Cougars, Golden Eagles rise in polls

Houston climbs to 13th in latest BCS rankings

Houston and Southern Miss continue to climb in the national rankings after collecting wins over the weekend.

The Cougars (8-0, 4-0), who routed cross-town rival Rice, 73-34, last Thursday, climbed to 14th in the Coaches' and AP polls. Meanwhile, Kevin Sumlin's club is ranked 13th in the latest BCS rankings, as the Cougars attempt to remain unbeaten and potentially become the first CUSA program to play in a BCS bowl game.

Southern Miss (7-1, 3-1) has won six straight after managing a 31-13 win at UTEP. The Golden Eagles are ranked 24th in the Coaches' Poll and 25th in the BCS rankings. USM finds itself just outside of this week's AP Poll, as it comes in at "27th" by having the second most points of the unranked teams that are receiving votes.

Houston will travel to UAB this weekend for a date with the 1-7 Blazers.

Meanwhile, Southern Miss will visit East Carolina for a critical CUSA East showdown. The Pirates are 4-4 overall, but 3-1 in the league.

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