Week 11: Tulane at Houston

For Houston to remain in the hunt for the West Division crown, it will have to get past a slumping Tulane squad minus its best offensive player. Tulane has dropped four straight, including back-to-back lopsided losses to Rice (42-17) and No. 15 LSU (35-10). It played last weekend without running back Andre Anderson, the league's top rusher at 123.4 yards per game who is sidelined by a shoulder injury.

Without Robertston, the Tulane offense will have a difficult time matching points with Houston, one of the nation's most prolific scoring teams. The Cougars are averaging 37.2 points per game, exactly twice Tulane's average.

Houston quarterback Case Keenum remains the nation's second-ranked player in total offense. His 397.1 yards per game ranks second to Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell's 402 ypg. Keenum also is averaging 376 passing yards per game, second nationally to Harrell.

If Houston can recover from an unexpected loss at Marshall last week, the Cougars are in position to make a run at the division title. After playing host to Tulane, the Cougars welcome league unbeaten Tulsa next weekend and finish the regular season at Rice, which is 5-1 in the West.

Notes

Tulane used two quarterbacks in its loss at LSU. Sophomore Kevin Moore was 5-of-12 for 40 yards and redshirt freshman Joe Kemp was 6-of-11 for 44 yards.

Houston quarterback Case Keenum set a school record with his ninth straight game passing for 300 or more yards. He became the fifth player in school history to surpass 3,000 yards in a season, joining Andre Ware (1989), David Klingler (1990, '91), Jimmy Klingler (1992) and Kevin Kolb (2003, '05, '06).

Tulane's loss to LSU last weekend was its 35th straight to a ranked opponent. The last time the Green Wave defeated a ranked team came in 1982 in a 31-28 victory at No. 12 LSU.

Houston safety Kenneth Fontenette, who has started 47 straight games, finished with a career-high 19 tackles and two pass breakups against Marshall.

Key Player (Green Wave) — Travis Burks, LB

Burks was busy in a loss to LSU last weekend, returning an interception 43 yards for Tulane's only touchdown and also returned three kickoffs for 62 yards. He should be as involved against Houston, which averages nearly 50 pass attempts per game.

Key Player (Cougars) — Case Keenum, QB

Keenum continues to operate under the national radar as quarterbacks from BCS programs command the spotlight, from Texas Tech's Graham Harrell to Oklahoma's Sam Bradford. But Keenum's numbers are as impressive, even if he's operating against lesser defenses. He has been intercepted only eight times in 374 attempts while tossing 25 touchdowns.

Houston by 14