When you make $5 million a year coaching college kids, the old Bill Parcells "I don't coach penalties" explanation doesn't fly.
Following a 34-27 win over Rice on Saturday, an exasperated Dana Holgorsen described his team's performance thusly: “A lot of stupid stuff once again,” a heated Holgorsen said after the game against Rice. “I ain’t taking responsibility for that, at some point they got to quit doing that.”
Houston committed 10 penalties for 110 yards in the game. Trailing 27-24 entering the fourth quarter, Houston tied the game with a 32-yard Bubba Baxa field goal, then took the lead with an 11-yard scoop-and-score. The Cougars intercepted Rice quarterback TJ McMahon with 2:08 to play, but were unable to put the game away.
Houston's offense managed just four yards on the ensuing possession, and the defense allowed Rice to move 85 yards in 24 seconds, allowing McMahon to throw to the end zone from the 9-yard line on the game's final snap.
The Cougars also committed 10 penalties for 110 yards in the game. Through four games, Holgorsen's team ranks last in the nation with 10.5 flags for 94.8 yards a game.
“Obviously, I wasn’t pointing the finger at anything, I misspoke,” Holgorsen said Monday. “That was stupid, I shouldn’t have said what I said as far as not assuming responsibility for anything that our team does.”
“I apologize for my attitude in the postgame. I was frustrated and just cooked and all that but no excuse. We all know that I assume responsibility for everything that happens within this program."
A preseason AP Top 25 team and the anticipated champion of the American Athletic Conference, Houston opens league play with a 2-2 record. Two of the Cougars' games went to overtime and the fourth nearly did as well.
It seems like every cardiologist in H-Town would welcome a 35-14 Houston victory over Tulane on Friday night (7 p.m. ET, ESPN), but the Cougars will have to cut the penalties down first. That will require a team-wide effort, including the head coach.