Preseason Accolades Already Beginning to Pour In For Houston Cougars Stars
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The Houston Cougars will return to the hardwood in just a matter of a few months, and for many, the Cougars will be widely considered one of the perennial national championship contenders for the 2025-26 season.
For Houston, the expectations should come as no surprise, as Kelvin Sampson's squad finished last season one victory short of its first national championship after a 35-5 season and made its second Final Four appearance in the matter of five years. The Cougars are fortunate to have three key returners two of whom recently earned national recognition, headed into the upcoming season.
As junior forward Joseph Tugler and senior guard Emanuel Sharp were selected to Chris Dortch's Blue Ribbon College Yearbook Preseason All-American teams, Tugler earned a spot on the third team while Sharp earned his recognition on the fourth team.
𝑷𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝑨𝒍𝒍-𝑨𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒏𝒔@joseph_tugler & @emanuelsharp_ receive recognition from Chris Dortch's Blue Ribbon Yearbook@UHouston at #⃣3⃣ in Preseason Top 25 & picked as @Big12Conference favorite
— Houston Men's Hoops 🏀 🐾 (@UHCougarMBK) September 16, 2025
🔗 – https://t.co/BeEIi5abvf#ForTheCity x #GoCoogs pic.twitter.com/jE9jlb0SbR
Taking a Look at Tugler and Sharp's Last Season
Both of the Cougars' representatives on the preseason All-American teams were paramount to their run to the national championship game a season ago. Tugler played in all 40 contests for the Cougars, averaging 5.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks per game, which was second in the Big 12, en route to earning the Lefty Driesell Award, which recognizes the nation's top defensive players.
As for Sharp, he was the offensive spark plug for Houston, averaging 12.6 points per game on the way to being named 2024-25 All-Big 12 Honorable Mention. And elevated his play in the postseason, averaging 20.7 points, four rebounds, and three three-pointers made per game through the Big 12 tournament, and was named the NCAA Tournament Midwest Regional Most Outstanding Player.
What else has Blue Ribbon College Yearbook said about the Cougars
Not only did Dortch's Blue Ribbon College Yearbook name four different preseason All-American teams, but it also gave its own Top-25 preseason rankings and the preseason favorites for each conference, with the Cougars ranked highly in both areas.
As for their ranking, Blue Ribbon's Preseason Top 25 has the Cougars ranked as the No. 3 team in the country, ranked behind defending national champions the Florida Gators, who topped the list, and the Purdue Boilermakers, who were ranked at No. 2. In another preseason Top 25 list the top three is still the same, but completely reordered.
And for their chances in the Big 12, the Cougars are deemed the team to beat as Dortch has Houston picked as the Big 12 favorite. Following closely behind are the Texas Tech Red Raiders, followed by BYU, Iowa State, and Kansas, all of which are teams the Cougars will face once conference play gets off and running.
