HOMECOMING MAGIC
King puts on a show at UH before party-minded crowd
Nov 5, 2017, 7:44 am
The Houston Cougars dominated East Carolina in front of the Homecoming crowd 52-27 at TDECU Stadium. It was a great day at TDECU. The Coogs celebrated their 71st Homecoming and for the fiftth straight season are now bowl eligible. Fans had even more reason to celebrate. D’Eriq King got his moment to shine in his debut as starting quarterback for the Houston Cougars. It has not been easy trying to find a replacement for Greg Ward, who now plays on Sundays for the Eagles. He led the Cougars to a victory over Florida State in the 2016 Peach Bowl, and who can forget what he did in last year’s season opener against Oklahoma?
UH had some big cleats to fill. King, a local Houstonian, laced up as QB and passed for 330 yards with 3 touchdowns in this game. King and Ward only played together for one year, but the impact Ward made on him has only made King more driven to take the wheel. During the postgame press conference, King told media, “So I would say I wouldn’t try to be exactly like him but I try to take from him and do just as good as he did.”If King’s career ends up being anything like his first play, King will be UH’s next trademark quarterback.
The first few plays set the tone for how the Coogs would play against ECU. Within the first minute and 20 seconds, King ran it in for a touchdown, making it 7-0. In the 3rd quarter, Steven Dunbar reached the end zone with a 74-yard pass, making it 35-17 Cougars. With only a few games left to play in their home stadium, seniors Bonner & Dunbar went for over 100 yards in receptions and paired each with a touchdown. The Coogs pulled up 52-17 in the 4thquarter, and with 7:00 minutes left the backups took over. TDECU stadium is located in the Third Ward, but boy… could you hear the band and the victory bells non-stop all the way to downtown. It was nothing but an offensive show.
This show began on Monday with Homecoming festivities popping up around campus. Students and organizations celebrated all week, showing off their Cougar pride. From the homecoming court to the excitement of the football game, students, alumni, and the UH community rallied together to bring in this annual event. Homecoming festivities included honoring the homecoming court. It isn’t a homecoming game without your King and queen. The surprise announcement of the Queen brought tears to her eyes as she lived a moment most women only dream of happening.
Fans stood up to honor members of the 1967 UH football team at halftime. We all remember this team for beating the Michigan State Spartans. The Spartans beat Penn State today, but in 1967 they could not beat the Coogs. UH legend Coach Bill Yeoman was at the helm of this team when they took down top ranked Michigan State.
For all the alums who made it back home, the Coogs made sure to put on a show. With a bye week this upcoming Saturday and an away game, there’s only one more chance to see your Coogs at home. The day after Thanksgiving UH will host Navy to close out the season. The local quarterback and the local team need your support. If you call Houston home, hope to see you at TDECU on Nov. 24.
Fred VanVleet scored 37 points and the surging Houston Rockets won their ninth straight, beating the Miami Heat 102-98 Friday night.
VanVleet shot 13 for 17 from the field and made a season-high 9 of 11 3-pointers as the Rockets extended the league’s longest active winning streak. Houston also snapped a nine-game skid against Miami, which lost its 10th straight. It is the Heat’s longest skid since they lost 11th straight in 2007-08.
Amen Thompson returned after missing the last six games because of a sprained left ankle and finished with 18 points and seven steals while Dillon Brooks and Jabari Smith each added 11 points for the Rockets.
Houston rallied from an 11-point deficit early in the third quarter and got to 80-78 on Jalen Green’s jumper to close the period.
Miami’s Andrew Wiggins scored 30 points, his highest total since the Heat acquired him from Golden State for Jimmy Butler on Feb. 6. Kel’el Ware had 16 points and 14 rebounds, while Bam Adebayo also scored 16 points for the Heat.
Rockets: Houston remained second in the Western Conference.
Heat: Miami squandered its 20th double digit lead that led to a loss. Wiggins’ jump shot two minutes into the third period put the Heat ahead 65-54 before Houston rallied.
VanVleet went on a personal 9-2 run to start the fourth that put the Rockets ahead for good. He hit two 3-pointers, a lay-up and made 1 of 2 free throws that gave Houston an 87-84 lead.
The Rockets outrebounded the Heat 46-34 for their eighth consecutive game of winning the rebounding edge against their opponent.
Rockets host Denver on Sunday, and Heat host Charlotte.