The Times’ Chris Dufresne’s preseason college football top 25: No. 22 Houston

The Times’ Chris Dufresne unveils his preseason college football top 25, one day (and team) at a time.

No. 22 Houston

The only pattern Houston quarterback Case Keenum had trouble with last season was the fade route.

Keenum was mostly brilliant, finishing with over-the-top numbers for yardage (5,671) and touchdowns (44) as he engineered notice-grabbing victories against Oklahoma State, Texas Tech and Mississippi State before it ended with too much Houston ho-hum.

The Cougars rose to as high as No.12 in the Bowl Championship Series standings and then lost three of their last five. Wet blanket night came Nov. 14 when 8-1 Houston lost a five-point game at Central Florida.

Rebound wins versus Memphis and Rice brought Houston back to 10-2 before the Cougars lost to East Carolina in the Conference USA title game and then to Air Force in the Armed Forces Bowl.

Keenum had nine passes intercepted in his last two games after only six all season. But that’s yesterday’s blues.

Keenum is a point machine capable of throwing for 6,000 yards in an offense returning nine starters. That includes three 1,000-yard receivers who contributed to Houston averaging a nation-best 565 total yards a game.

To remain nationally scary beyond Halloween, though, Houston has to quit allowing 30 points a game and stop winning games by scores of 50-43 (Southern Mississippi last year) and 46-45 (Tulsa).

Houston has stoppage issues, finishing 111th (of 120 teams) last season in total defense, giving up 45 points a game in its four losses.

Coach Kevin Sumlin made the off-season decision to fire defensive coordinator John Skladany and replace him with Brian Stewart, the Dallas Cowboys’ defensive coordinator in 2007-08 who most recently worked with the Philadelphia Eagles. Or, as they said around town when Stewart arrived: “Houston, the Eagle has landed.”

Stewart installed a new defensive draining system called the 3-4. Stewart thought long and hard before leaving the NFL for a reclamation project, but the slightest upgrade on his side of the ball should make Houston a possible BCS bowl threat.

Playing in Conference USA makes it more difficult to climb the polls, but Houston has augmented with a killer nonconference schedule that includes trips to UCLA early (Sept. 18) and Texas Tech late (Nov. 27). The Cougars also host a Southeastern Conference team, Mississippi State, on Oct. 9.

If Houston can win any combination of two against those three opponents, and dominate its conference, it should be in the national discussion and keep Keenum in the Heisman Trophy conversation into early December.

The Cougars’ basketball program was once known as Phi Slama Jama. With Keenum in the cockpit and all those speedy receivers, this outfit could be Fly Slama Jama.

The countdown so far: 25. Washington; 24. Navy; 23. Utah; 22. Houston.

chris.dufresne@latimes.com

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