You'd think that the Cougars, coming off a dramatic road win against a former Southwest Conference rival the week before, would be amped up to come back to TDECU for Homecoming and flex on a 2-7 team they haven't beaten since 2016.
The Ugly: The entire game. The UH offense could only manage 12 first downs and a meager 241 yards of total offense for the entire game. Of the Coogs' 11 offensive possessions, 9 ended in either punts, turnovers (QB Donovan Smith was intercepted three times) or failed fourth down conversion attempts. The defense surrendered 368 total yards to the Bearcats; Cincinnati RB Corey Kiner carved through the UH run defense like a warm knife through soft butter, with 129 rushing yards and two touchdowns. The Cougars simply weren't prepared for this game.
Brad Towns expresses his frustration at Holgorsen's inability to have his team mentally focused to take on beatable opponents, such as Rice and Cincinnati:
Back in September, I had a hard time believing players could take an opponent for granted. Especially a local rival. I am having an even harder time believing that this team would overlook a Cincinnati team that had pounded UH each time they played under this coaching staff.
The Bearcats were on a 7-game losing streak, and UH was coming off a bounce-back road win against Baylor. A bowl game was on the line and within reach, and it was Homecoming, too. This was the perfect setting to get things right and prove this team was improving.
And then they went out and got rolled. Don’t let the score fool you, UH was completely dominated by a 2-7 team. It is one thing to lose, it is another to get outworked and outfought on the field. Especially at home. Houston is now 14-12 at home under Holgorsen, 12-12 vs. FBS teams.
A loss Saturday against Oklahoma State and Holgorsen would be sub-.500 vs. FBS teams at home. His predecessor Major Applewhite – fired after two years because the program was in shambles – was 9-3 at home (8-3 vs. FBS teams).
Sometimes teams are just more talented, and there is not much you can do to beat them. But no UH team should overlook anyone, and they should never have an opponent play harder or want it more.
That is wholly unacceptable by players and it is unacceptable that this continued lack of wanting and effort can be accepted by the coaching staff.
The Homecoming "crowd" at TDECU was pretty ugly as well. Most of the 34,312 tickets sold for this game clearly went unused. The University's fair-weather, front-runner fanbase has given up on Holgorsen and the Cougars.
What It Means: The Cougars need to win their final two games (at home, against Oklahoma State, and on the road, against Central Florida) to become bowl eligible. The chances of that happening are somewhere between slim and none.
On Sunday, Texas A&M fired head coach Jumbo Fisher after six seasons and a 45-25 record. His buyout will be around $77 million. You'd think that if the Aggies can admit they made a mistake and move on in spite of the cost, the UH athletics administration could bite the bullet and do the same for somebody who has been 31-26 over almost five seasons, has essentially given up on recruiting his 2024 class, routinely misjudges his team's gameday readiness, and has clearly lost the interest of the school's fanbase. At this point, it may cost Houston more (in lost ticket sales and other gameday revenues) to keep Holgorsen than to let him go.
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