Houston didn’t just survive Saturday night’s test against Oklahoma State. The Cougars embraced the chaos and came out with one of their biggest wins of the season, a 35-32 Big 12 escape at TDECU Stadium that kept them rolling behind Conner Weigman.
Weigman was once again the headline act. The Houston quarterback went 24 of 33 for 343 yards and five touchdowns, following up last week’s four-touchdown performance in a road win over Kansas State with another huge night in front of the home crowd.
The Cougars looked in control for long stretches. They took a 14-3 lead into halftime, then pushed the margin to 28-17 late in the third quarter. Oklahoma State, though, kept finding answers and turned the fourth quarter into a sprint.
Drew Mestemaker sparked the Cowboys’ comeback when he hit Caleb Hawkins for a 66-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter, then Oklahoma State cashed in on the two-point conversion to cut it to 28-25. Houston responded the way good teams do in tight spots. On the next possession, Weigman unloaded a 48-yard touchdown to Koby Young, stretching the lead back to 35-25 and giving the Cougars the cushion they needed.
The Cowboys still weren’t done. Mestemaker connected with Justin Bowick on an eight-yard touchdown with 4:59 left, pulling Oklahoma State within 35-32. But Houston shut the door from there, grinding through its final possession and finishing the game with Weigman picking up a first down to help seal it.
Mestemaker was sharp even in defeat, throwing for 365 yards and three touchdowns. Oklahoma State piled up 499 total yards, but Houston was just a little cleaner and a little more explosive, finishing with 505 yards of its own.
The win moved Houston to 6-1 overall and 3-1 in Big 12 play. More importantly, it gave Willie Fritz’s team its second straight impressive conference victory and put the Cougars firmly in the championship race.
Houston heads to Salt Lake City next week to face Utah. Oklahoma State, now 2-1 in league play, returns home to host Colorado in Week 8.
In Other News...
Houston Just Got The Big 12 Boost It Desperately Needed
Week 7 gave the Big 12 the kind of jolt Houston could use, and the Cougars did their part in a tense finish at Oklahoma State. While BYU stunned No. 2 Notre Dame, Texas Tech rolled Arizona State and Kansas State kept its long run against Kansas going, Houston stayed right in the mix with a road win that mattered for both the standings and the league's larger reputation.
Conner Weigman was at the center of it, steering the offense in a game that never really let Houston get comfortable. The Cougars built enough separation to take the lead into the closing stretch, then had to survive a late push from the Cowboys to leave Stillwater with the result intact, the sort of conference win that can travel with a team when the games start tightening up in November. [Read more 🡒]
Houston Lands A Rare Spotlight In A Massive Big 12 Test
ESPN College GameDay is sticking with the Big 12 spotlight and heading to Salt Lake City for Houstons Week 8 matchup against Utah, a sign of how much national attention this conference has drawn in recent weeks. The show will be coming off its Week 7 stop in Provo for BYUs game against Notre Dame, giving the Big 12 back-to-back showcase moments on one of college footballs biggest stages.
For Houston, it is another reminder that the Cougars are part of a league race with real College Football Playoff weight behind it. The Big 12 has spent this season collecting undefeated teams and statement wins, and Houstons place in the conversation has only added to the intrigue as the Cougars head into a game that should carry major conference consequences. [Read more 🡒]
Houston Just Made The Kind Of Big 12 Statement Fans Craved
Conner Weigman helped steer Houston through another tense Big 12 night, with the quarterback leading multiple scoring drives and the defense coming up with enough stops to keep Oklahoma State at arms length. It was the kind of back-and-forth game the Cougars have been searching for, one that showed they can take a punch and still find a way to respond when the pressure rises.
The atmosphere matched the moment at TDECU Stadium, where 42,544 fans turned out for one of the biggest crowds in building history. For a program trying to keep building momentum in its new league, a win like this carries more weight than just one result, even if the larger story of where it fits in the conference race is still very much unfolding. [Read more 🡒]