Tulane University
Houston
Football Falls In C-USA Opener At Houston, 42-23
Sep 25, 2010 | Football
Sept. 25, 2010
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HOUSTON - Senior quarterback Kevin Moore came off the bench to lead four scoring drives and the Green Wave defense posted season highs with five sacks among 11 tackles for loss, but it was not enough as the Tulane University football team dropped its Conference USA opener to the University of Houston, 42-23, Saturday afternoon at Robertson Stadium.
After falling behind 21-0, Tulane rallied for 14-straight second-half points before the Cougars closed out the half with another touchdown to claim a 28-14 advantage at the break. The Green Wave cut the deficit to five at 28-23 but Houston converted a pair of late Tulane turnovers into touchdowns to thwart the come-back attempt.
With the loss, Tulane falls to 1-2 on the year and 0-1 in C-USA play. Houston, meanwhile, improves to 3-1 overall and 2-0 in conference action. Tulane's 23 points on the day were the most scored by the Green Wave against Houston since Oct. 11, 2003, when the Cougars squeaked by, 45-42, in a game played at New Orleans' Tad Gormley Stadium. It was also the most points scored by Tulane on the road since defeating Rice 45-31 on Nov. 17, 2007 in Houston.
"The story here is 42-23," Tulane head football coach Bob Toledo said. "In the first half, our kicking game kind of put us in a bind and offensively, we couldn't get first downs so our defense was on the field way too long. They kind of got worn down a little bit. They came out in the second half and made a couple of big plays, got back in the game, and then those last couple of drives we just fell apart.
"Those two turnovers just killed us and then we let them run the ball into the endzone in the that last play. We had a chance to make it a game at the end and we let it slip away. But again, I've got to give credit to Houston. They won the football game."
Houston wasted little time jumping out to the early lead as the Cougars took advantage of a short field and drove 26 yards on six plays before Bryce Beall scored from three yards out. It was his first of four touchdowns on the day as he put Houston up 14-0 on the first play of the second quarter, made it a 28-14 game with a one-yard plunge just before halftime, and accounted for Houston's final offensive touchdown with 3:58 left in regulation.
The Cougars took a three-touchdown lead less than three minutes into the second half on a one-yard plunge by Michael Hayes, but Moore came in for an injured Ryan Griffin and gave Tulane an offensive spark. The Green Wave's first five offensive possessions resulted in four punts and an interception, but the defense gave Tulane the ball back at its own 39-yard line when sophomore linebacker Darryl Farley forced a fumble on a sack of Houston quarterback Terrance Broadway which senior defensive lineman Josh Smith recovered.
From there, Tulane posted back-to-back scoring drives as Moore connected with senior tight end Cody Sparks for a 13-yard scoring strike and found sophomore receiver Devin Figaro streaking down the right sideline for a 36-yard touchdown to make it a one-score ballgame.
Houston pushed the lead back to 14 with a nine-play, 70-yard drive which culminated with Beall's one-yard touchdown run just before the break, but Tulane defense pitched a shutout in the third quarter and kept the Cougars off the scoreboard during the first 11 minutes of the fourth.
In the meantime, the Green Wave crept back into the game with a 29-yard field goal by freshman Cairo Santos with 4:51 to play in the third quarter and a nine-yard run by sophomore Payten Jason made it a 28-23 contest with 9:19 left to go in the ballgame. Tulane's try for two was unsuccessful and that would be the Wave's final points of the day.
While the defense continued to play well until the end, Moore injured his thumb on a sack by Kelvin King and floated a pass which was intercepted by Loyce Means to set up the Houston offense at Tulane's 37 with 5:37 left on the game clock. Five plays later, Beall scored his final touchdown of the night and Means picked off another pass which he returned 42 yards for a touchdown to account for the final score.
Junior Albert Williams led Tulane with a career-high 83 rushing yards on 14 carries while Jason had 30 yards and a score on six totes. Moore was one of four Green Wave players to complete a pass on the day and finished 12-of-26 for 156 yards, two touchdowns and a pair of interceptions. Figaro tied senior Casey Robottom for team-high reception honors with four catches apiece, and led all players with 95 yards and his first collegiate touchdown.
Sophomore free safety Shakiel Smith tallied a career-best 13 tackles (7 solo, 6 assists) while sophomore middle linebacker Trent Mackey and junior defensive end Dezman Moses followed with 11 (2 solo, 9 assists) and 10 (2 solo, 8 assists), respectively. Moses and senior defensive tackle Justin Adams each had 3.5 of Tulane's tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Adams had a game-high two sacks while Moses finished with one and a half.
Beall, meanwhile, tallied 123 yards and four scores on 24 carries to lead the Cougar ground game while Broadway was 19-of-28 for 174 yards and an interception in his first career collegiate start. Patrick Edwards led Houston's potent receiving corps with six catches while James Cleveland had a team-best 69 receiving yards. Marcus McGraw led the Cougar defense with 10 tackles (1 solo, 9 assists) and tied for the team lead with 1.5 tackles for loss.
The Green Wave return to action on Saturday, Oct. 2, when they head to Piscataway, N.J., to take on Rutgers before returning to the Superdome for a Homecoming showdown with Army on Oct. 9. For ticket information to the Homecoming contest, as well as future Green Wave Athletic events, contact the Tulane Ticket Office at (504) 861-WAVE. Tickets can be purchase in the Ticket Office, which is located on the first floor of the James W. Wilson, Jr. Center, over the phone or online at www.TulaneGreenWave.com.
