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2011 Houston Cougars football team

2011 Houston Cougars football
Houston Cougars Logo (1999-2012).svg
C-USA West Division champion
TicketCity Bowl champion
TicketCity Bowl, W 30–14 vs. Penn State
Conference Conference USA
Division West Division
Ranking
Coaches No. 14
AP No. 18
2011 record 13–1 (8–0 C-USA)
Head coach Kevin Sumlin (regular season)
Tony Levine (bowl)
Co-offensive coordinator Jason Phillips (2nd as OC, 4th Overall year)
Co-offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury (2nd as OC, 4th Overall year)
Offensive scheme Air raid
Defensive coordinator Brian Stewart
Base defense 3–4
Home stadium Robertson Stadium
(Capacity: 32,000)
Seasons
← 2010
2012 →
2011 Conference USA football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
East Division
#20 Southern Miss x$   6 2         12 2  
Marshall   5 3         7 6  
East Carolina   4 4         5 7  
UAB   3 5         3 9  
UCF   3 5         5 7  
Memphis   1 7         2 10  
West Division
#18 Houston x   8 0         13 1  
Tulsa   7 1         8 5  
SMU   5 3         8 5  
Rice   3 5         4 8  
UTEP   2 6         5 7  
Tulane   1 7         2 10  
Championship: Southern Miss 49, Houston 28
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
As of January 10, 2012; Rankings from AP Poll
#19 Houston vs. #22 Penn State
1 2 3 4 Total
Houston 17 7 3 3 30
Penn State 0 7 7 0 14

The 2011 Houston Cougars football team (also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH) represented the University of Houston in the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season. It was the 66th year of season play for Houston. The program was a member of Conference USA in its West Division.

The team was coached by fourth-year head football coach Kevin Sumlin, and played its home games at Robertson Stadium—a 32,000-seat stadium on campus in Houston. After missing a majority of the 2010 season due to injury, starting quarterback Case Keenum had returned for 2011.

The Cougars finished the regular season 12–0, setting a new school record for wins. It was also the first undefeated and untied regular season in the program's 66-year history; however, the team lost to Southern Miss 49–28 in the 2011 Conference USA Football Championship Game. Had the team won the championship game, Houston would have garnered its (and C-USA's) first-ever Bowl Championship Series berth, as well as its first major-bowl appearance since the 1985 Cotton Bowl. Instead, Houston played in the TicketCity Bowl against Penn State—at the site of the Cotton Bowl—beating Penn State 30–14.

During the pre-season, Houston was ranked in several notable top 25 polls. Phil Steele ranked the team as No. 21. Just outside the Top 25, Houston was ranked as No. 30 in ESPN.com's power rankings, No. 31 by Sporting News, No. 36 in the AP Poll, and No. 37 in the Coaches' Poll.


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