When Willie Fritz accepted the job at Houston back in December of 2023, he certainly had his work cut out for him. The sixty-plus-year-old head coach took over a program that was coming off their first season in the Big 12, where it went 4-8 under Dana Holgorsen.
Prior to his arrival, Houston struggled to find consistent success. Tom Herman brought some life to the program in his short two-year stint, and even Dana Holgorsen had one good year before things fell off the rails.
No disrespect to the AAC, but it’s not the Big 12. It’s simply a different level of football week in and week out, and Houston found that out the hard way when they joined in 2023.
We all knew that 2024 was going to be tough for Houston and Willie Fritz. Between a new staff and a roster overhaul, it was never going to be a smooth transition. In fact, it rarely is in the world of college football.
In his first season, the Cougars went 4-8 overall and 3-6 in Big 12 play. While there was a stretch where they won three out of four in October with wins over TCU, Kansas State, and Utah, things quickly fizzled out in the final three games.
The problem for Houston in year one under Willie Fritz was the offense. The Cougars finished with the worst scoring offense in the Big 12 at just 14 points per game. What made them competitive was their defense, which actually ended up being a top-four defense in the conference.
While the record certainly wasn’t great, you could see flashes of what Willie Fritz was trying to build. A tough, physical team that isn’t afraid to play anyone. But as most of us in Big 12 country know, it’s that defense can only take you so far in this conference. And to his credit, Willie Fritz knew that as well.
It was clear after year one that he needed to find a quarterback, and he did just that with Connor Weigman. Before coming to Houston, Weigman was a five-star prospect by nearly every scouting service out there.
Weigman went 9-4 as Texas A&M’s starting quarterback and had 2,694 passing yards with 19 touchdowns and seven interceptions. A foot injury ended his 2023 season after a promising start. He also opened the 2024 season as the team’s starter under new coach Mike Elko, but a sprain in his right throwing shoulder kept him out for over a month before the Aggies went in a different direction at quarterback.
Now with a fresh start in Houston, Weigman has made the most of his opportunity. In seven games, he has thrown 11 touchdown passes to just two interceptions, which is tied for the second fewest interceptions thrown by a starting quarterback in the Big 12. But what makes Connor even more special is that he has a knack for the endzone with his legs, with six rushing touchdowns to add on.
When you look at the numbers for Houston this season, their defense is not too far off from where it was a year ago. That’s pretty remarkable considering the fact that they lost their defensive coordinator to Texas Tech (Shiel Wood), and it’s just Austin Armstrong’s first year there.
But what makes this team so much better is that they have the offense to go along with it. No longer does the defense have to get a stop on every drive just to have a chance to win the game. Last season, Houston scored over 30 points just one time, and we are seven games in this year, and they have done it four times already.
By no means is this Houston team a finished product, but the fact that they are sitting at 6-1 right now and 3-1 in Big 12 play is incredible. When I look at the rest of their schedule, it’s not crazy to say that they can be an eight, nine, or maybe even a ten-win team.
If you are looking for a team that nobody is talking about nationally or even in Big 12 circles, for that matter, then look no further than this Houston team. This weekend, they are going up against the defending Big 12 champions, Arizona State, on the road. Nobody is going to give them a chance, which is exactly what Houston wants.
This weekend is not only an opportunity for this team to catapult itself into the Big 12 title conversation, but it could also be a program-changing win that many have been waiting years for. Whether it’s this weekend or not, it doesn’t change the fact that people should pay attention to what Willie Fritz is building in the Bayou City.
