 7 p.m. (CDT)

RADIO: Houston-ISP Sports Radio Network (790 AM The Sports Animal- Houston)
TELEVISION: CBS College Sports (DirecTV channel 613/Dish Network channel 152)
INTERNET AUDIO/VIDEO: live broadcast at UHCougars.com
LIVE STATS: live GameTracker stats at UHCougars.com
GAME NOTES: Houston Game Notes (Oct. 9, 2008) in PDF Format

UAB Game Notes (Oct. 9, 2008) in PDF Format

Conference USA Notebook (Oct. 9, 2008) in PDF Format

HOUSTON - The University of Houston football team finally returns to the friendly confines of John O'Quinn Field at Robertson Stadium as it plays host to Conference USA rival UAB at 7 p.m., Thursday.

The Cougars (2-3, 1-0 C-USA West) look to even their season record during their first home game since the season opener on Aug. 30, a span of 40 days. UH was scheduled to play host to Air Force at Robertson Stadium on Sept. 13, but Hurricane Ike forced that game to be moved to SMU's Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas.

UH comes into the game after a dominating 41-24 win at No. 23 East Carolina on Sept. 27. It was the program's first win over a ranked opponent since 1996 and the team's first road win over a ranked rival since 1984.

ABOUT HOUSTON
Sophomore quarterback Case Keenum paces the offense with 1,927 yards and 19 touchdowns on 177-of-261 passing. The Abilene native has posted at least 300 yards in all five games to date in 2008 and six straight games dating back to the 2007 Texas Bowl.

Keenum threw for a career-high 401 yards during the win at No. 23 East Carolina, becoming just the seventh quarterback in UH history to reach that milestone.

When the Cougars go to the air, senior tight end Mark Hafner is the team's leading target, posting 36 catches for 362 yards and eight touchdowns. The Waller native has caught at least one touchdown pass in every game during the 2008 campaign.

Redshirt freshman wide receiver Patrick Edwards finished with 11 catches for 146 yards, while junior Kierrie Johnson added four catches for 104 yards, including an 84-yard touchdown strike, in the win at No. 23 East Carolina.

On the ground, freshman running back Bryce Beall leads the way with 345 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 54 carries. The Tatum native rolled to a career-high 130 yards on 21 carries at No. 23 East Carolina.

Defensively, junior linebacker Matt Nicholson leads the Cougars with 37 tackles, including 24 solo stops. Senior defensive end and All-America candidate Phillip Hunt tops the team with seven tackles for a loss, including five sacks for a loss of 28 yards.

Junior cornerback Brandon Brinkley has added a team-high two interceptions.

RADIO/TELEVISION INFORMATION
Fans can hear the game live on 790 AM The Sports Animal with Tom Franklin calling the play-by-play action, Ted Pardee providing color analysis and Chuck Brown reporting from the sideline. The pregame show is slated to begin one hour before kickoff.

In addition, the game will be televised live on CBS College Sports (DirecTV channel 613/Dish Network 152) with Carter Blackburn calling the play-by-play action and Aaron Taylor providing color analysis. It will be the second of several Cougar games to be televised in 2008.

LIVE STATS INFORMATION
Fans can follow live stats over the Internet by clicking the Gametracker link at UHCougars.com.

SERIES HISTORY
For the second straight season, the Cougars meet UAB on the gridiron. The Blazers own a 4-2 lead in the all-time series, which began in 1999 and was played every season from 2001 to 2004.

The two teams have split the last four games but the Cougars can boast of the most recent success after taking a 49-10 win in Birmingham on Oct. 20, 2007.

Thursday's game will be the Cougars' first meeting against UAB in Houston since a 56-28 win on Nov. 29, 2003.

ABOUT UAB
UAB enters this week's game on the heels of a tough 33-30 loss to C-USA rival Memphis on Oct. 2. The Tigers booted a 25-yard field goal with only two seconds remaining to take the win. It was the Blazers' second straight setback.

Junior quarterback Joe Webb leads the Blazers with 1,275 yards and seven touchdowns on 107-188 passing. Sophomore wide receiver Frantrell Forrest leads the receivers with 25 catches for 335 yards, while sophomore tight end Jeffery Anderson is tops with three touchdown receptions.

Webb also paces the ground attack with 516 yards and five touchdowns on 91 carries.

Defensively, senior middle linebacker Joe Henderson is tops with 40 tackles, including 5.5 for a loss. Junior linebacker Brandon Carlisle and senior cornerback Kevin Sanders each have recorded a pair of interceptions, while junior defensive end Bryant Turner is tops with four sacks.

PARKING INFORMATION- FANS
• Fans will not be allowed access to their respective parking lot until 3 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 9.

• No cash parking will be available in the Yellow Lot surrounding the stadium on game day. Cash parking for $5 will be available at the outer lots on campus.

PARKING INFORMATION - STUDENTS, FACULTY AND STAFF
• After 3 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 9, the lots surrounding Robertson Stadium may only be accessed by fans with valid UH Athletics parking passes and faculty and staff members with parking passes specifically for Lots 15D and 15F.

• Lot 13A (by UH entrance 13) is reserved for displaced faculty members. Anyone with a valid UH parking decal will be allowed to park there after 5 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 9.

• UH students, faculty and staff members who work or attend class Thursday evening are strongly encouraged to arrive early, park on the east side of campus and take the shuttle bus to class/work.

• Gated Lot 15D (northeast corner of Yellow Lot) will remain reserved for faculty/staff members with appropriate parking permits until 7 p.m., Oct. 9.

TAILGATING INFORMATION
• The use of parking passes will be STRICTLY enforced. As always, one parking pass will be required for every space used. In addition, fans will not be allowed access to their respective parking lot, and tailgating activities will not begin until 3 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 9.

• The Tailgating Village also will open at 3 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 9.

MARKETING INFORMATION
• In honor of "All UH Day," half-priced tickets will be available for UH faculty and staff. As always, UH students have free admission into the game with a valid Cougar ID.

• The University of Houston also will be recognizing "Cougars Helping Cougars" as part of the city's Hurricane Ike recovery campaign.

• During halftime, the 1988 UH football team will be recognized, as they reminisce about their 66-15 victory over Texas and their 9-3 season record. "The Spirit of Houston" Marching Band also will also perform during halftime.

• Before kick-off, officials with The Texas Lottery, a game-day sponsor, will also be distributing 5,000 free scratch-off tickets to fans and two lucky winners will receive price packs.

• For the second straight season the UH football program will team with Star of Hope Mission in the "Thanks for Giving" campaign, presented by Administaff. Donations of non-perishable food items will be collected at every home game. Fans who donate five or more food items will be given a discount voucher that will be good for discounted tickets to Cougar football or basketball events in 2008, or discounts at Cougar Authentic.

Donations can be delivered to the Star of Hope truck, which will be parked in the tailgate area just outside of Gate 7. An additional drop-off location will be located at the student entrance (Gate 10) of Robertson Stadium.

The Athletics Department will present the food to the Star of Hope Mission at halftime of the regular-season finale against C-USA rival UTEP at 4 p.m., Nov. 22. The presentation will be a part of "Coogs for Charity Day" at Robertson Stadium.