John O'Quinn Field at Corbin J. Robertson Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Houston, located on the campus of the University of Houston. It was the home of the Houston Cougars football and women's soccer teams. The stadium was the first home for the Houston Dynamo of Major League Soccer from 2006 to 2011, as well as the first home of the American Football League's Houston Oilers from 1960 to 1964.
The Houston Cougars are the athletic teams representing the University of Houston. Informally, the Houston Cougars have also been referred to as the Coogs, UH, or simply Houston. Houston's nickname was suggested by early physical education instructor of the university and former head football coach, John R. Bender after one of his former teams, Washington State later adopted the mascot and nickname. The teams compete in the NCAA's Division I and the Football Bowl Subdivision as members of the Big 12 Conference.
Wilson Carl Whitley Jr. was an American professional football defensive tackle who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Houston Cougars, where he was named consensus All-American under defensive coordinator Don Todd. He led the Cougars to the Southwest Conference championship in during Houston's first season as a conference member and won the 1976 Lombardi Award as the nation's top lineman. Former President Gerald Ford presented him the award. He was later named to the 1970s Southwest Conference All-Decade Team.
The Houston Cougars football program is an NCAA Division I FBS football team that represents the University of Houston. The team is commonly referred to as "Houston" or "UH". The UH football program is a member of the Big 12 Conference. Since the 2014 season, the Cougars have played their home games on campus at TDECU Stadium, which was built on the site formerly occupied by Robertson Stadium, where they played home games from 1941 to 1950 and from 1997 to 2012. Over the history of the program, the Cougars have won eleven conference championships and have had several players elected to the College Football Hall of Fame, including a Heisman Trophy winner.
The 2008 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. It was the 63rd year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by first-year head football coach, Kevin Sumlin whose previous position was as co-offensive coordinator for the Oklahoma Sooners. He replaced Art Briles. The team played its home games at Robertson Stadium, a 32,000-person capacity stadium on-campus in Houston. Competing against the Air Force Falcons in the 2008 Armed Forces Bowl, the Cougars won their first bowl game since 1980, and broke the longest current bowl game losing streak in Division I FBS football at that time. In addition, Houston defeated two nationally ranked opponents, which the Cougars hadn't achieved since their 1984 season.
The Spirit of Houston consists of the Cougar Marching Band and other spirit groups at the University of Houston, including the “UH” Cheer teams, the Cougar Dolls Dance Team, the “UH” Feature Twirlers, the Mascots, and the Cougar Brass. The Spirit of Houston is currently under the direction of the “Director of Athletic Bands” and “Spirit Groups”, Cameron Kubos. The Cougar Marching Band is widely known for performing in a wide variety of styles of marching bands. The CMB is also known for its characteristic tonal quality, following in the tradition pioneered by Bill Moffit, Robert Mayes, and David Bertman, three men who led the Spirit of Houston for over three decades among them. The band consists of about 270 students, about one third of whom are music majors. Other past directors include Marc Martin, Troy Bennefield and John Alstrin.
The 1989 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season. It was the 44th year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by third-year head coach Jack Pardee. Serving as offensive coordinator was John Jenkins, who succeeded Pardee as head coach following the season. The team played its games off-campus at the Astrodome, which had recently received upgrades to seat 62,439 spectators. The Cougars finished the season ranked as No. 14 by the AP Poll. Houston quarterback Andre Ware won the Heisman Trophy and Davey O'Brien Award following the conclusion of the season. Under probation by the NCAA from rules violated in prior seasons, Houston was disallowed from participating in a bowl game, television appearances, and the Coaches Poll.
The 1976 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 1976 NCAA Division I football season. It was the 31st year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by fifteenth-year head football coach, Bill Yeoman. The team played its home games at the Astrodome, a 53,000-person capacity stadium off-campus in Houston. It was Houston's first year of season play as a full member of the Southwest Conference eligible as champions. Upon winning the conference as co-champions, the Cougars competed against the Maryland Terrapins in the Cotton Bowl Classic, and finished the post-season at an all-time highest national ranking in the history of the program. Senior defensive tackle Wilson Whitley received the Lombardi Award following the season. Future UH and Baylor head coach Art Briles played on this team.
The 2006 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH represented the University of Houston in the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season. It was the 61st year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by fourth-year head football coach, Art Briles. The team played its home games at Robertson Stadium, a 32,000-person capacity stadium on-campus in Houston. After regular season play where Houston won the C-USA West division, the Cougars defeated the Southern Miss Golden Eagles in the Conference USA Football Championship to become conference champions for the first time since 1996.
The 2010 Houston Cougars football team represented the University of Houston in the 2010 NCAA Division I FBS football season. It was the 65th year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by third-year head football coach Kevin Sumlin, and played its home games at Robertson Stadium—a 32,000-seat stadium on campus in Houston. The program is a member of Conference USA in its West Division. Although ranked favorably early in the season, the team finished with a 5–7 record, after season-ending injuries to starting quarterback Case Keenum and other key players.
The 1969 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 1969 NCAA University Division football season. It was the 24th year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by eighth-year head coach Bill Yeoman who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2001. The team played its home games in the Astrodome, a 53,000-person capacity stadium off-campus in Houston. Houston competed as a member of the NCAA in the University Division, independent of any athletic conference. It was their tenth year of doing so. After completion of the regular season, the Cougars were invited to the Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl, where they defeated the Auburn Tigers. Following the overall season, several players were selected for the 1970 NFL Draft.
The 1967 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 1967 NCAA University Division football season. It was the 22nd of season play for Houston. The team was coached by sixth-year head coach Bill Yeoman who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2001. The team played its home games in the Astrodome, a 53,000-person capacity stadium off-campus in Houston. Houston competed as a member of the NCAA in the University Division, independent of any athletic conference. It was their eighth year of doing so. At this time, Houston was on probation from the NCAA, and therefore was not eligible to compete in any post-season bowl games. Following the overall season, several players were selected for the 1968 NFL Draft.
The 1968 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 1968 NCAA University Division football season. It was the 23rd year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by seventh-year head coach Bill Yeoman who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2001. The team played its home games in the Houston Astrodome, a 53,000-person capacity stadium off-campus in Houston. Houston competed as a member of the NCAA in the University Division, independent of any athletic conference. It was their ninth year of doing so. At this time, Houston was on probation from the NCAA, and therefore was not eligible to compete in any post-season bowl games. Following the overall season, several players were selected for the 1969 NFL Draft. The 100 points scored by Houston in the November 23rd game against Tulsa remains the most points scored by a team in Division I college football history.
The 1973 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 1973 NCAA Division I football season. It was the 28th year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by 12th-year head coach Bill Yeoman who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2001. The team played its home games in the Astrodome, a 50,000-person capacity stadium off-campus in Houston at the Astrodomain. Houston competed as a member of the NCAA in the University Division, independent of any athletic conference. It was their fourteenth year of doing so. The Cougars had been admitted to the Southwest Conference two years prior, but were ineligible for conference play until the 1976 season. After completion of the regular season, the Cougars were invited to the Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl where they defeated the Tulane Green Wave.
The 2007 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. It was the 62nd year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by fifth-year head football coach, Art Briles. The team played its home games at Robertson Stadium, a 32,000-person capacity stadium on-campus in Houston. Competing against the TCU Horned Frogs in the 2007 Texas Bowl, the Cougars fell short, 20–13.
The 2015 Houston Cougars football team represented the University of Houston in the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season. It was the 68th year of season play for Houston. The team was led by first-year head coach Tom Herman and played its home games at TDECU Stadium in Houston. The Houston Cougars football team is a member of the American Athletic Conference in its West Division. They finished the season 13–1, 7–1 in American Athletic play to win a share of the West Division title. Due to their head-to-head win over Navy, they represented the West Division in the inaugural American Athletic Championship Game where they defeated Temple to become American Athletic Conference champions. As the highest ranked team from the "Group of five", they received an automatic bid to a New Year's Six bowl. They were invited to the Peach Bowl where they defeated Florida State.
The 1978 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Cougars were led by 17th-year head coach Bill Yeoman and played their home games at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. The team competed as members of the Southwest Conference, winning the conference with a 7–1 conference record. This was Houston's first outright conference title and second overall, in only their third year in the league. They were invited to the 1979 Cotton Bowl Classic, played on New Year's Day, where they were defeated by Notre Dame. Houston was ranked 10th in the final AP Poll of the season and 11th in the Coaches' Poll.
The 1984 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston during the 1984 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Cougars were led by 23rd-year head coach Bill Yeoman and played their home games at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. The team competed as members of the Southwest Conference, finishing as co-champions with SMU with a conference record of 6–2. Houston was invited to the 1985 Cotton Bowl Classic, where they lost to Boston College.
The 1947 Houston Cougars football team was an American football team that represented the University of Houston during the 1947 college football season as a member of the Lone Star Conference (LSC). In its second season under head coach Jewell Wallace, the team compiled a 3–8 record and finished in the last place in the conference. The team played its home games at Public School Stadium in Houston.
The 1998 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH represented the University of Houston in the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season. It was the 53rd year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by Kim Helton. The team played all its home games at Robertson Stadium, a 32,000-person capacity stadium on-campus in Houston, for the first time since 1950.
