APPLEWHITE OUT AT U OF H

The University of Houston has fired football coach Major Applewhite after two seasons.

The school announced the move Sunday, a little more than a week after the Cougars were trounced in a 70-14 loss to Army in the Armed Forces Bowl.

Houston (8-5) lost four of its last five games after starting 7-1 and earning a ranking in the AP Top 25 for one week in late October.

On Dec. 22, the injury-plagued Cougars suffered their most-lopsided loss in their 27 bowl games, and their biggest loss overall since a 66-10 loss at UCLA during the 1997 regular season.

Applewhite went 15-11 in two-plus seasons at the helm, succeeding Tom Herman, who was 22-4 at Houston before taking the head coaching job at Texas.  Houston will owe Applewhite a $1.95 million buyout.