3 Bold Predictions for No. 25 Houston Against Georgia Southern
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The No. 25 Houston Cougars are set to wrap up their non-conference schedule on the road against Georgia Southern on Saturday.
Houston will stay on the road and travel out to Statesboro, Georgia to take on the Eagles. The Cougars have a great chance to bounce-back and put up a strong performance after last week's tough loss to Texas Tech.
Here are three bold predictions for Houston in this Week 4 matchup.
Houston Piles Up 200 Yards Rushing Again
The Cougars accomplished this in the first two games of the year, and the running game did quite well against Texas Tech too. Houston didn't stick with the running backs enough in the second half. Against Georgia Southern, Houston's offense went through the ground game and picked up another 200 total yards.
Senior running back Makhi Hughes puts up 100 yards rushing, while redshirt junior Re'Shaun Sanford II also chips in with some big runs. There's no reason for Houston to go all-in through the air in this game.
Houston's offense still puts up a good amount of points and is powered by the backs. Junior DJ Butler also makes something happen.
Defense Gets Multiple Turnovers
Houston did this in Week 2 against Southern and should be able to do it again against a non-Power Four team. Georgia Southern likes to air the ball out with seventh-year quarterback Max Johnson. That will be an opportunity for Houston to snag some interceptions with its highly rated cornerbacks.
Redshirt junior corner Will James gets multiple interceptions, while junior defensive back Javion White also gets one. The Cougars allowed a lot of big plays last week on defense, but will limit those this week.
Receiving Core Has Balance
The Cougars have at least three different pass catchers with at least four catches. Senior wide receiver Amare Thomas has been the primary target, but he gets help from a number of others. Senior wideout Trent Walker has his best game as a Cougar and even pulls in a touchdown.
Redshirt sophomore Koby Young also pulls in some intermediate catches. Redshirt junior tight end Patrick Overmyer has been extremely reliable for senior quarterback Conner Weigman during the course of the early season and he makes an impact as well.
Weigman is efficient and effective in his passes, and gets an opportunity to take a back seat with the rushing game working well.
It will be interesting to see how Houston looks.
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Maanav Gupta is a staff writer for Houston Cougars on SI. He graduated from the University of Houston in the summer of 2025 with his bachelor’s in journalism and a minor in Spanish. Gupta spent three years at the student newspaper, The Daily Cougar, and also covered the 2025 Final Four and National Championship as Houston beat writer for College Basketball Review. He also has his own YouTube channel, Maanav’s Sports Talk, where he has interviewed professional athletes and broadcasters like Jim Nantz, Jose Altuve, J.J. Watt, Rich Eisen, and Alperen Sengun. Gupta was also a contributor to the Houston athletic program as a student. You can find Gupta on X, Instagram and TikTok @MGSportsTalk.