First Round Shreveport: Become a Houston nut! Ten-seed Cougars upend Iowa, 34-16

Over the past three seasons, when the tournament withdrew the automatic bid to the Big East/AAC and gave it to the highest ranked champion among the "Group of Five" conferences, that champion has come in as the tenth seed, but not easy pickin's for their Power Five opponents.  Two seasons ago, Missouri needed two touchdowns in the last three minutes to defeat #10 seed Central Florida by 1.  And last season, #10 seed Boise State defeated Mississippi State and #2 Florida State on their way to Football's Final Four.

As 61 degrees and clear skies enveloped Shreveport, throngs of excited Hawkeye fans joined the Cougar faithful at Independence Stadium.   But of the teams on the field, Houston seemed to be the joyous, carefree side of the gridiron.  Though Iowa’s team included noticeably larger physical specimens, the quick Cougars, such as QB Greg Ward Jr seemed to have all the right moves to get between and around Hawkeye defenders in the open field.  So when Ward scooted into the end zone from 7 yards out, one could sense that this game may not be won by strength, but stealth.  Houston fans cheered, and the Cougars danced on the sidelines like kids at Chuck E Cheese. 

 

The Cougar fun continued as wide receiver Demarcus Ayers lofted a 20 yard pass to a wide open Chance Allen in the end zone, followed by another Ward TD run, and Houston took a 21-0 lead to the halftime locker room.

 

Houston’s offense sputtered in the third, and one wondered if their magic was dissipating, but Iowa could only muster a field goal in the third.  But despite a 21-3 lead, a sense of nervousness emanated from the Cougar fan sections.  And early in the fourth, Matt VandeBerg’s 36 yard TD reception pass from C.J. Beathard brought Iowa within 21-9.

But throughout the fourth, Houston’s offense resumed having an answer for every Hawkeye advance.  Two Houston field goals and a touchdown run were able to answer another Hawkeye TD, and Houston eased to a 34-16 victory.

 

Houston moves on to the Peach Bowl to take on second seeded SEC champ Alabama.