2014 TULSA FOOTBALL GAME NOTES Tulsa Athletic Media Relations • 800 S. Tucker Drive • Tulsa, OK 74104 Facebook: /TulsaHurricane and /TulsaFootball • Twitter:@TulsaHurricane and @TulsaFootball Instagram: TulsaHurricanePics • Website: www.TulsaHurricane.com Game Information GAME TULSA (1-1, 1-0 The American) vs. FAU (0-2, 0-0 C-USA) Date / Time: Saturday, Sept. 13/6:00 pm (CT) Site: Boca Raton, Fla. #3 Saturday, September 13, 2014 • 7:00 pm (ET)/6:00 pm (CT) Stadium: FAU Stadium (29,419) FAU Stadium (29,419) • Boca Raton, Fla. TV: FOX College Sports TV: FOX College Sports • Radio: KRMG FM 102.3/740 AM Talent: Mike Morgan (pxp), J.C. Pearson THE STORYLINES . (analyst), Steffi Sorensen (sidelines) Radio: KRMG 740 AM/FM 102.3 • This is the 115th season that Tulsa has fielded a football team, whereas FAU is in Talent: Bruce Howard (pxp), Rick Couri only their 14th season of football, fielding its first team in 2001 . Tulsa fielded its (analyst), Jeremie Poplin (sideline) first team in 1895 (Tulsa did not field a football team in 5 different seasons). Live Stats: TulsaHurricane.com • Tulsa has the smallest undergraduate enrollment of FBS schools with 3,429 Series: First Meeting students, while FAU's enrollment is over 30,000. First Meeting: none • This is the first meeting between Tulsa and Florida Atlantic on the football field. Last Meeting: none • Both teams were members of Conference USA last year, but they did not meet on the football field . FAU was in the East Division, and Tulsa in the West. • Tulsa plays on the road for the first time this season, while FAU plays its home TULSA 1-1, 1-0 The American opener after two road contests. Head Coach: Bill Blankenship (Tulsa '79) • Both teams are coming off of losses against top-4 teams – FAU losing to #2 4th year at Tulsa Alabama and Tulsa losing to #4 Oklahoma – the two teams that faced off last year Career Record: 23-18 (4 years) in the Allstate Sugar Bowl. TU Record: same • Of the 56 players that saw action in the season opener two weeks ago, 31 were FLORIDA ATLANTIC 0-2, 0-0 C-USA either freshmen or sophomores, while only 11 were seniors. Head Coach: Charlie Partridge (Drake '95) • Tulsa has just one senior on the offensive side of the ball – right tackle Davis 1st year at FAU Walton – and Walton is in just his third season after transferring from Career Record: 0-2 (1 year) Northeastern Oklahoma A&M. FAU Record: same • Six true freshmen have played so far for Tulsa – DEs Jeremy Smith and Petera Wilson, DT Earl Rollins, RB D'Angelo Brewer and WR Bishop Louie have played in both games, while WR Nigel Carter saw action in game two vs. Oklahoma. Tulsa Coaching Staff • Six players received their first collegiate start against Tulane in the opener – OG Bill Blankenship Head Coach Chris Wallace, OG Garrett Gladd, WR Josh Atkinson, RB James Flanders, H-B Brent Guy Defensive Coord./LBs Mandel Dixon and LB Craig Suits. Denver Johnson Asst. HC/Off. Coord./OL Scott Downing Asst. HC/ST Coord./TEs 2014 SCHEDULE/RESULTS . Dan Bitson Receivers Adam Blankenship Defensive Ends TULSA GOLDEN HURRICANE FLORIDA ATLANTIC OWLS Josh Blankenship (PB) Quarterbacks August August Jess Loepp (PB) Safeties 28 (Th) TULANE* (CBS SN) W 38-31/2OT 30 @ #22 Nebraska L 7-55 Calvin Thibodeaux (PB) Defensive Tackles Darnell Walker Cornerbacks September September 6 @ #2 Alabama L 0-41 John Johnson Running Backs GA 6 #4 OKLAHOMA (ABC) L 7-52 13 @ Florida Atlantic 6:00 pm 13 TULSA 27 TEXAS STATE TBA 20 @ Wyoming Tulsa Media Relations 27 UTSA* DON TOMKALSKI Sr. Associate AD/Communications October October Football Contact 4 @ Colorado State 2:00 pm 2 @ FIU* o 918.631.3200 • c 918.640.0683 • [email protected] 11 @ Temple* TBA 18 WESTERN KENTUCKY* STEPHANIE HALL Assistant Media Relations 18 SOUTH FLORIDA* TBA 25 @ Marshall* o 918.631.2163 • c 918.232.2393 • [email protected] 31 (Fri) @ Memphis* 7:00 pm ERIC HOLLIER Assistant Media Relations November Secondary Football Contact November 1 UAB* o 918.631.2492 • c 225.978.4590 • [email protected] 8 SMU* TBA 8 @ North Texas* 22 @ Middle Tennessee* KAYLA KOCH Media Relations Assistant 14 (Fri) @ UCF* 7:00 pm 22 @ Houston* TBA o 918.631.2395 • c 918.728.5230 • [email protected] 29 OLD DOMINION* 28 (Fri) East Carolina* TBA KEVIN QUICKER Media Relations Assistant *American Athletic Conference Games *Conference USA Games o 918.631.3720 • c 301.919.8531 • [email protected] Tulsa Football Game Notes 2014 • page 2 TULSA HEAD COACH BILL BLANKENSHIP IN FOURTH 2014 American Standings YEAR AT THE COACHING HELM . Team American ALL • Bill Blankenship is a 1979 graduate of The University of Tulsa, where he was a Tulsa 1-0 1-1 quarterback from 1975-79. East Carolina 0-0 1-1 • In his fourth season as head coach and his eighth as a member of the TU staff. Memphis 0-0 1-1 • As head coach, Blankenship has posted an overall 23-18 overall record. South Florida 0-0 1-1 • In just his second season, Blankenship was named the 2012 Conference USA Temple 0-0 1-1 Coach of the Year after leading Tulsa to an overall 11-3 record and the schools' Houston 0-0 1-1 second C-USA Championship . the 11 wins tied a school record for victories. UConn 0-0 1-1 Cincinnati 0-0 0-0 • Completed his first season as the Golden Hurricane head coach in 2011 with an UCF 0-0 0-1 overall 8-5 record. SMU 0-0 0-2 • Blankenship is just the second coach in school history to win 19 games in his first Tulane 0-1 0-2 two seasons behind Todd Graham (21, 2007-08). Two other coaches won 18 games in two years –– Francis Schmidt (18, 1919-20) and Henry Frnka (18 in 1941-42). • Collected his first career collegiate win with a 31-3 win at Tulane on Sept. 10, 2011. 2014 C-USA Schedule • Blankenship became only the seventh head coach in Tulsa history to win eight or THIS WEEK (Sept13) more games in his first season. Houston @ BYU (9-11) • Blankenship was promoted as Tulsa's 28th Head Football Coach on January 14, Toledo @ Cincinnati (9-12) 2011 . he spent the previous four years as a Tulsa assistant coach. Boise State @ UConn • Blankenship returned to his alma mater in January 2007 to coach the wide UCF @ Missouri receivers . in 2008, Blankenship was named special teams coordinator and East Carolina @ Virginia in 2009 added the title of running backs coach . in 2010, he served as senior NC State @ South Florida Tulsa @ Florida Atantic associate head coach, running backs coach and special teams coordinator. SE Louisiana @ Tulane • Before entering the collegiate coaching ranks, Blankenship spent 23 years as an Oklahoma High School coach . Blankenship resigned as the head football NEXT WEEK (Sept. 20) coach at Tulsa’s Union High School in December 2005 after leading his team to a *UConn @ USF (9-19) second consecutive state championship at the Oklahoma Class 6A school. Delaware State @ Temple • As a head coach on the prep level, Blankenship compiled a 205-68 record, Bethune-Cookman @ UCF including an average of 10 wins per season for his last 20 years, appeared in the Miami (Ohio) @ Cincinnati state championship game eight times and won three state titles. North Carolina @ East Carolina • He spent 14 years as the head football coach and athletic director at Union High UNLV @ Houston School, where he registered a record of 154-26 . his teams qualified for the Middle Tennessee @ Memphis state playoffs 14 times, reached the quarterfinals 10 times and made the Texas A&M @ SMU semifinals in nine seasons . Blankenship’s teams made the state title game Tulane @ Duke seven times . he guided his Union team to Oklahoma Class 6A state titles in LAST WEEK (Sept. 6) 2002, 2004 and 2005. UConn 19, Stony Brook 16 North Texas 43, SMU 6 A SILVER LINING . #4 Oklahoma 52, Tulsa 7 • Despite Tulsa's home loss against the #4-ranked Oklahoma Sooners last week, Maryland 24, South Florida 17 there were some positives on the stat sheet. Georgia Tech 38, Tulane 21 • Tulsa came out of halftime, trailing 31-0, and took the second-half kickoff 75 yards in South Carolina 33, East Carolina 23 11 plays, scoring on a two-yard pass from Dane Evans to Keevan Lucas. Houston 47, Grambling 0 • It was the fourth TD that the QB and WR hooked up for in the first two weeks. #11 UCLA 42, Memphis 35 • After being held to 95 first-half yards, Tulsa gained 152 yards in the third quarter, Navy 31, Temple 24 out-gaining the Sooners 152 to 139 in the third period, • Tulsa out-gained Oklahoma in the second half 233 to 184 yards. LUCAS NAMED THE AMERICAN PLAYER OF THE WEEK AFTER SEASON OPENER . • Tulsa sophomore receiver Keevan Lucas was named the American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week after the first week of the 2014 season. • Lucas was also named the College Football Performance Awards National Receiver of the Week. • Lucas caught 13 passes for 233 yards and 3 TDs in the opening win over Tulane. • It is the second-best receiving performance for a single-game in American Athletic Conference history. Tulsa Football Game Notes 2014 • page 3 . RELEASE INFORMATION BIG PLAYS, TURNOVERS CRIPPLE HURRICANE √ Releases are emailed to the media and AGAINST TOP TEAM . also available via the official athletic website • On six of Oklahoma's seven touchdowns, the big play or a Tulsa turnover hurt at www.tulsahurricane.com.