Fresh off back-to-back bowl appearances, a Conference USA West Division title and a national ranking for most of the 2009 season, University of Houston head football coach Kevin Sumlin enters his third season poised to lead the Cougars to even greater heights in the national spotlight in 2010.

A finalist for the 2009 Paul "Bear" Bryant National Coach of the Year Award, Sumlin has already put his stamp on the Cougar football program, guiding Houston to a 18-9 record in his two seasons.
In 2009, the bar was set even higher and the football team surpassed those expectations. Houston finished with a 10-4 overall record while winning the West Division with a 6-2 league mark, and along the way, earned a berth in a fifth-straight bowl game. En route to the 10-4 record, UH knocked off Texas Tech, No. 5/6 Oklahoma State and Mississippi State and were 4-0 in non-conference action. Statistically, the University of Houston led the nation in passing offense (433.71 ypg), total offense (563.36 ypg) and scoring offense (42.21 ppg).

The high-powered Cougar offense topped 40 points in nine of 14 games, reached 50 points on four occasions and registered at least 70 points in a game for the second straight season, when UH knocked off its cross-town rival Rice, 73-14, to take back the Bayou Bucket.

Sumlin guided quarterback Case Keenum to 2009 Conference USA MVP honors, and Keenum not only led the nation in total offense for the second straight season, but he also finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting. In addition, wide receiver James Cleveland was named the C-USA Newcomer of the Year, while running back Charles Sims was named the Freshman of the Year. Sumlin earned his first C-USA Coach of the Year award. Among the individual award winners, 15 Cougars were also named to either the C-USA First or Second Teams.

Houston also became just the third team to post a 5,000-yard passer (Keenum) and three 1,000-yard receivers (Cleveland, Tyron Carrier and Patrick Edwards) in one season, and the 1,000-yard receiving trio marked just the fourth time the feat had been accomplished in NCAA history.

Taking over the reins of the program in December 2007, Sumlin guided the Cougars to their fourth-straight bowl appearance in 2008 and became the first UH coach in 28 years to lead his team to a bowl victory, as Houston topped Air Force 34-28 in the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl.

Statistically, it was an outstanding inaugural season for Sumlin as well, as the Cougars established 22 season and career records in 2008. The Houston offense ranked No. 2 nationally in both total offense (562.8 ypg) and passing yards (401.6 ypg), No. 4 in first downs (355), and No. 10 in both scoring (40.6 ppg) and 3rd down percentage (51.0).

Keenum finished the year as the nation's leader in total offense (403.2 ypg) and No. 2 in passing yards per game (386.2 ypg), while senior defensive end Phillip Hunt finished No. 2 nationally in sacks per game (1.08 spg).

Under Sumlin's guidance, Keenum was named the Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year, Hunt was named the Defensive Player of the Year and freshman running back Bryce Beall was named the C-USA Freshman of the Year. Overall, the Cougars garnered more than 60 individual honors following the 2008 season.

Sumlin came to Houston after seven seasons as an assistant coach and offensive coordinator in the Big 12. When introduced to lead the Cougars in December of 2007, Sumlin became the 12th head coach in UH history and the first African-American to lead the prestigious Cougar program.

With a reputation for engineering high-powered offenses and considered one of the country's top recruiters, Sumlin brought with him a wealth of collegiate coaching experience and a penchant for innovative ideas and styles.

Sumlin spent the previous five seasons at the University of Oklahoma, where he served as both the co-offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach (2006-07) and special teams coordinator/tight ends coach (2003-05).

Offensively, the Sooners finished fifth in the nation in scoring offense at 42.3 points per game, while ranking 19th nationally in total offense averaging 448.9 yards per game.

We keep Chavis, with his offense and recruiting, keep Frank Wilson. Man this would be the perfect hire. He would come pretty cheap too.