Two big plays were the difference Saturday evening at H.A. Chapman Stadium as the University of Houston beat the University of Tulsa, 24-14.

Although Tulsa had more offensive yards than the Cougars, Houston scored on an interception return and a kickoff return that proved to be the difference in this game. Tulsa’s defense held the Cougars to just 231 total yards, the lowest this season, while the TU offense totaled 380 yards, all of it through the air, as the Cougars defense held the Hurricane to a negative-1-yard rushing. Tulsa committed four turnovers in the game, and that certainly didn’t help.

Tulsa head coach Philip Montgomery said after the game that his team knew how tough the Houston defense would be, especially against the TU running game.

 “Their D-Line, that’s the strength of their team,” he said. “You know, we knew it would be tough sledding coming in. Didn’t think it would be that tough. Give them credit for that part of it. We’ve got to do a better job of creating some holes and giving those running backs some

opportunities, and you know, you just got to pick up positive yards when you’re doing it. You

know, not asking for ten-yard runs every time. Just consistently picking up yards.”

The Golden Hurricane (3-8, 1-6 AAC) scored first on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Zach Smith to Sam Crawford with 6:02 left in first quarter.

Houston (4-7, 2-5 AAC) tied the game on a 15-yard touchdown run by quarterback Clayton Tune, with 12:23 left in second quarter.

The Cougars’ Damarion Williams intercepted a Smith pass and returned it 25 yards for a touchdown, given Houston a 14-7 lead with 1:34 left in the second quarter.

With 9:39 left in the third quarter, Houston’s Dalton Witherspoon kicked a 23-yard field goal, giving the Cougars a 17-7 lead.

Tulsa cut the lead to 17-14 on a T.K. Wilkerson one-yard touchdown run with 13:58 left in the fourth quarter. However, on the ensuing kickoff, Houston’s Marquez Stevenson returned it 94-yards for a touchdown, giving the Cougars another 10-point lead.

“A disappointing game,” Montgomery said. “I thought our defense played extremely well. Offensively, we couldn’t get out of our own way. You can’t turn the ball over four times or whatever it was. We get things going and then shoot ourselves in the foot. You get the touchdown there, and then you know you can’t give up a kickoff return for a touchdown.”

Tulsa’s Smith completed 29-of-45 passes for 381 yards and one TD, while Keylon Stokes had 8 receptions for 140 yards and Crawford caught 10 passes for 102 yards.

Houston sacked Smith four times for a loss of 27 yards, and Montgomery said his team needs to do a better job of protecting their quarterback.

 “Obviously we’ve got to protect him a little bit better, but we got into that circumstance where we’ve got to throw, they know we’ve got to throw,” Montgomery said. “We have to do a better job of protecting him right there. But he made some big-time throws in there, and you know, he’s continuing to get better.”

Tulsa will finish the season on the road at East Carolina this Saturday. The game will air on ESPNU at 11 a.m. (CST).

NOTES

University of Tulsa enrollment is 4,412 vs Houston’s 43,770. Tulsa had 16 seniors playing in their final home game. This was the 44th meeting between TU and UH, Houston leads series 25-19-0 and has won 5 out of last 6.

Temperature at kickoff was 46-degrees. The cold and Tulsa’s record this season likely accounted for what appeared to be a much small crowd than the announced attendance of 16,120, although there’s no way of knowing how many people were enjoying the warmth of the indoor suites.

THANKSGIVING

From me and my family, we wish you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving, with many blessings to reflect upon this year.