Tech hosts Cougars for Hall of Fame weekend
Game Details
Where: Jones AT&T Stadium, Lubbock, Texas
When: 2:30 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 30
Watch it on: FS2
All-time series: Houston leads, 17-13
What to know: Houston
Head Coach: Dana Holgorsen
2023 record: 2-2
Conference standings: 11th (Big 12)
Texas Tech is not in the spot it thought it would be after four weeks with a 1-3 record. After a disappointing loss at West Virginia to open Big 12 play, the Red Raiders return to Lubbock where they will get another crack at a conference win against Houston Saturday. This is the first matchup between Tech and the Cougars as members of the Big 12, though the pair have played each other four of the last six seasons.
The two sides squaring off Saturday will be monumental for numerous reasons. Tech plans to honor its winningest coach in program history, Mike Leach, by inducting him into the program’s Hall of Honor. Leach’s coaching tree is expansive and filled with several names who are making their own impacts across college football. One of his own proteges Dana Holgorsen is the man tasked with leading Houston into battle. Holgorsen is 5-4 against Tech in his head coaching career, but has lost both encounters against the Red Raiders during his tenure at Houston.
Holgorsen is joined by quarterback Donovan Smith, another former Tech player who went searching for a fresh start with the Cougars. Houston sits at 2-2 on the season. After a tough 17-14 win in the season opener against UTSA, the Cougars lost back-to-back games. The first came in embarrassing fashion to Rice, a game that Houston pushed to 2OT before ultimately falling. The Cougars were also on the losing end of their first game ever in the Big 12, a 36-13 trouncing at the hands of TCU. A tuneup against Sam Houston State leads the Cougars into Big 12 play.
ONES TO WATCH: HOUSTON
Houston, as mentioned before, is led by former Red Raider Donovan Smith at quarterback. Though Smith assumed the role left behind by Clayton Tune, Holgorsen’s team has a Nathaniel “Tank” Dell sized-hole in the offense that has yet to be filled. Matthew Golden has been touted as the successor to Dell, and he has four touchdown receptions this season. Houston native and freshman running back Parker Jenkins has emerged as a viable option out of the backfield. Jenkins carried the rock 20 times for 105 yards and three touchdowns in the Cougars’ win over Sam Houston State.
The Houston defense is headlined by its ability to force takeaways. Malik Fleming, a 5-foot-8 defensive back, is tied for second in the conference for interceptions with three. The Cougars are tied for 13th in the NCAA with nine total turnovers forced. The bulk of defensive playmakers for Houston are upfront, the most notable being Nelson Ceaser. A 6-foot-3 defensive end, Ceaser is also in tie for second place in the Big 12 with 3.5 sacks to his name.
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