Following their 17-14 victory over Utah on a last-second field goal Saturday night, a rock concert erupted in the Houston Cougars’ locker room.
Houston football coach Willie Fritz was lifted into the air by his team, resembling a crowd-surfing rock star—though perhaps an aging one.
At 64 years old, Fritz showcased remarkable athleticism, contributing an incredible amount of energy to Houston’s program.
After a disappointing 4-8 season that led to the firing of Dana Holgorsen, Houston brought in Fritz to turn the program around. Fritz knows how to win. He went 23-4 the past two seasons at Tulane and has won 210 games in his college career. Averaging just 14.1 points per game – the worst mark in Division 1-A college football – the Cougars aren’t exactly playing pretty football. But they’re playing hard, clean and starting to make big plays in big moments. On Saturday it was junior defensive back A.J.
Haulcy who came up with the biggest play, intercepting a pass from backup Utah quarterback Brandon Rose at Houston’s 46-yard line with 1:55 left in the game. The Cougars effectively killed the clock from there, setting up kicker Jack Martin for a game-winning 43-yard field goal on the final play of the game. Houston won the turnover battle 2-1, won time of possession (31:02 to 28:58) and only committed three penalties. In fact, Houston has committed just 12 penalties over its last three game, matching the fewest in the nation in that span. Not coincidentally, they have gone 2-1.
WE LOVE HOMECOMING CROWD SURFING 🌊 pic.twitter.com/HzbI2oFx3Z
— Houston Football (@UHCougarFB) October 27, 2024
“There was a whole bunch of ups and downs in the game,” said Fritz after the game. “There was a couple of opportunities for us to score on fourth and goal from the one and we didn’t get it done. A lot of guys would cave in during that time, but we found a way to win.” Expect more crowd surfing in Fritz’s future.
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