How Much of a Threat Is Oklahoma State to Houston in 2026?
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Houston Cougars football will be taking on the Oklahoma State Cowboys at home in Week 7 in what could be an intriguing Big 12 contest. That game is set for Oct. 17 and will be their fourth conference game and fourth home game of the season at TDECU Stadium.
Houston is one of the favorites to potentially reach the Big 12 title game in Arlington this year after a huge turnaround season in 2025 with 10 wins, including a Texas Bowl victory. Meanwhile, Oklahoma State is coming off one of the worst seasons in program history with a 1-11 overall record and no wins over an FBS school.
The Cowboys look to have significantly improved over one offseason with a complete reset and a bunch of former North Texas Mean Green players and staff transferring over. While Oklahoma State isn't considered among the top of the conference, the Cowboys are expected to be a competitive team in the Big 12.
Can Oklahoma State pose a threat to Houston at home in the middle of the year? The answer is the Cowboys possibly could have the ability to pull off the upset and make it close. Here's why.
Houston Needs To Be At Their Best
Oklahoma State had significant success during the transfer portal and ended up ranked No. 7 in the nation. There was a lot of turnover, with 55 incoming transfers and 66 outgoing. OSU also had 19 high school recruits.
The transfer portal was where the Cowboys greatly improved, especially on offense. The first big step to that was hiring former North Texas head coach Eric Morris last November. Morris' offenses during his coaching career have been ranked top-five in passing in the country nine times while having 10 top-10 rankings. He was a national semifinalist for the George Munger Coach of the Year.
The big signing was at quarterback with five-star transfer Drew Mestemaker, who was the nation's leading passer and one of the best quarterbacks in the country last season for North Texas. He follows his head coach to Stillwater alongside two four-star transfers in star wide receiver Wyatt Young and running back Caleb Hawkins.
The Oklahoma State offense has the potential to be explosive and a game-changer. Houston will have to keep that talented group in check in order to get the win. If the Cowboys offense starts to get going, UH could get into some trouble and even be threatened to lose if the Cougars defense doesn't get some stops.
Given this will be a big transition to Power Four football for the 15 former North Texas players and the inexperience of the team as a whole, Houston will be favored. However, the Cougars will have to play well on defense and put up a good amount of points offensively to get this victory.
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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.