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Tony Levine was just starting his first press conference as Houston's interim coach when the emotions took hold.
Levine, 39, will lead the Cougars (12-1) in the TicketCity Bowl against Penn State (9-3) in Dallas on Jan. 2, after Kevin Sumlin left Houston on Saturday to become the coach at Texas A&M.
Levine nearly broke down in tears after he was introduced by athletic director Mack Rhoades and started answering questions. A former assistant at Louisville and with the NFL's Carolina Panthers, Levine acknowledged that he's always wanted to become a head coach.
Now he gets his chance, helping a program take its first steps through a challenging transition.
''The word `emotion' for me is tough,'' Levine said, before pausing to hold back tears. ''It seems like we just got here.''
Levine worked with Sumlin in all four of his seasons in Houston. The Cougars went 35-17 under Sumlin and routinely ranked as one of the nation's highest scoring teams.
Houston won its first 12 games and was in line for a Bowl Championship Series berth this season until losing at home to Southern Mississippi in the Conference USA championship game.
It was still, by any measure, the greatest season in school history.
Case Keenum set several Football Bowl Subdivision career records, the offense ranked as the nation's best and the Cougars ascended into the Top-10 of the BCS until the late loss. The program's success created momentum for the school's move into the Big East Conference and plans for a new football stadium.
Rhoades says he's got plenty to sell to candidates as he begins his ''national'' search for Sumlin's successor.
''We're not perfect,'' Rhoades said, ''but we've got a lot of assets to offer.''
Rhoades will meet with Sumlin's assistants in ''the coming days'' to discuss their futures. He says Levine has given his commitment to coach the team through the bowl game.
Levine wasn't shy about saying he'd like to be a full-time head coach, though he said Saturday's press conference was not ''the time or place'' to lobby for the Houston job.
''To spend a whole lot of time talking about that right now is not my focus,'' he said.
Sumlin pulled up to the athletics/alumni center about noon Saturday, and would not answer questions. He told his team that he was leaving in the auditorium, and got a standing ovation.
''I can't remember the last time I got choked up,'' Levine said. ''He (Sumlin) got emotional. You know, it's hard. It's been four years. He sat in most of those kids' homes, and told them that Houston was a great place to play football, and a place to get a great education.
''When they gave him that ovation,'' Levine said, ''that was really a big deal to him.''
Houston hired Sumlin as its first black head coach in December 2007, and Sumlin vowed to use what he learned from former mentor Bob Stoops to build up the Cougars' program.
Keenum was already here when Sumlin arrived, a diamond-in-the-rough recruit from Abilene lured by previous coach Art Briles. His accuracy made him an instant fit for Sumlin's spread offense, and Keenum led the nation in total offense (403 yards per game) and ranked second in yards passing (386 per game).
Rhoades became athletic director in June 2009 and immediately launched efforts to raise funds for a new football stadium and renovations to run-down Hofheinz Pavilion.
The program's trajectory hit a snag in 2010, when Keenum sustained a season-ending knee injury in the third game. The season collapsed, and the school desperately petitioned the NCAA to get Keenum one more season.
Sumlin called Keenum personally to tell him that the NCAA had granted the request and the Cougars instantly became a favorite to win Conference USA in 2011.
The Cougars seemed poised to crash the BCS, rolling through their schedule with a video-game offense and one of the nation's most improved defenses.
Momentum for both Sumlin and the program stalled in the Cougars' 49-28 loss to Southern Miss in the Conference USA championship, a loss that cost Houston its first undefeated season and a chance to play in the BCS.
Afterward, both Sumlin and Rhoades shot down a media report that he would be hired as the next coach at Texas A&M. Rhoades promised to do everything in his power to retain Sumlin, whose contract ran through the 2015 season.
The rumor turned out to be true, and Rhoades said Sumlin seemed to have his mind made up when they talked on Saturday.
''Kevin understood clearly what we could do for him financially, and what we were prepared to do for him, financially,'' Rhoades said. ''There was never any uncertainty in terms of that.''
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AP Sports Writer Kristie Rieken contributed.
