The 2009 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. It was the 64th year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by second year head football coach, Kevin Sumlin. The team played its home games at Robertson Stadium, a 32,000-seat stadium on campus in Houston. The Cougars finished the season 10–4, 6–3 in CUSA play, were co–champions of the west division and lost to East Carolina 38–32 in the CUSA Championship Game. They were invited to the Armed Forces Bowl where they lost to Air Force 47–20. It was the second consecutive year that they had played Air Force in the Armed Forces Bowl.
Previous season
The 2008 season was head coach Kevin Sumlin's inaugural season with the Cougars. The Cougars finished 3rd in Conference USA's West division with a 6–2 conference record and 8–5 overall record. The Cougars ended their season with a win against the Air Force Falcons in the Armed Forces Bowl. This marked the first time since 1980 that the Cougars won a bowl game, and ended their eight-game losing streak.
In addition, the Cougars defeated two nationally ranked teams: #23 East Carolina and #25 Tulsa; the former of which was on the road. It was the first time the Cougars had defeated a ranked opponent in an away game since the 1984 season. Another first since then was the defeat of two nationally ranked teams in one season.
At the conclusion of the post-season, offensive lineman Sebastian Vollmer graduated from Houston, and was drafted by the New England Patriots in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft. Phillip Hunt was also signed to the Cleveland Browns. Houston's starting quarterback Case Keenum held the number two rank for passing yards in the NCAA.
Preseason
Spring practices
The Cougars held Spring practices from March 24 to April 18, 2008. On April 4, the team played a public scrimmage. The Cougars' annual Red-White Game, which was the conclusion of the Spring practices, was abruptly halted after the first ten minutes of gameplay due to rainy weather conditions.
Recruiting
Coaching staff
Schedule
Denotes the largest crowd to have watched a football game at Robertson Stadium in its current capacity, and the largest Houston ever hosted on-campus. This was later broken the next season.
Game summaries
Northwestern State
The Northwestern State Demons of the Southland Conference traveled to Houston to meet with the Cougars for the first time in school history. Head coach Bradley Dale Peveto, a former Houston defensive coordinator and assistant head coach, led the Demons in his first game ever. With the first five touchdowns for Houston resulting from the Cougars' first five possessions, the Demons' first first down occurred only after the score was 28–0 in the home team's favor. With the game well in hand for the Cougars in the third quarter, starting quarterback Case Keenum was rested for the rest of the game.
Oklahoma State
The Cougars traveled to Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater to face Oklahoma State (ranked 5th in the AP football poll and 6th in the Coaches' Poll). Houston came out of the gate with a touchdown and field goal in the first quarter, but Oklahoma State responded with a drive to the endzone in the beginning of the second quarter. However, Houston parlayed an onside kick into two more touchdowns to close the half. In the third quarter, Oklahoma State dominated, with touchdowns coming from rushes by Keith Toston and Beau Johnston. A punt return for 82 yards by Dez Bryant yielded another touchdown for Oklahoma State. However, the Cougars clawed back in the final quarter, with the help of a Case Keenum pass that turned into a tipped ball caught by Bryce Beall, and a Zac Robinson interception that was returned for a touchdown. Following the win, Houston was launched into the #21 ranked spot in the AP Poll, which marked the first time since 1991 in which the Cougars had been ranked in the top 25.
Texas Tech
Houston faced-off against former Southwest Conference rivals, the Texas Tech Red Raiders, for the first time since the demise of that athletic conference following the 1995 season. The game also marked the first time that Houston hosted Texas Tech on-campus, as the Astrodome had served as the previous home for the Cougars during that era. During Houston's bye the week prior, AP and Coaches' Poll voters ranked the Cougars ahead in the polls to #17 and #23 respectively. It was the first time in eighteen years that Houston entered a game as a nationally ranked team.