On a night when Sam Houston managed only a third of Oregon State’s offensive output, it might have seemed like the same ol’, same ol’ for the beleaguered Bearkats, owners of the state’s longest active FBS losing streak.
But a 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and a scoop-and-score after a blocked punt gave ol’ Sam a 21-17 win over the apoplectic Beavers, who’d probably marked it as a dub weeks ago.
Get this: Not only did it put a stop to the Bearkats’ eight-game skid, it gave Phil Longo his first win as a head coach in 20 years.
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Now, in fairness, we should note it’s also been 20 years since Longo was a head coach at La Salle from 2004-05. Over most of his three decades and a dozen stops as a coach, he’s been someone else’s assistant. Before returning to Huntsville this fall, he was the offensive coordinator at Wisconsin for two years, and before that he was Mack Brown’s OC at North Carolina.
Most of what he knew about offense he’d learned from Mike Leach, whom he met at a coaching clinic in Kentucky. Longo, who slept in his car, stayed late after the first night, hoping to get a word in with the Pirate.
“I couldn’t get to him until like 11 because of all the other coaches lined up to talk to him,” Longo told Dave Campbell’s Texas Football. “We talked ball from 11 to 4 a.m.
“We drank from 4 to 6.”
Like legions before and after, he became an Air Raid devotee. Just the same, his hiring this year didn’t generate a lot of optimism, even though he reportedly turned down an NFL assistant’s job to take it. Having just been fired at Wisconsin probably burned off some of the buzz.
Most of Sam Houston’s roster was in the portal after K.C. Keeler took his 10 wins from last year and left for Temple. The Bearkats wouldn’t even have a home-field advantage. Because of renovations at Bowers Stadium, they play home games an hour south at Shell Energy Stadium, where you could fire a cannon and not even scare a Bearkat fan, much less hit one.
Fortunately, Longo isn’t easily dissuaded. He was happy to go back where he’d been an OC a decade ago. A New Jersey native, he prefers Texas. And now he’s got a win to show for it.
In other Best in Texas news, Texas A&M is still rolling with another good road win, this one over Missouri; Texas Tech pulverized previously unbeaten BYU to take charge of the Big 12; and SMU caught a break in the ACC title chase with Virginia’s loss.
1. Texas A&M (9-0)
Word of the season for Aggies: Finish. Nine down, how many to go?
Last: 38-17 over Missouri.
Next: South Carolina on Saturday.
2. Texas Tech (9-1)
This isn’t Mike Leach’s defense anymore.
Last: 29-7 win over BYU.
Next: UCF on Saturday.
3. Texas (7-2)
Can Longhorns do Saturday what they failed at twice last year?
Last: idle.
Next: at Georgia on Saturday.
4. SMU (7-3)
Mustangs back in thick of ACC race.
Last: 45-13 win over Boston College.
Next: Louisville on Nov. 22.
5. Houston (8-2)
Hard to throw three picks and still win.
Last: 30-27 win over UCF.
Next: TCU on Nov. 22.
6. North Texas (8-1)
Mean Green keeps moving up.
Last: idle.
Next: at UAB on Saturday.
7. TCU (6-3)
Only gets harder for enigmatic Frogs this week.
Last: 20-17 loss to Iowa State.
Next: at BYU on Saturday.
8. Baylor (5-4)
Never good when your AD makes more news than your football team.
Last: idle.
Next: Utah on Saturday.
9. UTSA (4-5)
USF beats UTSA, UNT by combined 59 points.
Last: 55-23 loss to South Florida.
Next: at Charlotte on Saturday.
10. Rice (5-5)
Can Owls beat UNT or South Florida to get bowl eligible?
Last: 24-17 win over UAB.
Next: UNT on Nov. 22.
11. Texas State (3-6)
Bobcats’ first five-game losing streak since 2020.
Last: 42-39 loss to Louisiana.
Next: at Southern Mississippi on Saturday.
12. UTEP (2-7)
Miners come within 53 seconds of their best win.
Last: 30-27 loss to Jacksonville State.
Next: at Missouri State on Saturday.
13. Sam Houston (1-8)
Special teams save the day and prevent an 0-fer.
Last: 21-17 win over Oregon State.
Next: Delaware on Saturday.
Plotting every Texas team’s path to the College Football Playoff: From Texas A&M to UNTCameron Carr’s 16 points and six players in double figures help Baylor beat Washington
Find more college sports coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.