Cougars eye bowl, have bigger goals
DALLAS — With a renewed optimism from a three-game winning streak, the University of Houston will seek to become bowl eligible when it faces SMU at Gerald J. Ford Stadium.
The Cougars, however, still have their sights set on bigger goals.
“We’re really pushing to get into that championship game again,” linebacker Mannie Nunnery said. “We feel like we’ll be underachieving if we just shoot for a bowl game.”
At 5-3 overall and 3-1 in the American Athletic Conference, UH is currently in a three-way tie with UCF and Cincinnati for second place. Tulane is the only unbeaten team in the AAC at 4-0.
Here are five things to watch Saturday:
1. Top receivers on display
Nathaniel “Tank” Dell keeps track of statistics, whether his own or other top receivers around the country. Earlier this week, Dell said he has a “mutual respect” for SMU’s Rashee Rice as two of the nation’s top receivers prepare to square off.
“I know he’s going to try and battle me and have better stats as me and help the team win, and I’m doing the same on my end,” Dell said.
SMU’s high-powered passing offense relies heavily on Rice, who leads the nation with 982 yards and is tied for fifth with 62 receptions. Dell is equally important to the Cougars, ranking second in touchdowns (10), seventh in receptions (60) and 17th in receiving yards (739). It’s no coincidence that the two receivers are among the most targeted in college football: Rice has been targeted 108 times this season, while Dell has 81, according to Pro Football Focus.
2. Mordecai expected back
After sitting out last week’s game against Tulsa in concussion protocol, SMU starting quarterback Tanner Mordecai is expected to return Saturday.
Mordecai threw for 305 yards and three touchdowns in a 44-37 loss to UH at TDECU Stadium. “Mordecai is really what makes it all go,” UH defensive coordinator Doug Belk said. “Very talented, can make every throw, ultimate competitor. You see the passion; you see the fire when he plays.”
Mordecai currently leads the AAC with 303 passing yards per game.
3. Mr. October
UH quarterback Clayton Tune has been a perfect 7-0 in the month of October during the past two seasons.
During that stretch, Tune has thrown for 2,117 yards with 23 touchdowns and only two interceptions. That includes a current hot streak of 12 touchdowns and one interception as Tune was named the AAC’s offensive player of the week three times in October.
“Been a big believer in Clayton since I’ve been here,” Holgorsen said Thursday on his weekly coaches show. “I know what he’s made of.”
Tune has benefited from the emergence of Sam Brown and KeSean Carter in the passing game and improved offensive line that has allowed only five sacks in the last five games.
4. Will SMU rivalry go on?
With UH set to join the Big 12 next year, the future of the I-45 series with SMU has an uncertain future.
The series has delivered its share of storylines. The Cougars’ 95-21 victory in 1989 after the Mustangs returned from the NCAA’s so-called death penalty to more recent meetings that involved a 72-42 victory by the Mustangs in 2012.
Former UH coach Tom Herman stirred the pot in 2015 when he taped SMU jerseys to the floor outside the team locker room. The next offseason Herman took another shot at the Ponies, telling the Houston Rotary Club “… if you are satisfied with going 7-5 and going to the Poulan Weedeater Bowl then great. I hear there’s a private school up in Dallas that’s really looking to try to get to seven wins.” SMU had the last laugh later that year, upsetting the No. 11 Cougars 38-16.
As part of a statewide branding campaign in 2017, SMU put up a billboard along I-45, about a mile from the UH campus. In Holgorsen’s last trip to SMU, as offensive coordinator in 2008, Case Keenum threw for 404 yards — which included the game-winner to Tyron Carrier with 24 seconds left — for a 44-38 win.
More recently, the Cougars have lost the last two trips to the Metroplex and had the 2020 game canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Asked several times this week about the future of the series, Holgorsen said: “I have no idea where it’s headed from here. We don’t know when the next time we’re going to play.”
Holgorsen said SMU could fit as a regional-type games on future non-conference schedules, along with Rice, UTSA, Tulane and Tulsa.
5. Need for Sneed
While the Cougars await the return of Ta’Zhawn Henry, who has missed three games following ankle surgery, Stacy Sneed has provided a boost in the backfield. Sneed, who did not play his first two seasons, has 30 carries for 160 yards and two touchdowns.