Houston Football's Biggest Strength Entering the 2026 Season

Houston's strength is exactly where you want a football team to have a strength heading into the 2026 season: the quarterback position.

There's a high-upside: a rapidly rebuilt offensive line in front of the QB, an elite receiving corps with Amare Thomas and Oregon State transfer Trent Walker to work, and a deep running back room with momentum from the spring, featuring DJ Butler, Makhi Hughes and Re'Shaun Sanford II, to tie it all together.

And that's not even taking the defense into account.

In other words, there is a ton of talent everywhere on the roster.

And yet, Conner Weigman and Keisean Henderson make up the Cougars' best QB duo since Heisman winner Andre Ware and David Klingler. There might not be another position that has as talented of a two-deep.

Weigman is the veteran who's seen more than a few things across his one season at UH and his three seasons at Texas A&M, two of them injury-stricken. In 2023, Weigman suffered a season-ending broken foot in September.

Weigman also suffered an AC joint sprain in 2024 that ultimately led to Marcel Reed taking over his starting job.

The Cypress native returned to the greater Houston metro in 2025 and gave the Coogs the kind of season everyone was waiting for all these years, amassing 25 passing touchdowns and 11 rushing touchdowns.

Even in the event of an injury to Weigman, however, Henderson could get some very valuable reps. Henderson, the highest-rated recruit to ever choose Houston, is clearly the future of the Cougars.

Any time he can see on the field is a positive learning experience for him and data-collecting for the coaching staff. Henderson had 3,880 yards and 45 touchdowns with only 6 interceptions during his senior season at Legacy School of Sport Sciences, which played a national schedule as a program unbound by the UIL.

He added 522 yards on the ground. Seeing if that translates to Power 4 play is valuable for Slade Nagle, Shawn Bell, and Co., regardless of the circumstances that would lead to it.

Houston's Offense Will Be a Wagon With Whoever is Running it

Phil Steele ranked the Cougars' QB room as the No. 23 in the country and No. 4 in the Big 12 in his 2026 College Football Preview. That may be underselling the talent in this room.

It's understandable to count Weigman out with all of the injuries he's suffered, but at full strength, both he and Henderson project to be the best QB options a Willie Fritz-coached Houston team has ever had.

Regardless of who's under center, there figures to be enough talent up front, particularly in the interior, and enough skill-position threats to give Weigman or Henderson the runway to elevate the preseason-ranked Coogs to Big 12-era highs.

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