Houston begins the 2019 season and its first under head coach Dana Holgorsenas it travels to No. 4/4 Oklahoma on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. CT inside Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. The game will be televised nationally by ABC with Sean McDonough, Todd Blackledge and Holly Rowe on the call. You can listen to the game in Houston on our sister station, KPRC 950AM.
Holgorsen is the 15th head coach in UH history. The first 14 coaches went 9-5 in their debut games. He is the only UH head coach to face a ranked opponent in his first game in charge of the Cougars.
Houston has won its last four season openers and five of its last six, including a 33-23 victory over then No. 3/3 Oklahoma to begin the 2016 season. The Cougars hold a 10-16-2 record in season openers on the road and Sunday's game marks the fourth straight year Houston has opened its season away from TDECU Stadium.
Sunday's game marks the third meeting between Houston and Oklahoma, with the Sooners leading the all-time series, 2-1 (1-0 in Norman).
Houston is 2-0 when opening the season with a ranked opponent (17-13 win over No. 11 UCLA in 1977; 33-23 win over No. 3 Oklahoma in 2016).
Houston is 2-7-1 against No. 4 teams in the Associated Press poll. Sunday's season opener will be the first time the Cougars have faced the No. 4 (AP) team since taking on then No. 4 Miami (Fla.) inside NRG Stadium in Houston on Sept. 23, 2004. UH's last victory over the No. 4 (AP) team came on Oct. 27, 1979, in Fayetteville, Ark., with a 13-10 win over Arkansas.
A victory would mark Houston's first road win against a ranked opponent in a season opener in school history. UH is 0-4 against ranked opponents in season openers on the road and is 3-7 all-time against ranked opponents in season openers.
The season opener marks the ninth time the Cougars have played a game on Sunday in program history. UH is 4-4 when playing on a game on a Sunday. This marks the first Sunday game for UH since the 2017 Hawai'i Bowl against Fresno State.
Oklahoma is coming off a 12-2 season in which it appeared in the College Football Playoff for the third time in four years and captured a fourth straight Big 12 title by going 8-1 in league play and defeating Texas in the 2018 Big 12 Championship game. Lincoln Riley is 24-4 as he enters his third year with the Sooners as head coach.
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
« Houston and Oklahoma were two of the most productive offenses in 2018 and both teams return key pieces from last year's units. The Cougars finished the 2018 season fifth nationally averaging 43.9 points per game and seventh in total offenses with an average of 512.5 yards per contest. Oklahoma led the country with 48.4 points per game and averaged 570.3 yards per contest. Houston, Oklahoma and Clemson were the only three programs last season to rank in the top 25 for both passing and rushing offense.
« Houston senior quarterback D'Eriq Kinglooks to build off his impressive season in 2018 after setting The American's record for touchdowns responsible for with 50 a year ago. King tossed 36 touchdowns through the air and added 14 rushing scores in 11 games. Among returning quarterbacks, only Alabama's Tua Tagavailoa passed for more touchdowns (50) than King in 2018.
« There are plenty of ties between the coaching staffs for Houston and Oklahoma. During his time as an assistant at Texas Tech, UH head coach Dana Holgorsen worked alongside OU head coach Lincoln Riley, associate head coach/outside wide receivers coach Dennis Simmons, assistant head coach/outside linebackers coach Ruffin McNeill and co-offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh. UH co-offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Brandon Jones played at Texas Tech and also worked alongside Riley, Simmons and McNeil at ECU from 2010-14 as the offensive line coach. Holgorsen and Bedenbaugh also spent two seasons together at West Virginia (2011-12).
« The Cougars are 1-2 all-time against the Sooners, winning the previous matchup with a 33-23 victory in 2016 at the Advocare Texas Kickoff inside NRG Stadium. The teams first met in the 1981 Alamo Bowl, when OU won 40-14. The only meeting to take place in Norman came in 2004 with the Sooners earning a 63-13 victory.
« Two Cougars hail from the state of Oklahoma: safety Gervarrius Owens and kicker Dalton Witherspoon. Both players hail from nearby Moore, Okla., which is 10 miles from OU's campus.