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Teams / Conference USA / Sam Houston
Index · this season
52
▲ Above its 5-year level +5▲ Up 11 this season
Career47since 1936
Peak582024
Last 547seasons
#123 nationally · 1-4 (0-1 conf)
Résumé #124
Schedule so far #77
Margin ±5 pts (tightens with games)
Why 52? →

Sam Houston Bearkats

Conference USA · Huntsville, TX · Elliott T. Bowers Stadium · Head coach Phil Longo
Rival
Building rivalry
2-3 all time (5 meetings since 2014)
Jacksonville State leads
Last: lost 29-27 (2025) · Jacksonville State has won 3 straight
Wants it back
program traits are earned from history
No recognized national titles since 1936. Counted: AP poll champion, a coaches-poll champion, or the BCS / playoff title-game winner; a split year counts for both.0national titles
Heisman Trophy winners0Heisman
Seasons finishing in the AP top 10 since 19360AP top-10
Consensus All-Americans since 19360All-Americans
NFL draft picks since 19670NFL picks
Winning percentage since 193635.9%win pct
History since 1936 · football since 1924. Every season →
Chemistry
Chem 57: typical57
Chem 56: typical
56Foundation
Chem 60: typical
60Gel
gel counts 40% so far
▲ Above its norm +9Trending up
early · #73 of 138
HC year2
Ret. starters18%
QB yrs w/ OC2
View chemistry →
Team chemistryearly · #73 of 138 FBS teams
Chem 56: typicalFoundation56+Chem 60: typicalGel60=Chem 57: typicalChem57Gel counts 40% so far (it grows as games are played, up to half)
Foundationwhat the program has built · moves over seasons
Foundation56Staff stability — Coach and coordinator tenure, staff who came along, assistant turnoverStaff stability52Roster continuity — Returning starters and the lineup's experienceRoster continuity30Unit cohesion — QB & coordinator, QB & receivers, offensive line, defense: how long each unit has played togetherUnit cohesion62Administration — Athletic director continuity and coach-AD alignmentAdministration99Investment — Commitment to football: its share of the department's spending and whether that is growing, plus spending and recruitingInvestment57Fan base — How passionate and loyal the fan base is: how often it sells out, and whether it sells out games that don't matterFan basesoon
ContinuityClimate
Continuity · who has played and coached togetherlive

Who has played and coached together, and for how long, ranked against every FBS team at the same point of the season.

▸Staff stability
Coach and coordinator tenure, staff who came along, assistant turnover
52
Staff cohesion52
HC year 2 · OC year 2 · DC year 2
▸Roster continuity
Returning starters and the lineup's experience
30
Returning core37
18% of last season's starters · FBS median 32%
Experience24
7 career starts per starter · FBS median 12
▸Unit cohesion
QB & coordinator, QB & receivers, offensive line, defense: how long each unit has played together
62
QB & coordinator80
2 seasons together · same as 20% of FBS teams
QB & receivers79
6.2 games started together on average · FBS median 3.9
Line cohesion6
2.2 games per linemen pair · FBS median 5.2
Defensive cohesion66
4.7 games per defensive pair · FBS median 4.5
Climate · around the programlive

The administration, money and fans around the team: athletic director continuity, willingness to invest, and crowds.

▸Administration
Athletic director continuity and coach-AD alignment
99
AD continuity99
Bobby Williams · year 11 (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)
▸Investment
Commitment to football: its share of the department's spending and whether that is growing, plus spending and recruiting
57
Football's share64
30% of department spending goes to football
Investment trend90
+95% over three years
Football investment16
$9.7M on football (2024-25 federal report)
Recruiting spend2
$0.15M men's recruiting
Department resources16
$32M athletic department revenue
▸Fan base
How passionate and loyal the fan base is: how often it sells out, and whether it sells out games that don't matter
soon
Coming: measured from press conferences and interviews.

Finances: U.S. Department of Education athletics disclosures, as reported by each school. Athletic directors: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Attendance: reported crowds vs stadium capacity.

Gelhow it is working right now · moves week to week
Gel60Playing above its parts — Results vs what its preseason projection expected, game by gamePlaying above its parts61Settled & sharp — A settled starting lineup and clean execution (penalties, turnovers) vs its own normalSettled & sharp65Alignment — Coaches and players telling the same story; the staff on one pageAlignmentsoonResilience — Confidence, and how the team sounds after adversityResiliencesoonFan & media mood — Expectations met or missed this season (preseason rank vs now), stronger for fan bases that react hard; fan and media sentiment joins laterFan & media mood58Coach security — The hard-facts hot seat, inverted: results vs expectation, recent seasons vs the program's norm, stakes, a new ADCoach security51
InternalOn-field fitExternal
Internal · how the program talkscoming

How the team talks in press conferences and interviews, each program against its own normal, so a naturally terse coach isn't read as upset. Being built program by program, Big Ten first.

▸Alignment
Coaches and players telling the same story; the staff on one page
soon
Coming: measured from press conferences and interviews.
▸Resilience
Confidence, and how the team sounds after adversity
soon
Coming: measured from press conferences and interviews.

Readings are team-level; we don't publish psychological readings of individual players.

On-field fit · how it is playing togetherlive

How the team is playing together this season: beating or missing its preseason expectation, a settled lineup, clean execution.

▸Playing above its parts
Results vs what its preseason projection expected, game by game
61
This season61
-0.1 points a game vs its preseason projection (4 games)
▸Settled & sharp
A settled starting lineup and clean execution (penalties, turnovers) vs its own normal
65
This season65
89% of starters kept game to game
External · pressure from outsidelive

Pressure from outside the building: the hard-facts hot seat now; this season's fan and media mood as it is measured.

▸Fan & media mood
Expectations met or missed this season (preseason rank vs now), stronger for fan bases that react hard; fan and media sentiment joins later
58
This season58
outside the AP poll: projected #130 preseason -> #123 in our Index now · results 1-4 (-6, recent games count more)
▸Coach security
The hard-facts hot seat, inverted: results vs expectation, recent seasons vs the program's norm, stakes, a new AD
51
This season51
Phil Longo, year 2 · 20% wins so far · -0.1 pts a game vs preseason expectation · last two seasons -8% vs the program's norm

Dashed gold ring = typical (62). 20-50 is the warning zone; under 10 is a collapse. Spokes with no data yet are dashed and left out until they fill in. Chem blends the two halves, then places the blend among this season's teams.

Trend · Foundationeach program year runs Feb 1 to the title game
'2352'2462'2529'262023 wk 2 vs Air Force: 47 · L2023 wk 4 vs Houston: 49 · L2023 wk 5 vs Jacksonville State: 51 · L2023 wk 6 vs Liberty: 52 · L2023 wk 7 vs New Mexico State: 54 · L2023 wk 8 vs Florida International: 54 · L2023 wk 9 vs UTEP: 54 · L2023 wk 10 vs Kennesaw State: 53 · W2023 wk 11 vs Louisiana Tech: 53 · W2023 wk 12 vs Western Kentucky: 52 · L2023 wk 13 vs Middle Tennessee: 52 · W2024 wk 2 vs UCF: 56 · L2024 wk 3 vs Hawai'i: 57 · W2024 wk 4 vs New Mexico State: 63 · W2024 wk 5 vs Texas State: 63 · W2024 wk 6 vs UTEP: 63 · W2024 wk 8 vs Western Kentucky: 62 · L2024 wk 9 vs Florida International: 63 · W2024 wk 10 vs Louisiana Tech: 61 · W2024 wk 12 vs Kennesaw State: 65 · W2024 wk 13 vs Jacksonville State: 63 · L2024 wk 14 vs Liberty: 64 · W2024 wk 1 vs Georgia Southern: 62 · W2025 wk 1 vs UNLV: 40 · L2025 wk 2 vs Hawai'i: 42 · L2025 wk 4 vs Texas: 29 · L2025 wk 6 vs New Mexico State: 43 · L2025 wk 7 vs Jacksonville State: 44 · L2025 wk 8 vs UTEP: 43 · L2025 wk 10 vs Louisiana Tech: 39 · L2025 wk 11 vs Oregon State: 39 · W2025 wk 12 vs Delaware: 24 · W2025 wk 13 vs Middle Tennessee: 26 · L2025 wk 14 vs Florida International: 29 · L2026 wk 2 vs Tulsa: 56 · L2026 wk 3 vs Nicholls: 58 · W2026 wk 4 vs Texas Tech: 57 · L2026 wk 6 vs Liberty: 58 · L2026 wk 7 vs Western Kentucky: 56 · next gametypical 62

Every game since 2016, one continuous line; thin rules separate seasons and the chip is where each season finished. Navy dot = win, red = loss. Big drops usually mean a new staff, a new quarterback or a rebuilt line.

Trend · Gelthis season, after each game
typical 62wk 1 · on-field 64 · fan mood 63631wk 2 vs Tulsa · L · on-field 67 · fan mood 55632wk 3 vs Nicholls · W · on-field 67 · fan mood 70683wk 4 vs Texas Tech · L · on-field 65 · fan mood 71674wk 6 vs Liberty · L · on-field 64 · fan mood 64646

How the team is working right now, rebuilt after each game from only the games so far: on-field fit (results vs preseason expectation, lineup settling, execution) and that week's fan & media mood. Coach security is part of today's Gel number but isn't rebuilt week by week yet. Navy frame = win, red = loss.

Continuity facts
Head coach
Year 2
at this school
Offensive coordinator
Year 2
at this school
Defensive coordinator
Year 2
at this school
HC & OC together
2 seasons
working together
QB with his OC
2 seasons
same play-caller
QB & receivers
6.3 games
started together, average
Offensive line pairs
2.2 games
started together, average
Returning starters
18%
from last season
Starter experience
7 starts
career average
Internal facts
Pressers read
soon
this season, coaches and players
Coach tone
soon
vs his own normal
"We" vs "I"
soon
share of team language
Owning mistakes
soon
vs pointing outward
Same story
soon
coaches and players agree
After losses
soon
how fast tone recovers
Leaders named
soon
players teammates point to
Newcomers
soon
transfers talked about as part of it
Openness
soon
forthcoming vs guarded
Measured from press conferences and interviews, program by program.
Climate facts
Athletic director
Bobby Williams
year 11
Football spending
$9.7M
2024-25 federal report
Spending trend
+95%
over three years
Department revenue
$32M
all sports
Recruiting spend
$0.15M
men's teams
Home crowds
—
of capacity
Staff turnover
—
on-field staff new this season
Fan mood
soon
fans and local media
Coach & AD
soon
on the same page
Finances: U.S. Department of Education athletics disclosures. Athletic directors: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
Offense · games started togetherlatest lineup · 11 starters
Locke
Parker
Reed
O'Neill
Burns
Whisner
Chenault
Joseph
Spann
Nix
Williams
QBLandyn Locke81877315551
RBJerrian Parker Jr.11111111111
WRChris Reed8111810315551
WRGrady O'Neill71887314441
WRTim Burns Jr.7110711214441
TEMax Whisner31332313331
OLJosiah Chenault11111111111
OLMyles Joseph51544315551
OLGraceson Spann51544315551
OLDenell Nix Jr.51544315551
OLTr'e Williams11111111111

Each square: games the two players have started together at this school (darker = more). Gray diagonal: the player's own starts here.

Defense · games started togetherlatest lineup · 11 starters
Frazier
Alexander-Felton
Jackson
Henderson
Ford
Bates
Bailey
Arnold
Atkins
Adams
Magee
DLDylan Frazier1257593106553
DLJosh Alexander-Felton55555355553
DLDarien Jackson751057376553
DLBrody Henderson55555355553
LBDean Ford957510396553
LBBrian Bates Jr.33333333333
DBTyler Bailey1057593106553
DBJace Arnold65656367553
DBIshmel Atkins55555355553
DBRailyn Adams55555355553
DBCaesar Magee33333333333

Each square: games the two players have started together at this school (darker = more). Gray diagonal: the player's own starts here.

Chemistry is Scorebook's own rating of how well a program fits together, on the same all-time 0-99 scale as our other ratings (compared with every FBS team since 2016; 62 is typical, 20-50 signals something is wrong, and single digits are reserved for true collapses; each season is compared with its own era). This early version blends continuity (who has played and coached together, and for how long; it counts most) with the climate around the program; how the program talks joins as it is measured. Within continuity, quarterback-centered pairings count most because they held up when we tested them against results. How our ratings work →