TicketCity Bowl: Houston Will Be Final Nail in Penn State Football's Coffin

One of the most interesting games of the bowl season will be the TicketCity Bowl, when the Houston Cougars take on the Penn State Nittany Lions. The Penn State drama will continue, as Houston buries a Nittany Lions team that is inferior both on the field and off.

The Cougars boast a vaunted passing attack unlike any offense Penn State has ever seen. Meanwhile, Penn State's offense is downright anemic. That, combined with their current situation, will spell another Penn State disappointment.

Here's why the Cougars will make the TicketCity Bowl the final nail in Penn State's 2011 coffin.

Houston's Offense Is Ridiculous

Houston Cougars quarterback Case Keenum leads an explosive, consistent offensive attack. The Cougars average 443 passing yards per game and over 150 yards rushing per game. That's an average of nearly 600 yards of offense per game.

That's amazing production, no matter what the competition. The Penn State Nittany Lions haven't faced that kind of offense all year. The Penn State defense is giving up just 15 points per game, but that's against a relatively weak, non-conference schedule and the offensively anemic Big Ten conference.

Houston will score on this Penn State team, and it won't be that hard.

Penn State's Offense Isn't Good

The Penn State Nittany Lions are averaging just 19.8 points per game. That won't be good enough against the Houston Cougars, who must be outscored.

Penn State averages 165 yards on the ground which is pretty average, but the 195-yard passing average is extremely poor. They can't beat this Houston team that way.

Not to mention the fact that no offense can function when its quarterback gets into fistfights with its receivers.

Houston's Defense Is Better Than Advertised

This Houston Cougars defense is not as bad as it seems. Although they do give up 23 points per game, that stat is largely inflated based on teams scoring points in junk time and the defense having to play more snaps due to the fast-scoring offense.

For every point that the Cougars offense scores, the Cougars defense gives up just 0.45 points. That isn't bad considering the above points. This defense will do well against Penn State, especially considering that the Nittany Lions have had trouble scoring on everyone this year.

Houston Has Already Found a New Head Coach

The University of Houston has already named its new head coach, Tony Levine, who was interim head coach and former associate head coach under the departed Kevin Sumlin.

Levine was in charge of the special teams duties under Sumlin and coached the wide receivers and tight ends. His official hiring sends a message to the players: "Everything is fine."

Why? Players worry about what a new coach will change and how that will affect their success individually and as a team. Levine is a guy who has been there and knows their system. Those players don't have to worry about drastic system changes or needing to transfer because they no longer fit. Levine is the guy and knows Houston.

That will be a big comfort to the Cougars and will allow them to compete their hardest in the bowl.

Penn State Is Still Reeling

Anyone who thought this program could fire a couple people and then move on had another thing coming.

The Penn State Nittany Lions have their minds on everything but football, and who could blame them?

Their quarterback and wide receiver get into a physical altercation that causes the former to have a concussion, seizure and hospital visit. Their former head coach, who was considered a living legend, started declining healthwise immediately after he left. And they still have no idea who their head coach will be next season.

That last part is bad for the same reasons as to why Houston's hiring of Tony Levine is good. These players will worry about who is coming in and if they'll need to leave or change how they play.

Combine that with the rest of the scandalous situation and you have the worst environment any fan could want for their team. This team isn't focused and will lose to a Houston team looking to prove itself.