UH survives late push by USF

On Halloween night, USF gave UH its biggest scare of the season.

Though penalties have plagued UH’s young squad all year, a call that went against USF helped the Cougars retain their undefeated conference record with a 35-23 victory on Thursday at Reliant Stadium.

With 4:06 remaining and a chance to take the lead with a touchdown, USF freshman quarterback Mike White tossed a 27-yard pass down to the UH 1-yard line. But instead of four opportunities to take the lead from inside the 1-yard line, receiver Andre Davis was called for offensive pass interference, backing the Bulls up 15 yards and setting the stage for a turnover-prone defense to make a play.

“At first I thought it was a defensive pass interference, and I thought they were going to get the touchdown regardless,” said junior linebacker Efrem Oliphant. “Seeing that it was an offensive pass interference and moving them back even further, it gave us a little more energy so we could get the stop.”

One play later, freshman defensive end Tyus Bowser sacked White while forcing a fumble that junior defensive tackle Jeremiah Farley recovered. Eight plays later, sophomore running back Kenneth Farrow scored from five yards out to put the game out of reach.

In many ways, it was an uncharacteristic game for the Cougars, who led by 15 with nine minutes remaining in the third quarter. UH, which leads the nation in turnover ratio, would have lost the turnover battle if not for two takeaways on USF’s final offensive drives. And Farrow, a team captain, was flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that stalled an offensive drive and almost allowed the Bulls to take the lead on the ensuing drive.

“I was sick to my stomach about that. I have to do better than that in the game. I can’t be doing that. That was selfish of me. Everyone did what they had to do and stepped up and picked up the slack,” Farrow said.

The Cougars’ offense did put up a performance indicative of their earlier numbers. Freshman quarterback John O’Korn connected with 10 different receivers. He notched three touchdown passes for the third consecutive game to bring his total to 22 for the season.

Sophomore receiver Deontay Greenberry was a consistent target across the middle, where the Cougars felt they had an advantage on short and intermediate routes. His 48-yard touchdown on a slant gave the Cougars a 28-16 lead.

“We felt like we could attack them a little bit over the middle with the quick passing game and with some play action passing. We didn’t take as many shots down the field as we had in other games,” said head coach Tony Levine.

In the first half, UH exercised its quick-strike offense. On its first drive, UH went 64 yards in three plays. Greenberry took a slant 49 yards, and senior receiver Xavier Maxwell had a 6-yard score with 12:49 in the first quarter.

On the following offensive possession, the Cougars expanded their lead to 14-3 when Farrow made a defender miss on a 3-yard shovel pass from O’Korn. Next, the Cougars take on UCF on the road in a battle for first place in the American Athletic Conference standings.

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