Case Keenum hadn’t thrown an NFL pass since Christmas Eve 2023, but Monday night looked a lot more like the old version of him than a quarterback who had spent the last three seasons mostly in a mentor’s role.
With Caleb Williams sidelined by a hamstring injury and Tyson Bagent out with a concussion after the Bears’ Week 2 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, the 38-year-old was pushed back into the lineup for a nationally televised Monday Night Football game. He responded with a 27-7 win over the undefeated Philadelphia Eagles, looking sharp from the start and never appearing out of rhythm.
Keenum finished 24 of 34 for 270 yards and two touchdowns, with no interceptions. A second-quarter drop by Rome Odunze kept him from throwing three touchdowns, but he still delivered a clean, controlled performance. Per ESPN Insights, he went a perfect 11-for-11 for 145 yards against the blitz, and he also added his first rushing touchdown since 2019 to help put the game away at Soldier Field.
That kind of night brought back more than just NFL memories. It also pulled people straight back to Houston, where Keenum built one of the most productive college careers ever seen. In 2011, he threw for 5,631 yards, 48 touchdowns and only five interceptions while leading the Cougars to a 13-1 record, a No. 18 final ranking, a TicketCity Bowl win over Penn State and a Conference USA Championship appearance.
That wasn’t even his biggest passing season as a Cougar. Two years earlier, he piled up 5,671 yards and 44 touchdowns, highlighted by Houston’s 45-35 road upset over No.
5 Oklahoma State. Across his college career, Keenum became the only quarterback in FBS history with three separate 5,000-yard passing seasons, and his 19,217 passing yards remain the all-time mark.
Even now, that total stands untouched. Dillon Gabriel is the only quarterback to get within 2,000 yards, and Keenum did it in just 57 games over five seasons.
What makes that run even more striking is that Keenum went undrafted after all of it. The 2012 quarterback class included Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, Ryan Tannehill, Brandon Weeden, Brock Osweiler, Russell Wilson, Nick Foles, Kirk Cousins, Ryan Lindley, B.J.
Coleman and Chandler Harnish. The only other quarterback from that group still around in 2026 is Cousins, who just led the Las Vegas Raiders to a 3-0 start.
Keenum has had his NFL moments before, most notably as the man who delivered the Minneapolis Miracle in the 2017 playoffs, when his 61-yard pass to Stefon Diggs on the final play stunned the Saints and sent Minnesota to its most recent NFC Championship Game appearance.
Still, Monday felt like a reminder that the old touch never really left. For fans in Houston and Chicago alike, Sept. 28 was the night Keenum stepped in, took over and made his presence felt all over again.
In Other News...
Houston Finally Has A Big 12 Opportunity Fans Can Feel
Houstons climb into the AP top 20 after beating Georgia Southern has given the program something it has been waiting on since joining the Big 12: a chance to play the role of a real league contender with the rankings to back it up. The comparison to the 2021 season is hard to miss, but this version feels different because the Cougars have paired strong playmakers with a roster that has, for the most part, backed up the buzz with results.
The next stretch will say a lot about how real this opportunity is, especially with No. 19 Oklahoma State waiting on the schedule. Houstons pass defense remains the clearest concern, and in a league this deep, one vulnerable spot can quickly turn a promising run into a stressful one. If the Cougars are going to keep this momentum rolling, they will have to prove the ranking is a sign of something sturdier than a hot start. [Read more 🡒]
Conner Weigman Is Turning Houstons Hot Start Into Something Bigger
Conner Weigmans debut stretch at Houston is already drawing national attention, and the senior quarterback picked up two weekly honors after powering the Cougars past Georgia Southern. He landed on the Manning Award Stars of the Week and the Davey OBrien Great Eight lists, recognition that comes on the heels of one of the most productive outings of his college career.
Weigman was efficient and explosive all at once, completing 17 of 22 passes for 239 yards and four touchdowns through the air while adding two more scores on the ground. For Houston, the bigger takeaway is what the hot start suggests about the ceiling of an offense that has quickly found a rhythm behind its new leader. [Read more 🡒]
UCFs Big 12 Road Suddenly Looks Tougher Than Fans Expected
Houston finished out its non-conference slate with a 42-28 win over Georgia Southern, and the payoff was more than just a clean exit from September. The Cougars moved up from No. 25 to No. 20 in the AP poll, a sign that the early momentum is starting to carry real weight as they turn fully toward league play.
For UCF, the Big 12 road now looks a little steeper than it did a week ago. Oklahoma States 41-24 win over West Virginia pushed the Cowboys into the Top 25, while Georgia State answered its loss to UCF by beating Northern Illinois 35-14 behind a strong showing from quarterback Taron Dickens. The early results around the conference are starting to sort contenders from hopefuls, and the Knights are about to find out how much margin they really have. [Read more 🡒]