Defense returns to its ballhawking ways
A low snap-exchange led to a fumble against Tulsa, setting off a wild scramble for the loose ball by University of Houston defensive players.
From underneath the pile, Tulsa quarterback Davis Brin slowly picked himself off the turf, the ball cradled underneath his arm. There would plenty other chances for the Cougars.
“We want the ball back,” cornerback Art Green said. “If the ball is on the ground, we want to be the first one there. If the ball is in the air, we want it.”
The Cougars matched a seasonhigh with three interceptions (and came close on a couple more) in their 45-10 blowout win over Tulsa Friday night. UH has forced nine turnovers in five games to start this season, which ranks third in the American Athletic Conference and tied for 20th nationally.
Pardon coach Dana Holgorsen if he would rather stay quiet about the team’s uptick in forcing turnovers.
“I prefer not to talk about it,” Holgorsen said during his weekly press conference to preview Thursday’s game at Tulane. “It’s an area of focus. But the more I sit here and talk about it … the worse it gets is typically my experiences with it.”
The stingy start has returned the UH defense to near the top of the national leaders where it was once a frequent resident. After producing 43 turnovers in 2013 and 35 in 2015, both the most in the Football Bowl Subdivision, the Cougars have totaled only 44 over the last three seasons.
Last year, UH finished tied for 109th — out of 127 FBS schools — with six takeaways in eight games during the pandemic-shortened season.
“I think really the effort and intensity we play with is what has caused turnovers more than anything,” defensive coordinator/associate head coach Doug Belk said. “Any chance we get to give our offense the ball back, a chance to score, is the main goal.”
So far, the adage that turnovers come in bunches has been true. UH (4-1, 2-0 AAC) had three interceptions in a 44-7 win over Rice in Week 2, with cornerback Alex Hogan returning one 91 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the game. At Tulsa, Hogan and cornerback Damarion Williams came up with interceptions, and free safety Gervarrius Owens grabbed a tipped pass by linebacker Donavan Mutin and scored on a 45-yard picksix. On another play, cornerback Marcus Jones perfectly timed a pass and had the ball deflect off his hands on what would have been a touchdown.
“I think they come in bunches,” Belk said. “When you play with a lot of energy, I think those things happen. Hopefully they continue.”
Jumping to big leads has also benefited the Cougars, putting offenses on the ropes early and not allowing quarterbacks to get comfortable. The recipe for turnovers begins up front with the constant pressure from UH’s defensive line, an ingredient that had been missing in past seasons. Brin spent most of the game running for his life — he was sacked four times and hit countless more — as Tulsa’s offensive line caved under pressure that came from all angles.
“From a defensive perspective, those turnovers come when you dominate the line of scrimmage,” Holgorsen said. “When you put the kind of pressure we put on an opposing quarterback, turnovers are going to happen. I give (defensive line coach) Brian Early and our defensive line a lot of credit for those picks.
“Without the pressure up front, a lot of times that stuff doesn’t happen. I don’t want to take anything away from our secondary, of course, but the amount of pressure we are putting on quarterbacks makes turnovers happen.”
The interceptions by Williams, who did not allow a completion in eight pass attempts thrown in his direction, and Hogan came on critical third-down plays deep in Tulsa territory. Owens’ touchdown return came on the third play of the second half, pushing UH’s lead to 35-3.
“We want to keep people out of the end zone, and we want to be great on critical downs,” said Belk, adding that the turnovers are a “total unit effort.”
Unhappy with the few takeaways last season, Green said the Cougars went to work almost immediately when spring practice began. Each day begins with a turnover drill. It’s not uncommon for a defensive player to sneak up behind a teammate walking to practice with a ball in his hand.
“Somebody will try to punch it out, rip it out,” Green said. “As a defense, we emphasize turnovers at all times.”
The magic number every game: “We want at least three (turnovers) every game,” Green added. “As many as we can get, really.”
Linebacker Deontay Anderson said the Cougars feed off the energy created by turnovers. To date, UH has cashed in with 41 points off the nine takeaways.
It’s perhaps no coincidence that the Cougars are on a four-game winning streak.
“Winning covers a lot of things,” Anderson said. “It makes everything smoother, everything easier. The energy … everybody is more confident. We have to keep it at that level.”