- Head coach: Willie Fritz (first season)
- 2023 record: 4-8
- PFF power ranking: 89th
- Chance to win the Big 12: 2%
- Strength of schedule: 16th
- Projected win total: 5.3
- FanDuel win total: 3.5
- 2024 recruiting rank (On3): No. 62 nationally, No. 15 in the Big 12
Just like the other three schools that joined the Big 12 last season (UCF, BYU and Cincinnati), Houston experienced some growing pains after moving to the Power Five level.
The Cougars finished 2023 just 4-8 after a 20-7 combined record in the previous two years. Head coach Dana Holgorsen was fired after five years leading the program, and Tulane’s Willie Fritz was brought in to take over. Fritz did a masterful job of turning around the Green Wave, as they went 23-5 over the past couple of seasons. That was the program’s best two-year stretch since the 1930s. He’ll try to do the same at Houston and has a high-upside quarterback to help him in Donovan Smith. Fritz has his work cut out for him defensively, though, as the Cougars lost many key pieces from what was already one of the worst defenses in college football.
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Biggest Strength: Passing game has potential
Quarterback Donovan Smith has many fans in the NFL draft community thanks to his fantastic physical tools. Houston lost two of its top three receivers to the transfer portal, but it did add Michigan State tight end Maliq Carr to help make up for the departures. He led all Power Five tight ends last year with a 90.6 PFF receiving grade.
Biggest Weakness: Questions everywhere defensively
The Cougars’ defense was the fifth worst in the Power Five and the 10th worst in college football by EPA per play last season. To make matters worse, Houston’s four highest-graded defenders are also now gone.
2023 Team Overview
Offense |
||||
| EPA per play | Yards per play | Successful play rate | Explosive run play rate | Explosive pass play rate |
| -0.046 | 5.7 | 34.7% | 19.0% | 14.1% |
| 82nd | 74th | 73rd | 19th | 71st |
Defense |
||||
| EPA allowed per play | Yards allowed per play | Successful play rate allowed | Explosive run rate allowed | Explosive pass rate allowed |
| 0.114 | 6.0 | 38.4 | 13.6% | 19.6% |
| 125th | 97th | 121st | 39th | 134th |
Three Notable Transfer Portal Additions
- TE Maliq Carr (Michigan State): 81.9 PFF grade
- S Hershey McLaurin (West Virginia): 74.2 PFF grade
- EDGE Keith Cooper Jr. (Tulane): 72.8 PFF grade
Three Notable Transfer Portal Losses
- WR Samuel Brown (Miami FL): 72.9 PFF grade
- DI Jamaree Caldwell (Oregon): 76.8 PFF grade
- CB Isaiah Hamilton (Ole Miss): 71.6 PFF grade
Quarterback Spotlight: Donovan Smith
2023 Grade: 77.2
Key Stat: 7.0-yard average depth of target on non-play action passes (eighth lowest among quarterbacks with 300 dropbacks)
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