Posted by: Pete Roussel on February 12, 2013

The University of Houston broke ground on their brand new stadium this week.

Athletic director Mack Rhoades stated, "We really feel that when this stadium is completed, it will be one of the nicest facilities in the country. It will be second to none. It will be a great showcase for recruiting prospective student-athletes. It will be a great place for our fans, taking advantage of that unbelievable downtown skyline. It will have a huge impact."

Head coach Tony Levine said, "It's something I've heard about since I got here on Janauary 3rd of 2008, but now it's becoming a reality. It's great for our program, great for the school and our community."

The new stadium will open for the start of the 2014 season with a capacity of at least 40,000 seats. The bowled stadium will have an opening on the northwest side to frame the downtown Houston skyline.

Since the end of the 2012 season, Levine has revamped his coaching staff. Considering the number of changes, it's a credit to Levine for bringing in the 3rd highest ranked recruiting class of non-BCS programs in the country. 247Sports.com only ranked Marshall and Boise State with better recruiting classes.

Houston, however, will join the Big East moving forward. The 2013 schedule non-conference schedule includes Southern (LA), Rice, at UT-San Antonio, and BYU.

Big East home games include Cincy, Memphis, SMU, and South Florida.
Big East road games include UCF, Louisville, Rutgers, and Temple.

As far as the staff, former Houston Texans defensive backs coach David Gibbs joined the staff as defensive coordinator. Former Oklahoma State inside receivers coach Doug Meacham is the new offensive coordinator / quarterbacks coach.

MTSU assistant Glen Elarbee and former South Florida assistant Vernon Hargreaves also joined the staff.

Here's how the new staff shapes up:
Doug Meacham: offensive coordinator / quarterbacks
Travis Bush: co-offensive coordinator / running backs / asst. head coach
Brandon Middleton: outside receivers
Jamie Christian: inside receivers / TE's / special teams coordiantor
Glen Elarbee: offensive line
David Gibbs: defensive coordinator
Vernon Hargreaves: linebackers
Ricky Logo: defensive line
Zac Spavital: defensive backs / recruiting coordinator

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