Case Keenum

No. 23 Houston 44, at Tulane 16: Case Keenum's lowest passing total of the season was still pretty good, and more than enough to help the Cougars (5-1, 1-1) defeat the Green Wave (2-4, 0-3) in a Conference USA game. Keenum was 30 of 43 for 334 yards and two touchdowns. In other games involving Conference USA teams: Dwayne Harris returned a kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown and added two touchdown catches to help host East Carolina (4-3, 3-1) to a 49-13 win over Rice (0-7, 0-3)

What makes UCLA receiver Joseph Fauria special? "He's 6 feet 8, you can put the ball up for him," UCLA Coach Jim Mora said. The advantage seems clear. "I'm 6-7 and the coaches know it," Fauria said. OK, is he 6-8 or 6-7? From a Houston defensive back's vantage point Saturday, does it really matter? Fauria, a senior, has seven receptions this season, three for touchdowns. Two have come on four-yard passes. "He's a matchup problem down in there, where speed is not necessarily an issue, but body position and body control and height is," Mora said.

at No. 15 Houston 50, Southern Mississippi 43: Case Keenum threw for a career-high 559 yards and had five touchdowns, his last coming with 21 seconds left Saturday to lead the Cougars (7-1, 3-1) over the Golden Eagles (5-4, 3-2) in a Conference USA game. Keenum ended the tie with a 46-yard pass to Patrick Edwards. The Golden Eagles had a chance to tie it, but Martevious Young's heave from midfield was knocked down in the end zone as the final seconds ticked off the clock. Keenum's other touchdown passes went for 33, 55, 14 and 17 yards as Houston won its fourth straight game.

UCLA's game against Houston in 2011 was memorable for the Bruins. "It felt like a track meet," cornerback Sheldon Price said. "They got some guys who can run all day. " And seemed to that day. UCLA ran up 554 total yards … and lost, 38-34. The loss rested squarely on the shoulders of Bruins defenders, who seemed to view tackling as an option while giving up 469 yards. "It's crucial that if they catch the ball, we wrap them up," Price said. The Bruins face an almost entirely new cast this season.

In a way, Case Keenum's final home game at Houston ended appropriately. His final pass went for — what else? — a touchdown. The rest of the equation just didn't add up, not for a quarterback who has rewritten major-college football's record book and whose team was one victory away from its first Bowl Championship Series bowl appearance. That scoring pass, of 13 yards to Justin Johnson , came with three seconds left in Houston's 49-28 loss to Southern Mississippi in the Conference USA championship game.

at No. 11 Houston 37, Southern Methodist 7: Case Keenum set the Football Bowl Subdivision career record for completions, threw a touchdown pass and ran for another score as the Cougars stayed unbeaten. Keenum completed 30 of 45 passes for 318 yards, a modest day for the nation's leader in total offense and pass efficiency. He set the completions mark on his seventh throw, breaking the previous mark (1,403) set by Texas Tech's Graham Harrell (2005-08). The Cougars' sixth-year quarterback also joined Hawaii's Tim Chang as the only quarterbacks to reach 4,000 yards passing in three seasons, and he tied Chang's FBS record for career 300-yard passing games (36)

David Piland was at home watching on television as his University of Houston teammates played UCLA at the Rose Bowl two years ago. A true freshman, he was expected to redshirt that season, and learn in practice from watching record-setting Cougars quarterback Case Keenum. But just a few minutes after the game ended, Piland's cellphone started convulsing. "Coaches were texting me and calling, saying, 'We need you here tomorrow,' " Piland recalled in a phone interview Tuesday.

No. 13 Houston 46, at Tulsa 45: Matt Hogan kicked a 51-yard field goal as time expired to lift the Cougars (8-1, 4-1) over the Golden Hurricane (4-5, 2-3) in a Conference USA game. The field goal finished off another thrilling comeback led by quarterback Case Keenum. After getting sacked on a potential tying two-point conversion with 21 seconds left, Keenum got the Cougars into field goal range after an onside kick to add to his impressive Heisman resume. Keenum finished with 522 yards on 40-for-60 passing with three touchdown passes.

East Carolina 38, No. 18 Houston 32: Dominique Lindsay and Giavanni Ruffin each ran for two touchdowns and the defense hung in against a powerful offense to help the Pirates (9-4) beat the Cougars (10-3) in the Conference USA championship game at Greenville, N.C. Dwayne Harris also had a big day with 123 yards receiving and a 22-yard touchdown catch. Case Keenum had a big day for Houston, completing 56 of 75 passes for a title-game-record 527 yards and five touchdowns. James Cleveland had 19 catches for another game-record of 241 yards.

at Navy 41, Towson 13: Shun White rushed for a school-record 348 yards at Annapolis, Md., as the Midshipmen won in Coach Ken Niumatalolo's debut. White scored on runs of 33, 87 and 73 yards in breaking Eddie Meyers' record of 298 set in 1981 against Syracuse. Tulsa 45, at Alabama Birmingham 22: David Johnson passed for 332 yards and three touchdowns for the Golden Hurricane, which outscored UAB, 24-0, in the second half of a season-opening Conference USA matchup. at Marshall 35, Illinois State 10: Darius Marshall rushed for 115 yards and a touchdown and Darius Passmore caught touchdown passes of 88 and 13 yards for the Thundering Herd at Huntington, W.Va.

David Piland was at home watching on television as his University of Houston teammates played UCLA at the Rose Bowl two years ago. A true freshman, he was expected to redshirt that season, and learn in practice from watching record-setting Cougars quarterback Case Keenum. But just a few minutes after the game ended, Piland's cellphone started convulsing. "Coaches were texting me and calling, saying, 'We need you here tomorrow,' " Piland recalled in a phone interview Tuesday.

What UCLA faces this week is an aerial circus with a ringmaster the Bruins put in the spotlight two years ago. David Piland got off the Cougars' bench because quarterbacks Case Keenum and Cotton Turner were injured against UCLA on Sept. 18, 2010. Two weeks later, Piland, then a freshman, made his college debut against Mississippi State and completed 30 of 57 passes for 301 yards. After sitting out as a redshirt last season, Piland is back chucking the ball around. He completed 53 of 77 passes for 580 yards and four touchdowns in a 56-49 loss to Louisiana Tech on Saturday.

In a way, Case Keenum's final home game at Houston ended appropriately. His final pass went for — what else? — a touchdown. The rest of the equation just didn't add up, not for a quarterback who has rewritten major-college football's record book and whose team was one victory away from its first Bowl Championship Series bowl appearance. That scoring pass, of 13 yards to Justin Johnson , came with three seconds left in Houston's 49-28 loss to Southern Mississippi in the Conference USA championship game.

at No. 11 Houston 37, Southern Methodist 7: Case Keenum set the Football Bowl Subdivision career record for completions, threw a touchdown pass and ran for another score as the Cougars stayed unbeaten. Keenum completed 30 of 45 passes for 318 yards, a modest day for the nation's leader in total offense and pass efficiency. He set the completions mark on his seventh throw, breaking the previous mark (1,403) set by Texas Tech's Graham Harrell (2005-08). The Cougars' sixth-year quarterback also joined Hawaii's Tim Chang as the only quarterbacks to reach 4,000 yards passing in three seasons, and he tied Chang's FBS record for career 300-yard passing games (36)

Break out the chips and cold drinks, but let Chris Dufresne handle the remote. Each Friday, The Times' national college football writer handicaps what's worth watching, and skipping, on Saturday's menu of games: MORNING No. 17 Nebraska (8-2) at No. 20 Michigan (8-2) 9 a.m., ESPN Two legendary programs partnered in the recently formed Big Ten something-or-other division meet for only the seventh time. See, money-grubbing conference reconfiguration is also about meeting new friends.

At least DeWayne Walker will always have 13-9. That was his shining moment as UCLA's defensive coordinator in 2006, when the Bruins knocked USC out of the Bowl Championship Series title game by shutting down the Trojans at the Rose Bowl. Nowadays, highlights are few and far between. Walker is in his third season as head coach at New Mexico State, and it looked as if maybe he caught a break when Saturday's opponent, Georgia, was without its top four tailbacks. Unfortunately for Walker, the Bulldogs figured out a way to adjust: They let quarterback Aaron Murray pass.

at No. 2 Texas 64, Texas El Paso 7: Colt McCoy threw for 286 yards and three touchdowns for the Longhorns (4-0). UTEP is 1-3. at No. 16 Oklahoma State 56, Grambling State 6: Keith Toston ran for 84 yards and three touchdowns for the Cowboys (3-1). at No. 17 Houston 29, Texas Tech 28: Case Keenum's four-yard touchdown run with 49 seconds to play capped a 95-yard drive and won it for the Cougars (3-0). The Red Raiders are 2-2. at No. 20 Kansas 35, Southern Mississippi 28: Todd Reesing threw for 331 yards and three touchdowns for the Jayhawks (4-0)

What UCLA faces this week is an aerial circus with a ringmaster the Bruins put in the spotlight two years ago. David Piland got off the Cougars' bench because quarterbacks Case Keenum and Cotton Turner were injured against UCLA on Sept. 18, 2010. Two weeks later, Piland, then a freshman, made his college debut against Mississippi State and completed 30 of 57 passes for 301 yards. After sitting out as a redshirt last season, Piland is back chucking the ball around. He completed 53 of 77 passes for 580 yards and four touchdowns in a 56-49 loss to Louisiana Tech on Saturday.

The schools in this week's rankings are solid, but don't hold Rankman to any of the conference affiliations. By press time we could have one 120-team conference or, as the Louisiana State chancellor suggested, one league called "ESPN" and one called "Fox. " Oklahoma and Wisconsin losses last week discombobulated the top 10, and other trip-ups allowed fresh faces such as Penn State, Texas Tech, Georgia and Texas to bask in the glorious glow of a top-25 rankings system not used, endorsed, sanctioned or otherwise condoned by the AP, BCS, IRS, CIA or PETA.

On the off chance the telephone rings at Dietrich Riley's apartment on NFL draft day this spring, the UCLA safety has an answer ready: Andrew Luck. Stanford's Heisman Trophy contender would certainly be the first quarterback Riley would pick . . . unless it was Arizona's Nick Foles. "Yeah, Foles is just as good," Riley said. UCLA defensive players should be a great source for information on quarterbacks heading into the 2012 draft. The Bruins this season face three quarterbacks currently projected as first-round picks — Luck, Foles and USC's Matt Barkley.