Thursday, November 07, 2019

Houston 29, Central Florida 44

Another competitive game, but another loss.

The Good: The first half. The Cougars jumped out to a quick start, leading by as much as ten points on two different occasions in the first quarter thanks to two rushing touchdowns by RB Mulbah Car. The Coogs racked up 357 yards of total offense in the first half and led at the break.

The Bad: The second half. Central Florida rallied to score 21 unanswered points in the third quarter alone and shut down Houston's offense, allowing only one additional score late in the game. The Knights sacked QB Clayton Tune five times, including in the endzone late in in the game for a safety. The Houston offense was simply shut down in the second half; all of its possessions except one ended in a punt, turnover on downs, or a safety.

The Ugly: How bad was Houston's offense in the second half? Seven of the Coogs' eight second-half possessions ended in a punt, a turnover on downs, or the aforementioned safety.

In spite of the loss, the Cougars dominated the Knights in time of possession, 41:31 to 18:29. Further proof that TOP is the most meaningless statistic in football.

What It Means: In order for the Coogs to avoid their first losing season since 2013, they need to win their final three games. Considering that two of their final three opponents - Memphis and Navy - are ranked, that's looking highly unlikely.

The Cougars have a week off before entering the final quarter of the season.

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