Bill Yeoman’s first game as Houston’s head coach was a 19-0 win over the Baylor Bears at Rice Stadium in 1962.
Sophomore running back Joe Lopasky scored three touchdowns in his first college game. Defensive back Byron Beaver tied an NCAA record with five interceptions against the Bears, a record that still stands today. Beaver intercepted passes that ended Baylor’s final two possessions of each half.
Yeoman’s debut included a significant change to how the Cougars looked: the Baylor game was the first time the Cougars wore the UH logo on their helmets. Yeoman insisted it belonged on the helmet. That way, in newspaper photos or the rare TV highlight, UH could be identified.
The interlocking UH helmet was a tradition that went uninterrupted until Dana Holgorsen added the script Cougars nearly 60 years later in the 2021 Birmingham Bowl.
The Cougar run defense held Baylor to just 21 rushing yards on 34 attempts, while the UH ground game put up 163 yards. Cougar QB Billy Roland was 7/10 passing for 96 yards. Baylor QBs completed 12 passes to their teammates and five to Beaver.
“Our boys just wanted it more than they did,” Yeoman said after the game, munching on an apple. “We just ran basic stuff, and our boys did a remarkable job.”
Lopasky opened the scoring in the 2nd quarter on a five-yard run and scored again in the third and on the first play of the 4th quarter. He ran for 43 yards on 13 carries.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram sent reporter Galyn Wilkins to the game, and his story’s lede put it best.
“An army of relentless sophomores, down-right disrespectful of Baylor’s touted aerial game, spearheaded Houston University to a 19-0 conquest of the favored Bears.”
Baylor had beaten Houston by the same 19-0 score in the 1951 opener.
For more on Houston’s 1960s uniform changes, read UH’s uniform journey through the 1960s.
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