Houston Cougars Led the Country in Less Than Ideal Statistic vs Texas Tech
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Before the season began, many headlines across the country focused on the noise that Texas Tech (5-0) was making in the transfer portal, specifically on defense. This past weekend, the Houston Cougars (4-1) offense came face-to-face with one of the most dominant defensive lines in the country.
With an offensive line that's lost some significant pieces this season, namely David Ndukwe, many on the Cougars' sideline knew that keeping the Red Raiders out of the backfield would be nearly an impossible task. But Coach Willie Fritz and the Cougars couldn't have imagined a worse performance from the offensive line as they had the highest pressure rate allowed across all FBS teams.
Houston QBs were pressured on 65.5% of their dropbacks vs. Texas Tech, the highest pressure rate allowed by an FBS team this weekend, per @PFF_College (min. 10 pass att.). TTU got pressure on 19 of UH's 29 dropbacks.
— Sam Khan Jr. (@skhanjr) October 5, 2025
Texas (58.1%) had the second-highest pressure rate allowed. pic.twitter.com/hJGUGxlYiC
Quarterbacks Conner Weigman and Zeon Chriss were pressured on over 65% of their 29 dropbacks. No matter how good Houston's skill players may be, an offensive line that can't slow down opposing defenses can cause games to get out of hand quickly.
Signs of Houston's Offensive Line Trending Downward?
Against Oregon State, there were signs of Houston's offensive line taking steps backward as they struggled to find a rhythm until late in the fourth quarter. Not only did the Cougars allow three sacks, but the normal rushing attack that Coog Nation was accustomed to simply didn't show up. It took a heroic effort from Weigman and the Houston receivers to send the game into overtime.
Those same struggles in producing offensively reappeared for Houston, this time against a much more talented defense. David Bailey had a major impact on the game as he totaled two sacks along with three tackles for a loss. With six against Houston quarterbacks on Saturday, the star linebacker now leads FBS with 31 pressures this season.
Most pressures, FBS EDGE defenders, 2025:
— Cam Mellor (@CamMellor) October 6, 2025
1) David Bailey, Texas Tech: 31
2) Rueben Bain Jr., Miami (FL): 30
3) Keyshawn James-Newby, New Mexico: 29
3) Harper Holloman, WKU: 29
5) Dylan Labarbera, Nevada: 28
6) Akheem Mesidor, Miami (FL): 27
7) J'Mond Tapp, Southern Miss: 25
7)… pic.twitter.com/Zr6J8rfbUQ
It's hard to judge if Houston's offense could have done anything major to disrupt the Red Raider defense. With the Cougars facing an extremely talented defense for the first time this year, one would expect there to be major adjustments for the entire offense. Even running back Dean Connors had high praise for the Texas Tech defense when he was asked if it felt different from weeks prior.
"Yeah, they're a great football team," Connors said. "We knew up until this point that they were going to be our biggest test, and kudos to them, they played really well."
Because of how lopsided the final score was, fans likely won't see a change in personnel in the trenches next week. It's very unlikely that Coach Fritz and the rest of his staff will have a knee-jerk reaction against a Texas Tech defense that's proven to be one of the best units in the country.
Luckily for Houston, there's still plenty of time to right the ship with over half the season remaining. While the offensive line performance does raise some concerns going forward, the Cougars get the chance to rebound quickly against the Oklahoma State Cowboys (1-4) this Saturday.
