On September 21, 1957, the Houston Cougars shocked #14 Miami, 7-0, at Rice Stadium. The Hurricanes had won 15 of their last 17 games going back to 1955 (with one loss and one tie).
UH scored in the second quarter, as Hal Lewis went around the left end from 21 yards out. That TD held up as the Cougar defense held Miami to 185 yards in the game. It was Harold Lahar’s first game as Houston’s head coach and he was named national coach of the week after the upset.
With Lahar’s emphasis on playing a harder schedule, the Coogs played five ranked teams in the season’s first seven weeks. Of those, UH only won the Miami, but the Cougars went 3-0-1 in the league games to win the Missouri Valley Conference title.
UH moved to #14 in the country the following week, the second-ever week the Coogs had been ranked.
The Miami HeraldFort Lauderdale NewsMiami NewsShasta at the Miami gameMiami Herald on ShastaMiami Herald photoMiami News photoUH defense takes down a Miami RB // The HoustonianHarold Lahar in his debut // The Houstonian
