Conner Weigman’s arrival at Houston already gave the Cougars a jolt in 2025. A fully healthy second year in the same system could take things to another level in 2026.
That’s the big picture as Houston opens fall camp, with Willie Fritz seeing a quarterback who looks stronger and sharper than he did a year ago. Fritz said Weigman is getting more on the ball and driving it farther downfield, and he pointed to the continuity around him as a major advantage.
"I see a little bit more zip on the ball, a little bit more distance when he throws it," Fritz told the media. "I think it is the first time since high school he has been in the same system."
That kind of stability has been hard to come by for Weigman. His time at Texas A&M was interrupted by injuries, starting with a fractured foot against Auburn in 2023 that ended his season. In 2024, an AC joint sprain cost him three games and eventually the starting job.
He found a much better rhythm after transferring to Houston in 2025. Weigman threw for 2,705 yards and 25 touchdowns in what became the best season of his career. A concussion against Texas Tech kept him out for the second half, but he did not miss a game that season.
Now he’s back for 2026 with a full offseason behind him, and for the first time in his college career, he has the same head coach and offensive coordinator in consecutive seasons. Fritz and Slade Nagle both return, giving Weigman the kind of continuity that quarterbacks usually need to settle in and play fast.
That matters even more because year one was all about learning the offense. Year two is where the game can start to slow down.
Nagle’s impact was obvious last season. According to the University of Houston Athletics, he helped lift the Cougars from 132nd in scoring offense to 55th, while the passing offense climbed from 126th to 81st. And that came with Weigman still getting comfortable in the system.
Houston enters 2026 ranked 24th in the Coaches' poll, with Weigman on the Maxwell Award Watch List and Nagle back for another run. If Weigman stays healthy, the Cougars have every reason to believe their ceiling is higher than it was a year ago.
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For Houston, the appeal is pretty clear: Weaver brings a veteran presence from a rival program and arrives with a defined path to playing time after Texas no longer had scholarship spots available for him to return. It is the kind of roster move that fits Sampsons approach, adding a player who already understands the league and should be able to plug into a program that values toughness, experience and continuity. [Read more 🡒]
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Much of that optimism starts with the personnel around him. Brandon Mack II, Will James and Khalil Laufau have all earned preseason recognition or watch list attention, giving Houston a core that brings both credibility and expectations into the fall. The bigger question now is whether Armstrong can turn that foundation into another step forward, especially with opponents having a full offseason to study what worked so well a year ago. [Read more 🡒]