Houston Football: Cougars hand USF their first loss

Houston football walloped South Florida on Saturday at TDECU Stadium. In the process, the loss eliminated the Bulls from the ranks of the undefeated.

In an interdivisional showdown of American Athletic Conference hopefuls for the league title and the Group of Five’s spot in a New Year’s Six bowl game, Houston pulled away in the fourth quarter to down No. 21 South Florida 57-36 on Saturday afternoon.

The loss eliminated South Florida from the ranks of the unbeaten, a list that now numbers only four pending Notre Dame’s showdown against Navy in San Diego. The loss will drop the Bulls from all of the polls, including the College Football Playoff selection committee’s rankings that will feature their first release of the season on October 30. It does, however, open the doors for Houston to launch up into the committee’s rankings on Tuesday.

Houston overpowered the Bulls with a combination of dominant offense and opportunistic defense. The Cougars offense went over their season average for total yardage with more than 11 minutes still remaining in the football game. The Cougars concluded with 678 total yards against the South Florida defense, as they put up a huge game by land and by air.

D’Eriq King was the catalyst for the big performance in both phases of the offense. King finished the day with 419 passing yards and 132 rushing yards. The veteran quarterback threw for five touchdowns and added two more scores on the ground. King was not only prolific but efficient, averaging 11.1 yards per carry and finishing with a 70 percent completion rate. King wasn’t perfect, throwing two interceptions, but he put together far more good plays than bad.

South Florida quarterback Blake Barnett had a solid day in defeat, going 26-of-39 for 263 passing yards with one touchdown and one interception. Johnny Ford stole the show among running backs, ending the day in triple digits with 16 carries for 106 yards and two touchdowns. Jordan Cronkrite also posted a solid day rushing the ball, finishing with 72 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.

But it wasn’t enough to preserve victory, as the defense gave up nearly 700 yards and the Bulls took eight costly penalties. Houston proved the thorn in South Florida’s side that ended a shot at a perfect season two years in a row.

The Cougars can effectively shore up the AAC West next weekend against SMU in Dallas. A win over the Mustangs would put Houston two games up in the West with three AAC games remaining on the schedule, including head-to-head battles against Tulane and Memphis.

South Florida will try to pick up the pieces after dropping off the AAC East pace. But the Bulls also still control their own destiny, with games against Cincinnati, Temple, and UCF remaining to close out regular-season play in November.