Houston athletic director Eddie Nuñez isn’t hiding his frustration with the Cougars’ latest kickoff time.
No. 20 Houston will host UCF at 11 a.m. CT on Saturday at TDECU Stadium, despite the school working with the Big 12 a year in advance in hopes of securing a night game to help accommodate Houston’s Hall of Honor event on Friday night.
Nuñez told the Houston Chronicle that the school will continue working with the conference and television partners to make its concerns known.
“It’s unfortunate,” Nuñez said to the Houston Chronicle. “I just want to make sure that our fans know that we will continue to work with the conference office and our television partners to get them to understand that, for us, it’s important to not have every game be a day game.”
Nuñez also pointed to Houston’s success on the field, arguing that the Cougars have earned an opportunity to play in a more favorable home window.
“Our team has earned it,” Nuñez said. “They are a top 20 program and they should have the opportunity to build for our fans to have night games, not just continual day games as we’ve seen here.”
The frustration is understandable considering Houston has played just one Saturday night conference home game since 2024.
Saturday’s matchup will also feature two 3-1 teams. Houston climbed to No. 20 in the latest AP Poll following a 42-28 road win over Georgia Southern, while UCF improved to 3-1 with a 21-13 victory over TCU. The Big 12 lists the UCF-Houston kickoff for 11 a.m. CT, with the game airing on ESPN2.
Houston’s first two home games this season kicked off at 11 a.m. against Oregon State and 6 p.m. against Southern. After two consecutive road games, the Cougars return home Saturday only to draw another early kickoff.
For a Houston program trying to build momentum in the Big 12, Nuñez clearly believes getting more Saturday nights at TDECU Stadium needs to be part of the equation.
