News:David Piland (leg) will not start on Saturday against Tulane, The Houston Chronicle reports.
Analysis: Crawford Jones will make his second-consecutive start for the Cougars this weekend against Tulane, and may be worth a look in deeper leagues.
Houston's Piland (Concussion) Cleared to Start v. UTEP
News:David Piland was cleared to return from a concussion Tuesday afternoon and has been named starter for Houston Saturday against UTEP, the Carlsbad Current-Argus reports.
Analysis: Head coach Tony Levine originally listed David Piland as day-to-day after suffering a concussion in Oct. 18's loss to SMU, but by Thursday of this week, had announced Piland as his team's starter against the Miners.
Houston's Piland Suffers Vicious Hit, Concussion Against SMU
News:David Piland threw for 180 yards on 15-of-25 passing with no touchdowns and two interceptions, before leaving with a concussion, at SMU on Thursday. He also rushed for 18 yards on five carries.
Analysis:David Piland was having an off night, before he took a vicious blow to the head that resulted in a concussion that forced him from the game. As is, he has 10 touchdowns and nine interceptions on the season, which is indicative of his up-and-down season. We'll update his status in the coming days, but for now, expect Piland to miss this coming week's game against UTEP.
Houston's Piland Goes Over 300 Yards, Scores Three Times Against North Texas
News:David Piland threw for 321 yards on 31-of-41 passing with two touchdowns against North Texas on Saturday. He also rushed for 13 yards on two carries for a touchdown.
Analysis: Against North Texas, this is exactly the kind of game owners were expecting from David Piland. For the season he is now averaging 344.4 yards per game with nine touchdown passes and seven interceptions. Against UAB this coming Saturday, keep him active in all leagues.
Houston's Piland Bounces Back with 361 Passing Yards Against Rice
News:David Piland threw for 361 yards on 26-of-43 passing with two touchdowns and one interception at Rice on Saturday. He also rushed for 25 yards on three carries.
Analysis: After throwing five picks with no touchdowns at UCLA in his last game, David Piland was able to right the ship against one of the lesser pass defenses in the nation. Against North Texas this coming Saturday, expect another big game from Piland and the Houston passing game.
News:David Piland threw for 249 yards on 28-of-60 passing with no touchdowns and five interceptions at UCLA on Saturday. He also rushed for 71 yards on four carries with a touchdown.
Analysis: With starting RB Charles Sims not available, David Piland was asked to do it all and he simply could not. The five interceptions come on the heels of a performance against Louisiana Tech where he threw a NCAA record 77 passes without an interception. Before you drop Piland for a much more consistent passer, consider that in two weeks he faces a Rice defense that has given up the fourth most yards this season.
Houston's Piland Sets NCCA Record with 77 Pass Attempts and No Pick
News:David Piland set a NCCA single-game record with his 77 pass attempts without an interception on Saturday against Louisiana Tech, the Houston Chronicle reports.
Analysis: Those doubting David Piland's potential as a fantasy asset at QB may have to rethink things as the Houston offense was on fire Saturday night in their 56-49 loss to Louisiana Tech. It's safe to say, new offensive coordinator Travis Bush will help Piland reach his potential much more than former coordinator Mike Nesbitt, who resigned after the team's season opening loss to Texas State. Attempt to wrangle Piland away from any owner in your league who may be thinking this was a fluke performance from Piland.
Houston's Piland Throw for 580 Yards and Four Touchdowns
News:David Piland threw for 580 yards on 53-of-77 passing with four touchdowns and no interceptions against Louisiana Tech on Saturday.
Analysis: Now that's more like it. The Houston offense generated a whopping 693 total yards as David Piland and crew went back and forth all night with Louisiana Tech in what ended up being a barn-burner. Don't expect the good times to stop anytime next week as the Cougars take on UCLA, who just gave up 439 total yards to Nebraska. Perhaps a change at offensive coordinator was all the Houston offense needed to get going once again.
News:David Piland will remain the starting QB, the Houston Chronicle reports.
Analysis: The fact that the team even had to address this issue speaks to how poorly David Piland and the entire Houston offense played in their season opener against Texas State. Piland should be benched in all leagues, until he shows a better grasp of the offense.
News: Mike Nesbitt resigned as Houston's offensive coordinator, the Houston Chronicle reports. Assistant coach Travis Bush will replace him as playcaller.
Analysis: It's simply shocking how bad the Houston offense was against Texas State on Saturday, so someone had to go. At this point the whole Houston offense has a red flag until it proves itself on the field, but Bush presumably can't be any worse than Nesbitt, who took one of the nation's historically best offenses and turned it into a trainwreck Saturday.
News:David Piland threw for 211 yards on 17-of-44 passing with one touchdown and one interception in the season opener against Texas State.
Analysis: A terrible start to the season for David Piland and the Houston offense. This could be because of the off-season coaching changes, the RB and WR losses due to graduation, or perhaps it just wasn't the Cougars night. Whatever the cause, the effect was a disappointing game for fantasy owners. Don't expect things to get much easier as Houston takes on Louisiana Tech next week. Stay with Piland awhile longer, before considering a replacement; his ceiling in this offense is still high.
Houston's Piland Shows "Great Poise" in Team's First Scrimmage
News: In the team's first scrimmage on Tuesday night, David Piland "had great poise, great demeanor and made tremendous decisions," said head coach Tony Levine, the Houston Chronicle reports.
Analysis: While it's only the first scrimmage, it's nice to hear that David Piland is executing plays on a high level. Expect him to transition into the starting QB role well as he played in eight games in 2010, when Case Keenum was out for the season.
News:David Piland is slated to be the Cougars starting QB for the 2012 season.
Analysis: After playing his freshman year and then redshirting last season, David Piland will finally have the reins to the offense all to himself. As a freshman he appeared in eight games with 24 TDs, 14 Ints, a 58.3% completion rate, and 330.1 yards passing per game. Don't expect the Cougars offense to stop throwing just because Case Keenum has graduated.
News: Backup quarterback Cotton Turner threw a garbage time touchdown for Houston on Saturday.
Analysis: If anythimg were to happen to Case Keenum, Turner is the guy. But he is not the prospect for next year, that would be David Piland.
News: Houston head coach Kevin Sumlin has not named a back up quarterback to Case Keenum yet, meaning there is no clear winner in the Cotton Turner-David Piland derby.
Analysis: This is one of the most important backup quarterback battles in the country with major fantasy implications. Hopefully neither quarterback is needed in 2011, however it is entirely possible that coming back from injury Keenum is not 100%. Continue to check in for updates.
News: The battle is on for the title of Houston backup QB/quarterback of the future as Cotton Turner and David Piland both had shots to impress during Saturday's scrimmage.
Analysis: PIland currently has the upper hand as he led three scoring drives while Turner, fumbled a snap that was recovered by the defense and was intercepted at the goal line after his pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage. This is an enormous battle given the fact Case Keenum is coming back from a major injury. Keep the winner of this battle in the back of your minds.
News: At the Conference USA media day Sunday, Case Keenum stated he is ready to go full tilt in practice and only sees his knee as getting stronger and stronger with every practice.
Analysis: This is a huge sigh of relief for Keenum owners and he remains the number one quarterback to target in the draft even as early as number one overall. It is also smart strategy to grab his backup, David Piland, late in your draft in case of issues arising from his troublesome knee.
News: Piland was 28-for-47 for 467 yards, four touchdowns and an INT against USM on Saturday.
Analysis: A simply monstrous output for Piland, as he has shown a firm grasp of the spread offense. However, he could be in for a rough final game against Big 12 foe Texas Tech next week.
News: Piland was 22-of-36 for 291 yards, three touchdowns and five interceptions against Tulsa on Saturday.
Analysis: The INTs proved too much for the Cougars to overcome in this one. However, Piland has too many weapons in this spread offense to bench.
News: Piland was 27-of-44 for 334 yards, four touchdowns and two INTs against UCF on Friday.
Analysis: Piland has fit in extremely well since taking over for the ineffective Terrance Broadway, and should be a standout start for the remainder of the season.
News: Piland was 20-of-23 for 292 yards and five touchdowns in Saturday's 56-17 rout of Memphis.
Analysis: Piland has embraced the high-powered UH offense. Though he may not find as much success next week against UCF, he is simply too hot to benched at this time.
News: Piland was 19-of-32 for 233 yards and a score against SMU on Saturday.
Analysis: The ground game carried the Cougars in this one, but Piland makes for a standout start next week against Memphis.
News: Piland was 23-of-45 for 282 yards, three touchdowns and one INT against Rice on Saturday.
Analysis: The completion percentage wasn't great, but Piland showed he can sling the ball in the Houston spread offense.
News: Piland is expected to start against Rice in Week 7, ESPN reports.
Analysis: He wasn't great last week, but he still held his own against an SEC defense. We like him a good amount this week, but we won't call him a 'must-start' quite yet.
News: Piland got the nod over Terrance Broadway against Mississippi State on Saturday and completed 30-of-57 passes for 301 yards, two touchdowns and two INTs.
Analysis: Piland was forced to throw a ton as the Cougars fell behind early, though Houston's offense remains predicated on the pass. If Piland continues to get the nod moving forward, he could be worth a flier.
Houston's Piland Listed as Co-Starter at QB This Week
News: Piland is listed as a co-starter alongside Terrance Broadway on this week's depth chart, the Houston Chronicle reports.
Analysis: Broadway started the first game in the post-Case Keenum era, but head coach Kevin Sumlin will not commit to a starter for this week's game against Mississippi State until right before game time. Fantasy owners who own Broadway would be wise to grab Piland this week for insurance purposes.
