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Football Begins Homestand vs. Tulane at 7 p.m., Saturday at Robertson Stadium
Nov. 7, 2008
GAME 9
The Cougars (4-4, 3-1 C-USA West) begin their three-game homestand at 7 p.m., Saturday, when they play host to Conference USA rival Tulane. Fans should note that this weekend's game time recently was pushed back to 7 p.m. to accommodate CBS College Sports' broadcast of the game. UH opened the season with six of its first eight games outside of Houston. However, the team won't need to leave the Houston city limits during the month of November with three straight home games against Tulane (Saturday), Tulsa (Nov. 15) and UTEP (Nov. 22) before closing out the regular season at crosstown-rival Rice (Nov. 29). This weekend's game also will be the Cougars' annual Homecoming contest. The Cougars have posted a 32-27-3 all-time record during their Homecoming games and bring a four-game winning streak into this weekend. UH has not lost a Homecoming game since a 31-10 decision to C-USA rival Southern Miss in 2003. UH comes into this weekend's game after a disappointing 37-23 loss at C-USA rival Marshall on Oct. 28, but with a 3-1 record in the C-USA West Division, the Cougars remain only a game behind leader Tulsa in the loss column.
On the ground, freshman running back Bryce Beall leads the way with 625 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. Senior tight end Mark Hafner leads the team with 54 catches and eight touchdowns and has added 598 yards, while freshman wide receiver Patrick Edwards is tops with 634 receiving yards. However, Edwards' season was prematurely ended after breaking his leg during the Marshall game. Redshirt freshman wide receiver Tyron Carrier also has posted 50 catches for 541 yards and five touchdowns. Defensively, senior end and All-America candidate Phillip Hunt paces the Cougars with 10 sacks and 12.5 tackles for a loss of 78 yards. Junior linebacker Matt Nicholson leads the team with 66 tackles, including 35 solo stops, while junior cornerback Brandon Brinkley has picked off a team-high four passes.
The game also will be televised live on CBS College Sports with Tom Hart calling the play-by-play action and Trev Alberts providing color analysis.
The Cougars bring a five-game winning streak against the Green Wave into this weekend's game and has not lost to Tulane since a 34-13 setback in Houston on Sept. 2, 2002. In addition, the Cougars have posted a 4-2 record against the Green Wave in Houston, including an impressive 3-1 mark on John O'Quinn Field at Robertson Stadium.
Making the first start of his career, freshman running back Nathan Austin rushed for 53 yards on 16 carries and is the Green Wave's leading active rusher with 179 yards on 45 carries. Andre Anderson leads the team with 864 rushing yards but was lost for the remainder of the season due to injury. Sophomore quarterback Kevin Moore leads the offense with 1,520 yards and seven touchdowns on 134-of-228 passing. Despite sitting out the last three games with a foot injury, junior Jeremy Williams leads the Green Wave wideouts with 27 receptions for 437 yards and five touchdowns. Defensively, junior strong safety Corey Sonnier leads the way with 47 tackles, while junior defensive end Logan Kelley is tops with five sacks and three forced fumbles.
The inductees will be enshrined during the Hall of Honor Gala, beginning at 6:30 p.m., Friday at the Hyatt Regency - Houston. CBS Sports broadcast Jim Nantz and the Voice of the Cougars Tom Franklin will serve as the program's masters of ceremony. The inductees will be recognized during the Cougars' football game against C-USA rival Tulsa on Nov. 15. The Class of 2008 includes Kirk Baptiste (track and field, 1983-85), Rita Crockett (volleyball, 1977), Louis Dunbar (men's basketball, 1972-75), Keith Fergus (golf, 1973-76), Phill Hansel (women's swimming and diving head coach, 1975-96), Carlton Hanta (baseball, 1952-54), David Klingler (football, 1989-91), Riley Odoms (football, 1969-71) and Wade Phillips (football, 1966-68). For the first time in the history of the Hall, an entire team will be enshrined as well. The 1967-68 men's basketball team, which reached the NCAA Final Four for the second time in school history and upset No. 1 UCLA in front of more than 52,000 fans at the Houston Astrodome during the "Game of the Century", will join the Athletics Hall of Honor. Fans can read more about the 2008 Athletics Hall of Honor inductees by clicking here.
• Former Cougar diver and five-time NCAA individual national champion Yulia Pakhalina and junior diver Anastasia Pozdniakova, who teamed to win the Silver Medal in synchronized diving at the 2008 Olympics, and diving head coach Jane Figueiredo will serve as honorary captains. • The 2008-09 Cougar Women's Basketball Team will be recognized at the end of the first quarter. • The 1978 Cougar Football team, which won the Southwest Conference championship, defeated four top-10 teams, finished 9-3 and ranked among the top-11 leaders in both the final AP and UP polls, will be recognized at halftime. • The 2008 Cougar Baseball team, which won the C-USA Tournament championship, will be honored in the third quarter
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, which is now located at Gate 10 at the stadium. The Athletics Department will match donations of five or more non-perishable food items with a discount voucher that will be good for discounted tickets or Cougar Authentic merchandise. Bags for collecting non-perishable food items will be distributed to fans at home games, Cougar talk shows and in the Athletics/Alumni Center. Once the items have been collected, the Athletics Department will present the food to the Star of Hope Mission at halftime of the regular-season finale against Conference USA rival UTEP at 2:30 p.m., Nov. 22. The presentation will be a part of "Coogs for Charity Day" at Robertson Stadium. Supporting sponsors of the Campaign include Smart Financial Credit Union, Wells Fargo, New York Life, Irma's Southwest Grill, Fabenco, Tallowood Baptist Church, Houston First Baptist Church and Halliburton. The Star of Hope Mission ministers to more than 900 people every day with food, clothing, shelter and structured recovery programs. The organization touches the lives of more than 7,000 homeless people each year, including more than 1,600 children.
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