University of Houston
The University of Houston football program dates to 1946 when Houston joined the Lone Star Conference under the leadership of former TCU football player Jewell Wallace. In their first intercollegiate sport conference, the team lost 13-7 to Southwestern Louisiana and ended their first season 4-6.
The most significant realignment of the Coogs squad was when the Southwest Conference dwindled and split. Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Baylor all joined the Big 12 in the fall of 1996.
Twenty-six years later the Coogs finished their 2022 season 8-5 under the direction of Dana Holgorsen in his 5th year with Houston. Much like BYU, 2022 was supposed to be a great exit year. With a loaded roster, veteran quarterback Nathan Tune, and many seasoned veterans, they thought this was the perfect recipe for their grand exit of the American Athletic Conference. It was not.
The team struggled on both sides of the ball. Being a 2nd half team makes it difficult to win games against competitive opponents. An inconsistent defense and too many penalties resulted in an 8-5 record.
Coach Holgorsen expressed his excitement for a fresh start and getting back to his roots with the Big 12 Conference.
“This is a special deal,” Holgorsen said. “Been a part of the Big 12 Conference for 17 years and been a part of this for seven years. The last four years have been a little different for me, being in the American Conference, and it really makes you appreciate a conference like the Big 12 by now being back. The University of Houston has been looking forward to this day for a long, long time.”
Last season the Coogs played two non-conference games against Big 12’s Texas Tech and Kansas. They lost 33-30 to Tech and 48-30 to Kansas. Holgorsen said that despite their record last year, everyone is starting with a fresh slate, as far as new additional schools go.
“Well, every year is different.,” he said. “Forty-two spots on our roster this year are new, so every year is different, every team is different.”
He added that he’s had the time to reflect on the two losses to Big 12 schools. He said, looking back, that he was a little harsh on the team’s performances.
“I think we probably made a little bit too big of a deal playing Kansas after losing to Texas Tech,” he said. “The way we lost to Texas Tech was just a hard way to lose, and we had another opportunity to play a Big 12 quality school. The University of Kansas, who was playing lights out at the time, was as good as anybody in the country I would argue when we played them.”
The program knows that this is a deep conference to compete in but are ready to take on the challenge.
