Tulsa has positioned itself as probably the best team in Conference USA, and definitely the most exciting.
Tulsa has positioned itself as probably the best team in Conference USA, and definitely the most exciting.
The Golden Hurricane lost some luster two weeks ago with a 30-23 loss to Arkansas, knocking it out of discussion when it comes to "BCS busters." After a week off to regroup, coach Todd Graham's team begins the road to its second C-USA title in the four seasons since realignment.
Tulsa (8-1 overall, 5-0 C-USA) could become the clear front-runner Saturday night when it travels to Houston (5-4, 4-1). The Cougars no doubt remember last season, when their journey to the West Division title was abruptly snuffed by the Hurricane 56-7.
The Hurricane has regained a Top 25 ranking and will take on a Houston team that rebounded from a 37-23 loss at Marshall to pound Tulane 42-14 last week. Case Keenum threw for 384 yards and four touchdowns as the Cougars outgained the Green Wave 693-268.
Tulsa still has some of the shiniest offense stats in the country, averaging 52.0 points and 593.0 total yards. Graham welcomed the extra week to prepare, but warns not to expect a repeat of the 2007 game.
"Those guys that were in that game last year for them will probably use that as a source of motivation," Graham said. "That has sure not been the norm in this game, what happened last year. They've won two of the last three contests with us. I don't think they've been beat at night there in a long time. They've won 12 of their last 13 home games. That's big."
A Houston victory would put three West teams at 5-1, with Rice back in the middle. Tulsa has defeated Rice, which plays host to the Cougars to end the regular season.
If Tulsa wins, it only needs to beat Tulane (2-7, 1-4) to wrap up the West even before the Hurricane visits Marshall on Nov. 29.
nn
At Houston, wide receiver Patrick Edwards joined coach Kevin Sumlin's weekly press conference. Naturally, he was asked about the season-ending broken leg he suffered Oct. 28 at Marshall, when he collided with a band equipment cart left close to the end of the field.
"It didn't look that bad to me," he said of watching the replay. "When I saw the play in slow motion, I thought it could have been worse. I might not have been able to walk again.
"I remember focusing on the ball and as soon as it hit my fingertips I ran into the carts. My leg went numb and I flipped over and I didn't feel anything until they put my foot in the brace."
Edwards said the healing process would take four months. The staples were taken out of his leg this week, and he expects to discard his crutches at the two-month mark.
nn
After two straight overtime victories, East Carolina (6-3, 4-1) continues its march toward the East Division title. But the Pirates could take a step back Saturday at Southern Mississippi (4-6, 2-4).
Tulsa has positioned itself as probably the best team in Conference USA, and definitely the most exciting.
The Golden Hurricane lost some luster two weeks ago with a 30-23 loss to Arkansas, knocking it out of discussion when it comes to "BCS busters." After a week off to regroup, coach Todd Graham's team begins the road to its second C-USA title in the four seasons since realignment.
Tulsa (8-1 overall, 5-0 C-USA) could become the clear front-runner Saturday night when it travels to Houston (5-4, 4-1). The Cougars no doubt remember last season, when their journey to the West Division title was abruptly snuffed by the Hurricane 56-7.
The Hurricane has regained a Top 25 ranking and will take on a Houston team that rebounded from a 37-23 loss at Marshall to pound Tulane 42-14 last week. Case Keenum threw for 384 yards and four touchdowns as the Cougars outgained the Green Wave 693-268.
Tulsa still has some of the shiniest offense stats in the country, averaging 52.0 points and 593.0 total yards. Graham welcomed the extra week to prepare, but warns not to expect a repeat of the 2007 game.
"Those guys that were in that game last year for them will probably use that as a source of motivation," Graham said. "That has sure not been the norm in this game, what happened last year. They've won two of the last three contests with us. I don't think they've been beat at night there in a long time. They've won 12 of their last 13 home games. That's big."
A Houston victory would put three West teams at 5-1, with Rice back in the middle. Tulsa has defeated Rice, which plays host to the Cougars to end the regular season.
If Tulsa wins, it only needs to beat Tulane (2-7, 1-4) to wrap up the West even before the Hurricane visits Marshall on Nov. 29.
nn
At Houston, wide receiver Patrick Edwards joined coach Kevin Sumlin's weekly press conference. Naturally, he was asked about the season-ending broken leg he suffered Oct. 28 at Marshall, when he collided with a band equipment cart left close to the end of the field.
"It didn't look that bad to me," he said of watching the replay. "When I saw the play in slow motion, I thought it could have been worse. I might not have been able to walk again.
"I remember focusing on the ball and as soon as it hit my fingertips I ran into the carts. My leg went numb and I flipped over and I didn't feel anything until they put my foot in the brace."
Edwards said the healing process would take four months. The staples were taken out of his leg this week, and he expects to discard his crutches at the two-month mark.
nn
After two straight overtime victories, East Carolina (6-3, 4-1) continues its march toward the East Division title. But the Pirates could take a step back Saturday at Southern Mississippi (4-6, 2-4).
The Golden Eagles were pretty much left for dead after a five-game losing streak which began with a 34-27 setback against Marshall. But they unloaded for 70 points against Alabama-Birmingham and throttled Central Florida 17-6 last week. The Knights scored early, then barely crossed midfield in the final 49 minutes.
Southern Miss is very much alive for a bowl berth. If it beats ECU, only a trip to Southern Methodist (1-9, 0-6) remains in its way. The Eagles are one of few teams in the country averaging both 200 yards passing and 200 yards rushing.
"Have we arrived? No. We are not even close," said USM coach Larry Fedora. "We have a long way. But what we did do the other day is we figured out how to win a football game, without it being pretty. We didn't have a lot of explosive plays on offense, defense played really well, special teams played well, we figured out how to win a football game, where earlier in the year we hadn't figured that out yet."
Southern Miss is one of eight teams still in the running for C-USA's six bowl spots. A condensed look at how they stand:
Fully eligible: Tulsa, Rice (7-3, 5-1).
Almost fully eligible: East Carolina.
In good shape: Houston, Memphis (5-5, 3-3).
Needs strong finish: Marshall (4-5, 3-2), Southern Miss, Texas-El Paso (4-5, 3-2). Marshall finishes with UCF, Rice and Tulsa, while UTEP must battle SMU, Houston, East Carolina and the Miners' historical November ineptitude (4-11 since 2005).
Around the league
Houston tight end Mark Hafner was named the John Mackey Tight End of the Week by the Nassau County (N.Y.) Sports Commission. He won the honor for the second time this year after catching a career-high 11 passes for 91 yards.
Rice receiver Jarrett Dillard, whom Marshall faces next week, was named a semifinalist for the Biletnikoff Award for the second time in three seasons. His quarterback, Chase Clement, was named C-USA offensive player of the week for his 384-yard performance against Army.
East Carolina took the other two awards, with cornerback Emanuel Davis and kicker Ben Hartman winning for their efforts against Marshall.
Houston defensive end Phillip Hunt apologized for a hit that broke the collarbone of Tulane quarterback Joe Kemp. On a third-and-9, Hunt kept rushing the passer after the play was blown dead for a delay-of-game penalty. Hunt said he never heard the whistle and felt he was still being blocked.
Reach Doug Smock at 348-5130 or dougsm...@wvgazette.com.
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