The ‘preseason’ is over, and UH zeroes in on eight straight Big 12 games. The next month is manageable with a game on Saturday, then 12 days until WVU, then nine days until UT comes to town. But how will the Coogs handle a Big 12 road game? And the first game outside the city?
the daily #56 | 9/25/2023 | Archives
5 Thoughts. Houston has played 1/3 of the season already. What do we know about this team so far? Five thoughts:
- The passing game is still looking for an identity, but seven players caught at least two passes against SHSU. That’s encouraging. In each of the first three games, four players caught 2+. After three games, wide receivers not named Brown, Golden, or Manjack had six catches for 33 yards. Against Sam, they had five for 40.
- Special teams continue to shine under Dana Holgorsen / Mark Scott.
- Parker Jenkins has been fun to watch. I’m curious to see how he progresses and what happens when he starts a Big 12 road game.
- Who is the MVP of this team so far? Does it go to Jenkins? Who else would you consider?
- The defense is creating turnovers and is solid in the red zone. Otherwise, the numbers are not great.
Speaking Of Turnovers. In his postgame press conference, Dana Holgorsen mentioned that the Cougars did not get anything out of the two turnovers created in the SHSU game. UH opponents have turned it over nine times in four games, but UH has scored only 14 points off of them.
Houston is tied for 13th nationally in turnovers gained but hasn’t been able to play complimentary football. Through four games:
| Season | Turnovers Created | Points Off Turnovers | Points Per TO |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 9 | 14 | 1.56 |
| 2022 | 6 | 17 | 2.83 |
| 2021 | 6 | 21 | 3.50 |
| 2020 | 2 | 14 | 7.00 |
| 2019 | 5 | 10 | 2.00 |
| 2018 | 5 | 21 | 4.20 |
| 2017 | 9 | 27 | 3.00 |
| 2016 | 7 | 42 | 6.00 |
| 2015 | 9 | 34 | 3.77 |
| 2014 | 13 | 51 | 3.92 |
What to take from that? I don’t know, except that Tony Levine scored 51 points off of turnovers in four games and was still 2-2, the same as Dana Holgorsen scoring 14 in 2023. And the other three seasons with 9+ turnovers, UH has scored at least 27 points off of them. But definitely a small sample size.
Other Numbers. After giving up 63 plays of 10+ yards in the first three games, the UH defense only gave up four such plays to Sam Houston State.
Houston is one of three Big 12 schools that have not lost a fumble (Iowa State, Kansas State). UH is last in the Big 12 in first downs defense, 4th down defense, total defense, 4th down offense, and red zone offense.
Hoops Happenings. UH Basketball is getting ramped up for the 2023-24 season. The men’s staff held their annual preseason retreat this past weekend. Kelvin Sampson has talked a lot about these retreats in the past, saying how big ideas come out of them.
The Big 12 will finally release the league schedule on Tuesday, and practice will begin on Wednesday. The exhibition against UNC-Pembroke is 33 days away.
