10th-ranked UH looks poised for a great season
Here's why UH could make a deep tournament run
Dec 1, 2020, 11:15 am
The Coogs are off to a hot start. Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images
Kelvin Sampson: We don’t recruit kids because of defense
Through eleven COVID stricken weeks, the University of Houston football team has mustered three wins.
The UH men's basketball season began on November 25th. It took them five days to catch up.
The Cougars came into last week ranked 17th in the nation in the AP preseason poll, the highest they've begun a season in 37 years. They took little time to establish themselves as one of the top teams in the nation.
UH shot out of the gate last week to a 3-0 start, including a double-digit win over 14th ranked Texas Tech. That, combined with a myriad of week one upsets, sent the Cougars soaring even further up the rankings.
By Monday afternoon, Houston was already one of the top 10 ranked teams in the nation.
Now it's important to note that it's incredibly early in the season, and there is plenty of time for something to go haywire. With TDECU stadium right across the street, they've had a front row seat to see just how sideways COVID can flip a season. The football team may only have 3 wins, but that's partly because they've had to postpone 5 games.
Regardless, they remain 10th in the nation at the moment, and it's no fluke. This is a solid team that has shown glimpses for the past three years.
Led offensively by sophomore guard Marcus Sasser (17.3 ppg) and Kansas transfer guard Quentin Grimes (16.0 ppg), the Cougars field a deep backcourt that has received welcome early contributions from freshman Tramon Mark (14.0 ppg) who's already earned an average of 19 minutes per game.
Speaking of minutes, UH brings one of the most important skills to the court this season: experience. In the era of one-and-done turnover among NCAA programs, the Cougars bring back four players that averaged over 20 minutes per game last season. That type of experience playing with one another and understanding the system head coach Kelvin Sampson plays could prove invaluable come tournament time.
What truly gives this team a shot though is their defense and hustle, both of which are a direct result of Sampson. They're simply relentless on defense. After finishing 11th in the nation last season only allowing 62.1 ppg, they've shown no signs of letting up. Through their first three games they've given up an average of 52 ppg. Even with double-digit leads, this is still a team diving for loose balls and mixing it up for offensive rebounds.
All of those ingredients make for a very salty, and very entertaining college basketball team. The Cougars have proved in the past three seasons that they're legitimately tournament worthy, and as the preseason American Conference champion favorite, this is a team that could—and should—have their eyes set even higher than their sweet sixteen appearance in 2019. Nothing is certain in the COVID era, however, but if they can make it through the season relatively unscathed they should be a tough out during March Madness.
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Joe Mixon has carried Houston’s offense in the three games since he returned from an injury.
The running back could be even more important this week with the Texans dealing with another injury to a top receiver after Stefon Diggs went down Sunday.
Diggs sustained a non-contact injury to his right knee and coach DeMeco Ryans refused to provide any details on his injury Monday, saying only that he’s still being evaluated.
His injury comes with leading receiver Nico Collins out for at least one more game after being placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury.
Mixon has had at least 100 yards rushing and a TD run in three straight games. He finished with 102 yards rushing and a touchdown in Houston’s 23-20 win over Indianapolis on Sunday.
“Joe showed up big time for us when we needed him most making plays,” Ryans said.
Mixon, who is in his first season in Houston after a trade from Cincinnati, became the first player in NFL history to have at least 100 yards rushing and a TD run in four of his first five games with a team.
The only time he didn’t have 100 yards and a score this season came in Week 2 when he missed almost the entire second half with an ankle injury that kept him out the next three games. He ranks third in the NFL by averaging 100.6 yards rushing a game.
If Diggs is out this week, Tank Dell is the most likely candidate to pick up the slack in the passing game.
His production has dropped off this season after a standout rookie year where he had 709 yards receiving with seven touchdowns in 11 games before breaking his leg. He has 229 yards receiving this season and scored his second touchdown in Sunday’s win which improved the AFC South-leading Texans to 6-2.
But Ryans said it will take a group effort to make sure Stroud and Houston’s passing attack, which rank eighth in the NFL, stay on track.
“What I loved about our game (Sunday) was that you saw was multiple guys stepping up and making plays,” he said. “That is what excites me the most about our team … a lot of different guys stepping up and making plays and that is what we will continue to see.”
What's working
Houston’s defense entered Monday’s game ranked second in the NFL by allowing just 280.3 yards a game. The strength of the unit has been the pass defense, which is giving up just 164.3 yards a game.
Safety Jalen Pitre, who had an interception Sunday, said the secondary has gotten a boost from Houston’s pass rush, which ranks third in the league with 27 sacks.
“We’re doing a pretty good job, but it’s a huge credit to our D-line,” Pitre said. “They’re outstanding. They do their job at a high level and it does nothing but make opposing quarterbacks know that they’ve got to get the ball out earlier and that turns into incompletions and interceptions.”
What needs help
The offensive line continued to struggle in pass protection Sunday. Stroud was sacked just twice but was hit nine other times and was under pressure on 57.5% of his drop-backs according to NextGen stats.
The Texans benched left guard Kenyon Green for Jarrett Patterson in the first quarter Sunday as he struggled against the rush. But Green had to come back soon after that because Patterson got a concussion.
Ryans said they’ll continue to evaluate the line to see how they can improve the protection.
Stock up
Dell, who is in his second season, had four receptions for 35 yards and a touchdown Sunday. The performance came after he was targeted four times against the Packers but finished with zero receptions. He has nine career touchdowns, which ties him with Will Fuller for most in franchise history through a player’s first 18 games.
“I’m just super proud of him, what he’s been able to do and he’s going to have to step up really big for us,” Stroud said.
Stock down
Green for his struggles in pass protection Sunday. The 15th overall pick in the 2022 draft missed all last season with injuries before returning to the starting lineup this season.
“We can definitely be better, especially on my end,” he said after the game.
Injuries
S Calen Bullock was limited in practice Monday after injuring his shoulder Sunday. … LBs Azeez Al-Shaair (knee) and Henry To’oTo’o (concussion) both missed the Colts game but could return this week. … S Jimmie Ward is likely to miss a fifth straight game with a groin injury.
Key number
13.3% — Houston’s defense limited Anthony Richardson to a 13.3% completion percentage in the first half Sunday, which was the second-lowest completion percentage by any player in a half since 1991. The second-year quarterback completed just 2 of 15 passes before halftime.
Next steps
The Texans have a quick turnaround before a visit to the New York Jets on Thursday night where they’ll try for their fifth win in six games.
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Fans of Houston sports and Houston food can now score tickets to The Tailgate, CultureMap's all-out party devoted to everyone’s favorite way to get in the gameday spirit. The event, presented by Verizon, goes down from 6-9 pm November 11 at 8th Wonder. Find out more about it here.