When the Cougars finished 2019 on Nov. 30 with a 56-41 loss to the No. 23 Navy Midshipmen that capped off a 4-8 year, head coach Dana Holgorsen wasted no time in wiping his debut season from his memory.
“I did that Dec. 1 of 2019,” Holgorsen told reporters Tuesday morning. “That thing was flushed immediately the night of Navy.”
But with a large chunk of the offseason having come and gone and spring practices ramping up for Houston, Holgorsen has recognized excitement radiating from his squad heading into their second year under his system.
“It’s a pretty eager group,” Holgorsen said. “The four weeks of offseason we had … I thought was very positive. We’ve had a lot of good meetings. We’re able to do a lot of things now that we weren’t able to do last year.”
With padded practice looming for UH, even potentially starting as soon as the end of the week, Holgorsen said, the second-year head coach plans for the next five weeks to be when the Cougars “crank up and go live a little bit.”
However, Holgorsen added, Houston still has ways to go.
“They’re stilling learning how to practice,” Holgorsen said. “They’re still working on technique and fundamentals and not ready for situational football yet. Towards the end of the week I anticipate being able to do that.”
Fortunately for the Cougars, just a week into their spring ball schedule and months away from their Sept. 3 season opener against Rice, Holgorsen has liked the coaching upgrades who’ll be guiding Houston through the spring.
Among them are Shannon Dawson’s ascension to co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, Corby Meekins addition as tight ends and inside receivers coach and Mark Scott as special teams coordinator.
“We have great continuity with our staff,” Holgorsen said. “It’s a different feel, a different vibe and our guys our excited about practicing.”