Tulsa World: Repair heartache, get back to work

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Repair heartache, get back to work

Tulsa coach Todd Graham cheers on his team after a touchdown in the first half of Saturday's 30-23 loss at Arkansas. MIKE SIMONS/Tulsa World

By ERIC BAILEY World Sports Writer
Published: 11/3/2008 2:12 AM
Last Modified: 11/3/2008 3:47 AM

The well-worn saying has been uttered throughout college football history. It's tough to win games on the road.

Tulsa's football coaches and players knew that before Saturday's 30-23 loss at Arkansas. Now the job is to fix things before a Nov. 15 visit to Houston in the season's biggest Conference USA game.

Todd Graham's teams have had to fight for road wins during his two-year tenure at Tulsa. The Hurricane is 7-4 playing on an opponent's home field. It is 10-1 at Chapman Stadium, and 1-0 at a neutral site.

TU has trailed at halftime in three of four road games (UAB, SMU and Arkansas) in 2008 with the only exception being a blowout win at North Texas.

What needs to happen? Tulsa must play a complete football game like it does in its home contests.

TU's defense deserves credit for the final three quarters it played against the Razorbacks. Arkansas only had two field goals against the unit after the opening 15 minutes.

But the Hogs poured 17 early points on TU on their first three possessions. Mix in a slow-to-start offense, and a foundation for a loss was set.

Graham wasn't pleased with the outcome, but admired the way his team scratched back to tie the game twice.

"We know we had some work to do in front of us," Graham said when asked about the 17-0 deficit. "Our guys battled back with tremendous character and gave themselves a chance to win this ball game."

The BCS Bowl hopes vanished in Fayetteville on Saturday. But Tulsa still has a lot to play for, including a Conference USA title and Liberty Bowl berth.

The winner of the Tulsa-Houston game will take a huge step toward representing the C-USA West Division in the championship game.

TU can't afford to take a quarter off against the Cougars. Houston has a high-scoring attack and, if Tulsa's offense and/or defense stumbles early, it could be a long evening. Lessons learned can sting sometimes. But Tulsa can't allow the Arkansas loss to linger or it could see all of its dreams vanish in a 15-day period.

Eric Bailey 581-8391
eric.bailey@tulsaworld.com By ERIC BAILEY World Sports Writer

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