The Houston Cougars are set to host the Rice Owls Saturday night in the latest installment of the “Bayou Bucket” rivalry.
Houston (1-0) and Rice (1-1) will face off at 7 p.m. Saturday at TDECU Stadium.
The Cougars enter the crosstown rivalry game with the longest home winning streak in the nation at 15 consecutive wins. In addition to home-field advantage, the Cougars also have Ed Oliver, one of the best defensive tackles in the nation. Oliver recorded 11 tackles at Arizona in Houston’s season opener, which leads all defensive linemen nationally.
“He truly is the most disruptive defensive lineman I’ve seen in college football,” said Rice head coach David Bailiff during his pregame press conference this week. “He dominates football games. And if he’s not making the play, he’s disrupted the play somehow. And he doesn’t take plays off. A lot of great players, when they get tired, take plays off. He doesn’t take plays off. He plays hard every single snap.”
The Cougars lead the Bayou Bucket rivalry 29-11 and have the trophy from the last time the teams played in 2013.
“It’s just great to have it back for the city of Houston,” said Houston head coach Major Applewhite in his pregame press conference. “That’s what I gather at this point. It’s just great to have it back, both universities playing each other and having something that the city of Houston can get behind.”
For tickets and more information on the game, tap/click here.
