Navy Midshipmen 0-2 (0-0) at Houston Cougars 2-1 (0-0)
Saturday 25 September 2021 7 ET / 6ET
TDECU Stadium Houston Texas
TELEVISION: ESPNU
Online:
https://www.espn.com/watch/
• Play-by-Play: Tiffany Green
• Analyst: Hutson Mason
• Sideline: None
RADIO: NAVY RADIO NETWORK, including Sirius 133, XM 207, SXM App 967
• Play-by-Play: Pete Medhurst
• Analyst: Joe Miller
• Sideline: Keith Mills
• Studio: Scott Wykoff
• Pregame Commentary: John Feinstein
OPENING KICK
• Navy and Houston meet for the eighth time, including the seventh as American Athletic Conference foes, when the two square off on Saturday evening (7:00 pm ET, 6:00 pm local time) at TDECU Stadium.
• Houston leads the all-time series, 5-2, including a 2-1 mark in games played in Houston.
• The Houston game starts a brutal stretch for the Mids where they play the AAC preseason No. 4 (at Houston), No. 2 (UCF), No. 3 (SMU), No. 5 (at Memphis) and No. 1 team (Cincinnati).
• Navy will play the third-toughest schedule in the country based on opponent winning percentage from 2020. The Mids’ 12 opponents this fall combined for a 72-42 (.632) record last year. Only Arkansas (.644) and UMass (.644) have tougher slates based on last year’s results.
• Senior safety Kevin Brennan, senior wide receiver Mychal Cooper, senior linebacker Diego Fagot and senior slot back Chance Warren have been selected as team captains for the 2021 season.
• Cooper was also chosen to serve as the Captain of the Captains by a vote of the team captains of all 33 of Navy’s varsity sports. It’s the second time in three years that a football player has been selected. Ford Higgins was the Captain of the Captains for the 2019-20 academic year.
• Fagot is on the “Watch Lists” for the 2021 Chuck Bednarik Award (Maxwell Football Club) and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy (Football Writers Association of America) which are presented to the top defensive player in college football.
• Fagot was named a Third-Team Preseason All-American by Phil Steele’s College Football Magazine, while Fagot (first team), senior corner Michael McMorris (third team), sophomore nose guard Donald Berniard Jr. (fourth team), senior safety Kevin Brennan (fourth team) and junior kicker Bijan Nichols (fourth team) were named to Steele’s All-AAC team. Fagot is a two-time All-AAC performer, garnering second-team honors by the league’s coaches as a junior and first-team recognition as a sophomore.
SCOUTING HOUSTON
2-1 Overall | 0-0 AAC
Head Coach: Dana Holgorsen
• Houston enters Saturday’s game with a 2-1 record. The Cougars lost to Texas Tech 38-21 in the opener, but have bounced back to blow out both Rice (37-8) and Grambling (45-0) in back-to-back weeks.
• The Cougars’ roster features 16 players that transferred to Houston from a Power 5 school and 18 players from the junior college ranks.
• Quarterback Clayton Tune has completed 70.7 percent of his passes (21st in nation) on the year (53-75) for 472 yards with 4 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. He is also Houston’s second-leading rusher with 69 yards rushing on 24 carries and a touchdown.
• Tune left the Grambling game in the first quarter with what was reported in the Houston Chronicle as a hamstring injury and did not return. Junior Ike Ogbogu came off the bench to complete 14 of his 22 passes for 196 yards and 2 touchdowns.
• Freshman Alton McCaskill is Houston’s leading rusher with 159 yards and 4 touchdowns on 34 carries. He also has 5 catches for 51 yards and a touchdown out of the backfield.
• Houston’s top receiver is Nathaniel Dell, who has 22 catches for 301 yards and 3 touchdowns. Dell is averaging 100.3 receiving yards per game (19th nationally) and 7.3 catches per game (11th nationally). He is 19th in the country in allpurpose yards (134.0 yds/gm) and his 3 touchdown catches are the 16th most.
• Houston has not lost a fumble in its first three games, while the defense has recovered 3 fumbles, which ranks 18th nationally. The Cougars have kept the ball on average of 34:31 per game, which is 10th best nationally.
• Donovan Mutin leads the Houston defense with 17 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery.
• The Cougars defense is seventh in the nation in third down defense (.243) and has allowed just 33 first downs this fall, which ranks fifth in the country.
• The Cougars are also third in the country in pass defense (122.0 yds/gm), seventh in total defense (230.0 yds/gm) and 19th in scoring defense (15.0 pts/gm).
• Houston has come up with 6 turnovers this season, which stands 22nd nationally.
• Mannie Nunnery leads the nation in blocked punts with 2.
• Punter Laine Wilkins is averaging 47.5 yards per punt, which ranks 12th nationally. As a team, the Cougars are 10th in the country in net punting (44.77).
• Marcus Jones, a transfer from Troy, has returned a punt for a touchdown and is averaging 12.2 yards per return (15th in nation).
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*** Official Navy at Houston Game Thread ***
*** Official Navy at Houston Game Thread *** 
