2018 Houston Cougars football team

2018 Houston Cougars football
2018 Houston Cougars football
AAC West Division co-champion
Armed Forces Bowl, L 14–70 vs. Army
Conference	American Athletic Conference
	West Division
Record	8–5 (5–3 American)
Head coach	Major Applewhite (2nd season);
Offensive coordinator	Kendal Briles (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Hurry-up, no-huddle spread
Defensive coordinator	Mark D'Onofrio (2nd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	TDECU Stadium
	Seasons ← 2017 2019 →

The 2018 Houston Cougars football team represented the University of Houston in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Cougars played their home games at TDECU Stadium in Houston, Texas, and competed in the West Division of the American Athletic Conference. They were led by second-year head coach Major Applewhite. They finished the season 8–5, 5–3 in AAC play to finish in a three-way tie for the West Division championship. After tiebreakers, they did not represent the West Division in the AAC Championship Game. They were invited to the Armed Forces Bowl where they lost to Army by a score of 14–70, in the process tying records for the most points given up (70) and the largest margin-of-loss (56) in NCAA bowl game history.^[1]

2018 American Athletic Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
No. 11 UCF x$	8	–	0	12	–	1
Temple	7	–	1	8	–	5
No. 24 Cincinnati	6	–	2	11	–	2
South Florida	3	–	5	7	–	6
East Carolina	1	–	7	3	–	9
UConn	0	–	8	1	–	11
West Division
Memphis xy	5	–	3	8	–	6
Houston x	5	–	3	8	–	5
Tulane x	5	–	3	7	–	6
SMU	4	–	4	5	–	7
Navy	2	–	6	3	–	10
Tulsa	2	–	6	3	–	9
Championship: UCF 56, Memphis 41
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

On December 30, Houston fired Applewhite after 2 seasons.^[2]

Preseason edit

Award watch lists edit

Listed in the order that they were released

Award	Player	Position	Year
Lott Trophy^[3]	Ed Oliver	DT	JR
Rimington Trophy^[4]	Will Noble	C	SR
Chuck Bednarik Award^[5]	Ed Oliver	DT	JR
Maxwell Award^[6]	Ed Oliver	DT	JR
Bronko Nagurski Trophy^[7]	Ed Oliver	DT	JR
Outland Trophy^[8]	Will Noble	C	SR
Outland Trophy^[8]	Ed Oliver	DT	JR
Ray Guy Award^[9]	Dane Roy	P	JR
Wuerffel Trophy^[10]	Mulbah Car	RB	JR
Walter Camp Award^[11]	Ed Oliver	DT	JR
Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award^[12]	D'Eriq King	QB	JR

AAC media poll edit

The AAC media poll was released on July 24, 2018, with the Cougars predicted to finish in second place in the AAC West Division.^[13]

Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
Media poll (West)
1	Memphis	171 (23)
2	Houston	146 (4)
3	Navy	129 (3)
4	SMU	72
5	Tulane	68
6	Tulsa	44

Schedule edit

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	11:00 a.m.	at Rice*	Rice Stadium Houston, TX (rivalry)	CBSSN	W 45–27	26,390
September 8	11:00 a.m.	Arizona*	TDECU Stadium Houston, TX	ABC/ESPN2	W 45–18	32,534
September 15	3:00 p.m.	at Texas Tech*	Jones AT&T Stadium Lubbock, TX (rivalry)	FOX	L 49–63	53,484
September 22	7:00 p.m.	Texas Southern*	TDECU Stadium Houston, TX	ESPN3	W 70–14	29,970
October 4	7:00 p.m.	Tulsa	TDECU Stadium Houston, TX (rivalry)	ESPN	W 41–26	29,823
October 13	6:00 p.m.	at East Carolina	Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium Greenville, NC	CBSSN	W 42–20	29,851
October 20	2:30 p.m.	at Navy	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium Annapolis, MD	CBSSN	W 49–36	33,924
October 27	2:30 p.m.	No. 21 South Florida	TDECU Stadium Houston, TX	ABC/ESPN2	W 57–36	31,631
November 3	6:00 p.m.	at SMU	Gerald J. Ford Stadium Dallas, TX	ESPNU	L 31–45	23,654
November 10	6:00 p.m.	Temple	TDECU Stadium Houston, TX	CBSSN	L 49–59	30,862
November 15	7:00 p.m.	Tulane	TDECU Stadium Houston, TX	ESPN	W 48–17	24,209
November 23	11:00 a.m.	at Memphis	Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN	ABC	L 31–52	27,790
December 22	2:30 p.m.	vs. Army*	Amon G. Carter Stadium Fort Worth, TX (Armed Forces Bowl)	ESPN	L 14–70	44,738
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll (and CFP Rankings, after October 30) - Released prior to game All times are in Central time

Schedule Source:^[14]

Roster edit

2018 Houston Cougars football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
QB	`1`	Bryson Smith	Fr
WR	`2`	Keith Corbin	Jr
QB	`3`	Clayton Tune	Fr
QB	`4`	D'Eriq King	Jr
WR	`5`	Marquez Stevenson	So
WR	`6`	Kinte Hatton	Sr
WR	`9`	Courtney Lark	Jr
WR	`10`	Jeremy Singleton	Fr
QB	`12`	Quinten Dormady	Sr
QB	`14`	Ike Ogbogu	Fr
WR	`15`	Raelon Singleton	Sr
WR	`17`	Terry Mark	Jr
WR	`19`	Julon Williams	Fr
RB	`21`	Patrick Carr	Jr
RB	`22`	Terence Williams	Sr
RB	`23`	Chandler Smith	So
RB	`25`	Kelan Walker	Fr
WR	`26`	Ja'Kori Morgan	Fr
WR	`27`	Henry Thomas	Fr
RB	`28`	Josh Burrell	Jr
WR	`30`	Timon Nolan	Jr
RB	`32`	Kevrin Justice	Jr
RB	`34`	Mulbah Car	Jr
WR	`36`	James Homan	Sr
WR	`37`	Payton Pardee	Jr
WR	`39`	Andrew Segovia	Jr
TE	`45`	Spencer Wells	Fr
OL	`52`	Braylon Jones	Jr
OL	`53`	Hayden Mark	So
OL	`56`	Dixie Wooten III	Fr
OL	`60`	Kordell Snyder	So
OL	`62`	Jarrid Williams	Jr
OL	`64`	Dennis Bardwell	So
OL	`65`	Bo Alexander	Jr
OL	`66`	Cole Miller	So
OL	`69`	Will Noble	Sr
OL	`70`	Jordan Boatman	Fr
OL	`71`	Max Banes	Fr
OL	`72`	Mason Denley	Sr
OL	`73`	Kameron Lewis	Fr
OL	`74`	Josh Jones	Jr
OL	`75`	Jack Freeman	Fr
OL	`76`	Kameron Eloph	Jr
OL	`77`	Keenan Murphy	So
WR	`80`	Colton Cerday	Jr
WR	`81`	Tre'von Bradley	Fr
TE	`82`	Romello Brooker	Sr
WR	`83`	Peyton Sawyer	Fr
WR	`84`	Cole McGowan	So
TE	`85`	Christian Trahan	Fr
TE	`86`	Payton Haslam	Sr
TE	`87`	Sid Turnbull-Frazier	Jr
TE	`88`	Shane Creamer	Fr
TE	`89`	Parker Eichenberger	Fr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DB	`1`	Garrett Davis	Sr
DB	`2`	Deontay Anderson	So
DB	`3`	Grant Stuard	So
LB	`4`	Leroy Godfrey	Jr
LB	`5`	Darrion Owens	Sr
DB	`6`	Khari Dotson	Sr
LB	`8`	Emeke Egbule	Sr
CB	`9`	Nick Watkins	Sr
DT	`10`	Ed Oliver	Jr
LB	`12`	David Anenih	So
CB	`13`	Joeal Williams	Sr
CB	`14`	Isaiah Johnson	Sr
CB	`16`	Ka'Darian Smith	Jr
CB	`18`	Alexander Myres	Sr
CB	`19`	Javian Smith	So
LB	`20`	Roman Brown	Sr
DB	`21`	Gleson Sprewell	So
LB	`22`	Austin Robinson	Sr
DE	`23`	Willie Smith III	Fr
LB	`24`	Donavan Mutin	Fr
DB	`25`	D. J. Small	So
LB	`26`	Elijah Gooden	So
LB	`27`	Amaud Willis-Dalton	Fr
DB	`29`	Darius Gilbert	Jr
LB	`30`	Alexander Duke	Fr
LB	`31`	Derek Parish	Fr
DB	`33`	Garrison Vaughn	Fr
DB	`35`	Johnathan Phenix	Fr
CB	`36`	Zaire Taylor	Fr
LB	`37`	Zamar Kirven	Fr
DB	`39`	Shaun Lewis	Fr
LB	`40`	Jordan Carmouche	So
DB	`41`	Bradley Mbu	Jr
LB	`43`	Dekalen Goodson	Fr
LB	`45`	Jordan Milburn	Jr
LB	`46`	Melvin Larkins	Fr
DB	`48`	Torrey Richardson	Fr
DT	`50`	Aymiel Fleming	Jr
DL	`51`	Tariq Freeny	So
DE	`52`	Jerard Carter	Sr
LB	`59`	Jacob Daulong	Fr
DL	`80`	Noah Jones	Fr
DE	`90`	Zach Vaughan	Sr
DE	`91`	Tahj Brown	Fr
DL	`92`	Logan Hall	Fr
DL	`94`	Isaiah Chambers	So
DL	`98`	Payton Turner	So
DL	`99`	Blake Young	Jr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
P	`38`	Dane Roy	Jr
K	`42`	Caden Novikoff	Sr
LS	`44`	Anthony Cantu	Jr
K	`47`	Dalton Witherspoon	So
LS	`97`	Nick Wildberger	Jr

Head coach

Major Applewhite (Texas)

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Kendal Briles (Houston)
Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks
Mark D'Onofrio (Penn State)
Defensive coordinator
James Casey (Rice)
Special teams coordinator/tight ends
Randy Clements (Stephen F. Austin)
Run game coordinator/offensive line
A. J. Blum (Ashland)
Defensive line
Dan Carrel (West Liberty)
Outside linebackers
Kenny Guiton (Ohio State)
Wide receivers
Lamar Morgan (Louisiana–Lafayette)
Safeties
Kenith Pope (Oklahoma)
Running backs
Paul Williams (Delaware)
Cornerbacks
Thomas Dunson (LSU)
Defensive football analyst
Kyle Robinson (Alabama)
Special teams football analyst
Malcolm Kelly (Oklahoma)
Offensive football analyst
Mason McClendon (Houston)
Analyst
Colton Freeman (Houston)
Analyst

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Roster
Last update: May 13, 2020

Game summaries edit

At Rice edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cougars	3	14	14	14	45
Owls	7	17	3	0	27

^[15]

Arizona edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wildcats	0	0	10	8	18
Cougars	21	10	7	7	45

^[16]

At Texas Tech edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cougars	21	7	14	7	49
Red Raiders	14	21	14	14	63

Texas Southern edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
Tigers	0	0	7	7	14
Cougars	14	28	7	21	70

Tulsa edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Hurricane	13	0	10	3	26
Cougars	7	10	0	24	41

At East Carolina edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cougars	14	7	7	14	42
Pirates	0	3	3	14	20

At Navy edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cougars	7	14	14	14	49
Midshipmen	10	14	0	12	36

South Florida edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 21 Bulls	0	21	15	0	36
Cougars	14	14	15	14	57

At SMU edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 17 Cougars	0	14	3	14	31
Mustangs	10	21	7	7	45

Temple edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
Owls	14	14	21	10	59
Cougars	7	7	21	14	49

Tulane edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
Green Wave	6	3	0	8	17
Cougars	14	17	10	7	48

At Memphis edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cougars	7	14	10	0	31
Tigers	3	14	14	21	52

Vs. Army (Armed Forces Bowl) edit

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cougars	0	7	0	7	14
No. 22 Black Knights	14	28	14	14	70

Players drafted into the NFL edit

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Club
1	9	Ed Oliver	DT	Buffalo Bills
4	129	Isaiah Johnson	CB	Oakland Raiders
6	200	Emeke Egbule	LB	Los Angeles Chargers

Rankings edit

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	RV	RV	RV	—	—	—	—	RV	RV	RV	17	RV	—	RV	—	—
Coaches	RV	RV	RV	RV	—	—	—	RV	RV	RV	17	RV	—	—	—
CFP	Not released										—	—	—	—	—	Not released

References edit

^ "Army West Point dominates en route to 70-14 victory". Armed Forces Bowl. Retrieved December 28, 2018.
^ Sallee, Barrett. "Houston fires coach Major Applewhite after just two seasons with the Cougars". cbssports.com. Retrieved December 30, 2018.
^ "2018 Watch List | Lott IMPACT Trophy | Honoring College Football's Defensive Best". lottimpacttrophy.org. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
^ "Rimington Trophy Press Release". May 30, 2018. Retrieved July 14, 2018.
^ "2018 Bednarik Award Watch List". July 16, 2018. Archived from the original on July 16, 2018. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
^ "2018 Maxwell Award Watch List". July 16, 2018. Archived from the original on July 16, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
^ "2018 Bronko Nagurski Trophy Preseason Watch List". July 24, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
^ "22018 OUTLAND TROPHY WATCH LIST UNVEILED". July 24, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
^ "Ray Guy Award preseason watch list unveiled". July 25, 2018. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
^ "Wuerffel Trophy Unveils 2018 Watch List". July 26, 2018. Archived from the original on July 26, 2018. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
^ Carbone, Al (July 27, 2018). "Walter Camp Football Foundation Announces 2018 Player of the Year Preseason "Watch List"". Retrieved July 30, 2018.
^ "2018 Nominations The Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award" (PDF). August 16, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
^ "UCF Tabbed as Favorite in 2018 Preseason Media Poll". TheAmerican.org. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
^ "2018 Houston Cougars Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
^ "Houston vs. Rice - Game Summary - September 1, 2018". ESPN. Retrieved September 8, 2018.
^ "Arizona vs. Houston - Game Summary - September 8, 2018". ESPN. Retrieved September 8, 2018.

[1] "Army West Point dominates en route to 70-14 victory". Armed Forces Bowl. Retrieved December 28, 2018.

[2] Sallee, Barrett. "Houston fires coach Major Applewhite after just two seasons with the Cougars". cbssports.com. Retrieved December 30, 2018.

[3] "2018 Watch List | Lott IMPACT Trophy | Honoring College Football's Defensive Best". lottimpacttrophy.org. Retrieved July 17, 2018.

[4] "Rimington Trophy Press Release". May 30, 2018. Retrieved July 14, 2018.

[5] "2018 Bednarik Award Watch List". July 16, 2018. Archived from the original on July 16, 2018. Retrieved July 16, 2018.

[6] "2018 Maxwell Award Watch List". July 16, 2018. Archived from the original on July 16, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018.

[7] "2018 Bronko Nagurski Trophy Preseason Watch List". July 24, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.

[8] "22018 OUTLAND TROPHY WATCH LIST UNVEILED". July 24, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.

[9] "Ray Guy Award preseason watch list unveiled". July 25, 2018. Retrieved July 25, 2018.

[10] "Wuerffel Trophy Unveils 2018 Watch List". July 26, 2018. Archived from the original on July 26, 2018. Retrieved July 26, 2018.

[11] Carbone, Al (July 27, 2018). "Walter Camp Football Foundation Announces 2018 Player of the Year Preseason "Watch List"". Retrieved July 30, 2018.

[12] "2018 Nominations The Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award" (PDF). August 16, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.

[13] "UCF Tabbed as Favorite in 2018 Preseason Media Poll". TheAmerican.org. Retrieved July 24, 2018.

[14] "2018 Houston Cougars Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved April 27, 2018.

[15] "Houston vs. Rice - Game Summary - September 1, 2018". ESPN. Retrieved September 8, 2018.

[16] "Arizona vs. Houston - Game Summary - September 8, 2018". ESPN. Retrieved September 8, 2018.

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