C-USA Football Championship Game Preview 2006

Southern Miss @ Houston - 8pm (EST) - ESPN2- Robertson Stadium (32,000)

Cougars will attempt to win title by avenging regular season loss to Golden Eagles

No one expected Conference USA to have a dominant team this season. However, I also doubt that many people, if anyone, foresaw the parity that did exist within the league.

There was defending champion Tulsa that looked as if it might repeat, but they fell on difficult times late following a strong start. UCF, who lost in the title game to Tulsa last season, went from first to worst this season. There were surprise teams such as Rice, East Carolina, and SMU. There were disappointments such as UTEP and Memphis.

The most consistent team was the Houston Cougars, but even they experienced a roller coaster season. Art Briles’ team won its first four games, lost its next three games, but then bounced back to win the final five—which equated to a strong 9-3 finish. Despite their strong finish, they nearly lost to struggling Memphis in their last game, which was one more sign of how balanced this league was this season.

Southern Miss was one of the favorites, if not the favorite, to win the CUSA East. They reached their destination, but not without some frills along the way.

In the end, it was the Cougars (9-3, 7-1) and Golden Eagles (8-4, 6-2) that survived the craziness that was Conference USA and earned the right to represent their respective divisions in the Conference USA football championship game.

UH, which earned the right to host the game due to have the best league record, will welcome Jeff Bower’s Southern Miss club to Robertson Stadium on Friday night, December 1 st for an 8pm (EST) kickoff on ESPN2.

These same two teams met back on October 14 th at M.M. Roberts Stadium in Hattiesburg. Southern Miss held off Houston, 31-27, in that meeting. The Cougars have not lost again since, as that loss was the third and final one in a three-game midseason losing streak.

Houston’s star senior quarterback Kevin Kolb threw for 339 yards in that game, as he completed 22-of-38 passes. Jeron Harvey scorched the Southern Miss defense, hauling in five passes for 174 yards and two scores. Jackie Battle had two rushing touchdowns for the Cougars, but the ground game struggled overall.

Houston has won five in a row since that loss to USM and a major component of that success has been the emergence of the rushing game with Anthony Alridge and Jackie Battle. The Cougars were a good team before, but they now have a much more sound running game to complement the effective passing of Kolb. Alridge is averaging a first down every time he touches the first down. He boasts an 11.3-yard per carry average, as he has rushed for 878 yards on only 78 attempts. During the Cougars’ current win streak, Alridge has gained 646 yards on only 59 carries and his best game came at SMU when he rushed for 225 yards and two touchdowns on 13 attempts.

Jackie Battle has also been very solid, as he has also rushed for 800 yards while averaging just over five yards per attempt. He leads UH with 12 rushing touchdowns.

Kolb, a candidate for the Davey O’Brien Award that is given to the best quarterback in college football, has given the Cougars steady and spectacular play throughout the season. The mobile, dual threat quarterback has thrown for 3,165 yards while completing just less than 70 percent of his passes. He possesses an almost unheard of touchdown to interception ratio of 25 to three. He was recently named CUSA’s Offensive Player of the Year, as well as being a unanimous selection for first team all-Conference USA.

In addition to the aforementioned Jeron Harvey, Kolb has other talented receivers to distribute the ball to. Vincent Marshall and Donnie Avery give the Cougars two big playmakers at wideout. Marshall leads the team in receptions with 63 for 678 yards and six scores. Avery is averaging 16 yards per catch and has 48 receptions for 767 yards on the season.

This has equated to an offense that is averaging 400 yards and over 32 points per contest.

Southern Miss’ defense has not been as strong as in recent years, but it’s still been very good and has played very well since the loss at home to East Carolina. The Golden Eagles are only giving up just over 300 yards and 18 points per game. Opponents are only converting 32 percent of their first downs. They have forced 23 turnovers, which includes 15 interceptions.

The Golden Eagles’ secondary is strong. Senior cornerback Caleb Hendrix leads the team with four interceptions.

An effective pass rush aids them, and defensive ends Matthew Chatelain and Robert Henderson lead it. They have registered 4.5 sacks each this season.

Linebacker Gerald McRath leads the Golden Eagles with 76 tackles, which includes two sacks and eight tackles for loss.

Offensively, Southern Miss is led by record setting, first team all-conference freshman running back Damion Fletcher. Fletcher set USM all-time and freshman records by rushing for 1,240 yards. He has nine touchdowns and seven 100-yard games.

Quarterback Jeremy Young has had an up and down first season under center for the Golden Eagles. The 6-4, 204-pound junior has completed 57.3 percent of his passes while throwing for 1,423 yards. He has thrown 11 touchdown passes and has been picked off five times.

Southern Miss loves to utilize the tight end. Shawn Nelson, a second-team All-CUSA selection, has caught a team-high 34 passes for 440 yards and three scores. Damion Carter is the next biggest threat in the passing game, as he has hauled in 21 balls for 355 yards.

The Cougars are not as good as the Golden Eagles defensively, but they have not had to be since they have a much more productive offense. They have been much improved from previous years though. UH is giving up 22 points and 338 yards. Houston has forced 23 turnovers, including 12 fumbles. They have struggled some on third down, as opponents are converting 44 percent of their attempts.

Linebacker Trent Allen leads the team in tackles with 85. Will Gulley has a team-high five interceptions while Phillip Hunt has six sacks and nine tackles for loss.

The special teams’ battle appears to be pretty evenly matched. Both teams have solid place-kickers in Darren McCaleb for USM and Ben Bell of Houston. McCaleb is 14 of 21 and has a long of 50 while Bell has connected on 14 of his 18 attempts. Both punters are averaging around 38 yards per boot, but a difference could be seen in this phase of the game due some struggles seen in Houston’s coverage team. Opponents are averaging over 11 yards per return and USM’s Jasper Faulk has the ability to make you pay. He has an average of 8.6 yards per return, and East Carolina brought back four punts for 115 yards.

Houston has become a much more complete offense since the last time these two played due to the evolution of their running game. If Battle and Alridge continue to produce as they have in the last five games, the Cougars win this one in a nailbiter.

For Jeff Bower’s team to knock off Houston again, Damion Fletcher needs to get 100 yards or more on the ground. The Golden Eagles, who lack the offensive firepower of Houston, need to create some short fields via turnovers or big punt returns by Jasper Faulk.

The winner of this game will head to the Liberty Bowl to face a SEC opponent. The loser will play in the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, AL versus Ohio University.