Liberty Bowl Mini Preview - Houston vs. South Carolina

Date: Friday, December 29

Location: Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium (62,380); Memphis, TN

Time: 3:30 pm (EST)

Television: ESPN

Records: Houston (10-3 overall, 7-1 CUSA); South Carolina (7-5 overall, 3-5 SEC)

Rankings: Houston (Coaches’ Poll- 26 th, AP-29 th) South Carolina (Coaches’ Poll- 32 nd, AP-34 th)

All-Time Series Record: Houston leads 2-0

Last Meeting: 1974 – Houston 24 South Carolina 14

Last Bowl Appearance:

Houston – 2005 Fort Worth Bowl vs. Kansas, L

South Carolina – 2005 Independence Bowl vs. Missouri, L 31-38

Injury/Personnel Report:

Houston
The Cougars are missing three offensive tackles and a safety. More specific injury reports were not available.

South Carolina
- DT Stanly Doughty (left team); out
- TB Cory Boyd (broken hand); probable
- CB Fred Bennett (hamstring); probable

Houston vs. South Carolina – Series History and General Overview

This will be the third time that the Cougars and Gamecocks have met on the gridiron and the first in over three decades. Houston won the previous two meetings, which were played during the 1973 and 1974 seasons.

Historically, neither program has been very successful in bowls. Houston is 7-8-1 all-time and has not collected a bowl win since the 1980 Garden State Bowl. South Carolina is 3-11 all-time and did not collect its first bowl win until it beat West Virginia in the 1994 Carquest Bowl in Miami.

For the Cougars, 2006 was a roller coaster ride with a little middle season dip. They started the season winning four straight, but proceeded to lose their next three. They pulled it together and carry a six-game win streak into the Liberty Bowl.

The Gamecocks endured a season of close calls and are a misleading 7-5. They play some of college football’s top teams down to the wire before dropping heart breakers. Their most lopsided loss was an 18-0 defeat in the second game of the year to UGA. Since then, Spurrier’s club lost four games by a combined 21 points. Those losses were against Auburn, Tennessee, Arkansas and Florida. Against the Gators in “The Swamp”, the Gamecocks had their last second field goal attempt blocked. However, they did pull out tight wins at Kentucky and Clemson.

This year’s Liberty Bowl match-up…

...features the Conference USA champion Cougars against the “OLE’ Ball Coach’s” Gamecocks, who finished in the middle of the pack of the grueling SEC. A high-powered Houston offense will face off against one of the nation’s best pass and scoring defenses in South Carolina.

Senior quarterback Kevin Kolb leads a well-balanced Cougars’ offense that is averaging 440 yards per contest (6 th nationally). He does a superb job of protecting the football while distributing the ball to any of a number of talented receivers. Kolb, who is UH’s all-time leading passer, has thrown for 3,423 yards and 27 touchdowns while only being intercepted three times.

Kolb has a trio of playmaking receivers in Vincent Marshall, Jeron Harvey and Donnie Avery. Each of them has over 600 yards receiving and has the potential to turn short gains into touchdowns. Marshall will likely be the fastest player USC’s defense has seen all season.

The difference in the Cougars’ attack over the past six games has been the production it has received from the ground game. Jackie Battle and Anthony Alridge offer a potent one-two punch. Battle has rushed for 858 yards and 13 scores on 173 carries. Alridge, on the other hand, is averaging an unheard of 10.6 yards per carry. He has produced 904 yards on only 85 attempts and possesses the speed that will allow him to play on Sunday’s in the future. UH carefully chooses the situations in which he plays, as he more of a home run hitter than an every down back.

They will go against a Gamecock rush defense that is surrendering nearly 150 yards per game. Keep an eye on this match-up.

Offensively, South Carolina has been productive, but the Gamecocks have definitely not featured the “Fun N’ Gun” (or “Cock N’ Fire”) approach that Steve Spurrier offenses are notorious for. USC doesn’t have those playmakers that Florida did, but that hasn’t kept them from being productive. As a result, the Cocks’ visor tossing coach has been forced to delve deep into his bag of tricks and pull out a few more wrinkles than usual. At any rate, Carolina is posting a solid 25 points and 385 yards of offense per contest.

After missing some games during the middle of the year due to an injury and a benching, Blake Mitchell returned to finish the season on a high note. The 6’3”, 206-pound junior has thrown for 1,466 yards while completing nearly 68 percent of his passes.

If Mitchell isn’t under center, Syvelle Newton will be. Newton, who is more of a runner, completed 58.6 percent of his attempts. He threw for 1,316 yards and 12 touchdowns while also threatening the defense with his ability to hurt them with his feet.

The Gamecocks’ top receiver is the tall, athletic Sidney Rice. Rice, a 6’4”, 200-pound sophomore, has hauled in 64 passes for 951 yards and nine scores. However, seven of the nine came against Florida Atlantic and Middle Tennessee State. Rice is yet to prove himself against the nation’s best. Spurrier will look to go to him often around the goalline via the fade route (which is actually more of a jump ball in this case).

Perhaps overshadowed by Rice, Kenny McKinley provides USC with another viable threat. McKinley has recorded 48 receptions for 768 yards, which equates to an impressive 16 yards per catch.

They will go against a Cougars’ secondary that is considered by most to be average and is giving up 200 yards per game.

Cory Boyd, the Gamecocks’ leading rusher, is recovering from a broken hand, but is expected to play. He has rushed for slightly over 700 yards and six scores this season.

If he can’t go, Mike Davis has proven that he can get the job done. Davis is averaging 4.7 yards per carry on 79 attempts.

The Gamecocks’ success boils down to the productivity of their ground game. When they rush for over 150 yards, they’re 7-1. Their lone loss came to Tennessee and that was primarily the result of three interceptions.

For Houston to notch its 11th win, this will need to be a game at least in the 20’s. Kolb must protect the football as he has the entire season.

In a lower scoring game, South Carolina possesses a clear advantage since it has the stronger of the two defenses.

Art Briles and his Cougars will be ready to play, as they are seeking to cap their championship season with a win over a strong team from the nation’s best conference.

The “Ole Ball Coach” and South Carolina will attempt to remove the taste they have in their mouth from last season’s Independence Bowl loss to Missouri. If they build a lead a 21-0 lead this year, they must finish because Houston possesses the offensive firepower to erase a large deficit.

What will happen…

The South Carolina defense will be the difference. The Gamecocks will win this one in the trenches while collecting their fourth bowl win and first under Spurrier.

South Carolina 30 - Houston 20