Wide receivers coach Kenny Guiton has helped senior wide receiver Linell Bonner continue his scoring streak from last season. Bonner caught the only passing touchdown at Arizona. | File photo/The Cougar
The Cougars had to fight tooth and nail for their 19-16 victory against the Arizona Wildcats. The low-scoring game was a result of stellar defensive play by both teams in a game that had a combined four turnovers.
The Arizona defense gave Houston fits all night and forced quarterback Kyle Allen to toss a couple of interceptions. Despite this, the Texas A&M transfer was able to connect with senior receiver Linell Bonner for a score late in the second quarter to give Houston the outright lead going into the half.
The receiving core is led by Kenny Guiton in his first full-time coaching position. The newly-minted coach saw his starting senior wide receivers Steven Dunbar and Linell Bonner haul in 15 receptions for 131 yards.
The two pass catchers combined for nearly half the team’s receiving yards in the season opener and will look to ride their impressive performances into the Bayou Bucket match this weekend.
Coach Guiton had few words to say about his players after the game.
The Cougar: How did you feel about the game and how your players performed?
Kenny Guiton: So good. It’s always good to come out the first game as a full time coach and get the W. I think we could have played a lot better, especially in the second half, so we have a lot of corrections to clean up after game one.
The Cougar: So there’s some room for improvement?
Guiton: Definitely. I thought we had a shot to separate ourselves in that game and our room had some opportunities to do that, but we couldn’t capitalize on them. We’ll get better as time goes on, and it’s a chance for us to see what we can improve.
The Cougar: What’s the feel of the wide receiver room coming off the first game?
Guiton: It feels good. I think they understood that there’s a lot of room for improvement, and you could see it in their faces after the game. They were happy that we won but at the same time understanding that they can be better, and I love that in this group.
The Cougar: What adjustments are working on this week with the receivers?
Guiton: Just dominating the perimeter. We have an experienced group who are bigger receivers. I feel like if we can get the ball out we will be able to dominate out there. We can dominate out there, and if we control what we do and do our job I think we can do that.
The Cougar: With the next game against Rice, how does it feel to be a part of the Bayou Bucket?
Guiton: Growing up in Texas, this was the rivalry that I knew about, and I never thought I would be a part of it. It’s pretty cool to come back home and be a part of a great rivalry with the two big schools in Houston trying to show whose city this is.
The Cougar: Do you think this game will serve as an opportunity for the wide receivers to settle in?
Guiton: We got first game jitters and mistakes out of our system, so I expect us to settle in more, calm down take a deep breath and be ready to go.
