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Sports

Cougars content with their mediocrity

Sports Commentary

Ronnie Turner

Down the stretch in the 2005 season, UH football head coach Art Briles orchestrated several landmark games, none more significant than the season finale against crosstown rival, Rice. 

To have lost that game would have meant not only losing to Rice for the second consecutive season, but putting even more of a damper on a season the Cougars had already fumbled. It must have been a huge sigh of relief for both the Cougars and Briles after they left Robertson Stadium on the winning end of a 35-18 decision. The win gave Athletics Director Dave Maggard the justification he needed to reward Briles with a two-year contract extension, which he did Tuesday.

So Briles is now slated to be UH's head coach through the 2010 season, but some might wonder how a guy gets such a reward, despite not having won a postseason bowl. It's true that Briles' résumé doesn't look all that impressive: In three seasons he has compiled a 16-20 record with two postseason bowls (both losses) and no conference championships. In the end, Briles gets the extension mainly on the basis of the two bowl appearances.

Over the last decade, the Cougars haven't done much "bowling." Before Briles' arrival in 2003, UH hadn't reached a bowl game since 1996. It didn't take Briles long to make an impact; he led the Cougars to a 7-6 record and a trip to the Hawaii Bowl in his first season, where they lost to the University of Hawaii, 54-48. The Cougars capped the 2005 season at 6-6 with a 42-13 loss to Kansas in the Fort Worth Bowl. After missing out on the postseason for so long, the Cougars were desperate to get back in the limelight. The UH community is somewhat content that the team has started to show some consistency with getting to the postseason with Briles at the helm.

One should never get UH confused with a football program such as those at Texas, Southern California or Michigan; the level of expectation is much different. With the those powerhouses, it's not a matter of whether they'll get to a bowl. Rather, it's a matter of which bowl games they'll play. These teams are expected to compete for the right to play in big-time bowl games such as those in the Bowl Championship Series, and national championships. Realistically, small-tier teams competing in small-tier conferences like UH in Conference USA don't have these expectations placed upon them.

Does this mean the UH community will be satisfied with Briles simply leading the Cougars to postseason bowls? No. He'll have to win some in the near future. Are there other coaches who could have done a better job? Certainly, but so far, Briles has held his own. By awarding the extension, Maggard showed that he trusts Briles to lead UH back to glory. Whether Briles validates that trust will be solely up to him. 
 

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