SportsDirect Inc. staff
Nov 8, 2014
Tulane 31, Houston 24: Freshman Tanner Lee passed for 237 yards and three touchdowns as the visiting Green Wave held off a late rally to upset the Cougars in American Athletic Conference play.
Dontrell Hilliard caught five passes for 107 yards and a touchdown and rushed for a team-high 85 yards and another score while Parry Nickerson intercepted his second pass on the final play of the game in the end zone for Tulane (3-6, 2-3). Lee completed 24-of-35 passes as the Green Wave ended a 10-game losing streak against Houston.
Cougars quarterback Greg Ward Jr. went 31-of-45 for 342 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions. Deontay Greenberry had 12 receptions for 136 yards and a touchdown to lead Houston (5-4, 3-2), which saw its three-game winning streak come to an end.
Leondre James caught a 9-yard fade from Lee to cap a 12-play, 84-yard drive and give the Green Wave a 21-17 lead with 5:39 left in the third quarter. Tulane increased that to 28-17 when Hilliard bulled in from 1 yard with 9:22 left, but Ward hit Greenberry for a 9-yard TD with 1:04 to go and Houston recovered an onside kick to give itself one more chance.
Lee connected with Teddy Veal for a 12-yard touchdown after an early Cougars turnover and his 63-yard scoring strike to Hilliard gave Tulane a 14-7 lead in the second quarter. Adrian McDonald recovered a fumble in the end zone for a TD and his interception set up Kyle Bullardกฏs 39-yard field goal that gave Houston a 17-14 halftime lead.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Lee has thrown at least three touchdown passes three times in his first seven games and has a school freshman record with 12 overall, passing Ryan Griffinกฏs nine in 2009. กญ Greenberry, a junior, has recorded at least six receptions in a game 16 times in his career. กญ Tulane S Darion Monroe was ejected from the game in the second quarter after he was called for targeting.