Houston football looks primed to make a run in the AAC after a dominant victory over the Kevin Sumlin-led Arizona Wildcats.
Arizona continues to look clueless offensively in a 45-18 loss to the Houston Cougars on the road.
Houston came out of the locker room determined to win and dominated from the first drive. The Cougars scored in 10 plays on the opening drive with D’Eriq King hitting Marquez Stephenson for a 24-yard score to begin his impressive day. Things only got worse for the Wildcats with Khalil Tate injuring his ankle five minutes into the first quarter.
By halftime, Houston mounted a 31-0 lead over the Wildcats while Kevin Sumlin continued to find zero success on offense. Tate finished off the first half with three total rushing attempts and 24 passing attempts. Tate attempted more passes in the first half of this game than he did in six of his nine starts a season ago.
Sumlin did mention that their gameplan changed drastically with the early injury to Tate but his adjustments were unapparent until the Cougars subbed in their second string defense later in the third quarter and Arizona finally scored. Tate’s injury healed enough in the second half for him to extend plays, but Sumlin continued to leave Tate inside the pocket when passing rather than rolling him out.
King continues to play incredibly well in his Junior season posting back-to-back games with more than four touchdowns. He gives the Cougars the rushing threat that they lacked for most of last season and is performing similarly to previous Houston quarterback Greg Ward Jr. whose most notable win came against No. 3 Oklahoma in 2016.
Sumlin needs to find a way to get Heisman hopeful Khalil Tate out of the pocket if the Wildcats expect to do anything when their in-conference schedule starts. If not, it may be a long five years for Wildcat fans everywhere.
Arizona
- Khalil Tate: 24-of-45, 34 yards, two interceptions (one rushing touchdown)
- JJ Taylor:18 carries, 54 yards
- Tony Ellison: four receptions, 85 yards
Houston
- D’Eriq King: 17-of-34, 246 yards, four touchdowns (two rushing)
- Terence Williams: 12 carries, 65 yards
- Romello Brooker: Two receptions, 76 Yards, one touchdown