10. Houston: There's been a negative tone around this program from the very first night of the season when the Cougars - who were picked by many, including the Misery Index, to win the American Athletic Conference - laid a massive egg at home against Texas-San Antonio. That loss has aged like fish carcasses left to rot in the Texas heat, as UTSA went on to lose seven of its next eight games. Houston, meanwhile, appeared to be getting it together after a quarterback switch from John O'Korn to the more mobile Greg Ward. Saturday's 31-24 loss to Tulane, however, was another setback and the kind of that really drives Houston fans nuts. Not only was it the Cougars' third loss in their new on-campus stadium, but yet again they got beat by a team with significantly less talent. Houston has a good defense and playmakers on offense, so it's hard to understand how it finds itself 5-4. Houston will almost certainly get bowl eligible (the hapless duo of Tulsa and SMU are up next), but this will be a thoroughly unfulfilling year for a program trying to position itself as the next TCU. And satisfaction for Houston fans is unlikely to come via a coaching change because Tony Levine just signed a contract extension prior to this season.
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www.freep.com/story/sports/col...index/18780125/
