The 2006 Conference USA Football Championship game featured Houston and Southern Miss battling for the league title and the two squads are favored once again for a title shot in 2007, according to the league's 12 head coaches. The Golden Eagles were picked to win the East Division crown, garnering 69 of a possible 72 points. The Cougars were picked to win the West, earning 63 points, edging 2005 champion Tulsa by one point.Southern Miss was picked to finish second in the East Division in last year's poll, but behind freshman running back Damion Fletcher, the Golden Eagles finished the year 6-2 in the league and advanced to the second annual C-USA Football Championship game. USM fell 34-20 to Houston, but rolled to a 28-7 win over Ohio in the GMAC Bowl. The bowl win was the team's third straight and Southern Miss closed out its 13th straight winning season with a 9-5 record, the schools fourth nine-win season since 1997.
Houston won the 2006 C-USA Championship game and faced South Carolina in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. Despite losing a 44-36 shootout, the Cougars finished the season 10-4, the most wins since 1990 when the team went 10-1. The league title was the first for UH since winning inaugural C-USA Championship in 1996. Senior running back Anthony Alridge returns for the Cougars after shattering the conference's yards per carry average of 7.78 in 2006. The Texas native rushed 95 times for 959 yards, good for a 10.1 average.
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