Houston Cougars Stock Watch After Week 3: Who's Up & Who's Down?
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The Houston Cougars could not ask for a better start to their 2025 season and the second year under head coach Willie Fritz. The Cougars have started the season off hot, currently undefeated at 3-0, which is Houston's first such start since the 2016 season.
Cementing the great start to the season is the Cougars' latest victory over the Colorado Buffaloes in their conference opener on Friday. With head coach Deion Sanders and his squad traveling into TDECU Stadium, Houston was able to protect their home field with their third straight convincing victory, this time a 36-20 final score over Colorado.
Some players are improving, and while others have taken a back seat, here's a look at a couple of Cougars and whose stocks are trending upwards or downwards as Houston prepares for its final non-conference matchup before entering the heart of Big 12 play. The Cougars will take on the Oregon State Beavers on Sep. 20 in Corvallis.
Trending Up
Stephon Johnson, WR
The start of the season had not been kind to wide receiver Stephon Johnson as the senior had only recorded a single catch for 74 yards through the Cougars first two games of the season. However, against the Buffaloes, Johnson found a connection with quarterback Conner Weigman.
On Friday's game, Johnson totaled five catches for 117 yards and had one rushing attempt that went for five yards. While the senior wide receiver did not find the end zone his 23.4 average yards per reception allowed for big chunk plays with the Cougars passing attack.
With his breakout performance of the season, it's no surprise for Johnson's stock to be on the rise and if the connection between him and Weigman can continue growing legs, it could allow for the Cougars offense to get even more dangerous.
Carlos Allen Jr., DT
The interior of Houston's defense line, for the most part, stifled Colorado's ability to run the ball effectively, as the Buffaloes did not eclipse 100 yards rushing as a team on 23 rushing attempts. With their leading rusher gaining 51 yards on just five carries and their quarterback finishing first with the most attempts, totaling 36 yards on 11 carries.
The Cougars' ability to stop the run was led largely in part by defensive tackle Carlos Allen Jr, as the third-year player finished the game with seven tackles and 1.5 tackles-for-loss.
The performance increases Allen's good start to the season, with the defensive tackle having 18 tackles and a tackle-for-loss through three games of the season.
Trending Down
Offensive Line Health
Not much went wrong for the Cougars during the big win on Friday night; however, one of the negative stains on the victory is that Houston's health on the offensive line took a big toll against the Buffaloes.
The Cougars' offensive line was already thin with tackle Dalton Merryman being out for the game. Houston's line suffered a pair of new injuries during the game, affecting an already hurt unit.
Both offensive linemen, David Ndukwe and McKenzie Agnello, suffered injuries against Colorado. And while the status of both linemen will more than likely be up in the air for next week, avoiding any long-term injury will be vital for the Cougars' offense.
