Why the Houston Cougars Can Rewrite Last Season's Bye Week History
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During Coach Willie Fritz's weekly press conference, the head coach touched on a variety of things surrounding the bye week for the Houston Cougars. After multiple injuries during Houston's win over the Colorado Buffaloes, Fritz placed emphasis on the Cougars getting healthy during their early bye week.
Fritz addressed injuries, shared thoughts on Oregon State, and explained how the Cougars have handled their time off. When asked if his view of the bye week has changed over the course of his career, he noted that his philosophy has remained consistent.
It's safe to say that Houston struggled last season when playing games after each bye week. Not only did the Cougars go 0-2, but they were outscored 69-17 across both games. Now, with a completely different look and feel, the Cougars are looking to rewrite the narrative of their bye week struggles with a win on Friday.
Cougars Look to Flip Post-Bye Script
When talking about the coach's mentality around the bye week, Fritz originally answered by referring to Houston's recent track record of games after the bye week last season. He added to the comment by saying that sometimes it's about the talent and effort you have on the field, and not the gameplan the coaching staff has put in place.
"No, you know last year we had two bad performances after bye weeks," Fritz said. "I talked to a few people, same stuff that we've done before, I think sometimes it's the Jimmys and the Joes, not the X's and the O's."
The head coach also shared how his staff approaches the bye week for Houston’s players. The head coach also shared how his staff approaches the bye week for Houston’s players, balancing the need for rest with the importance of staying sharp. While Oregon State may be 0-4, the Cougars are looking to stack up wins before entering the heat of conference play.
"I think you want to be careful about doing too much," Fritz said. "You want to be able to give the guys some time off to kind of relax, preseason camp, the first few weeks we're going, we're getting after it. I think it was good to have the time off, but we also wanted to really make sure that we put in the work during that bye week."
Coach Fritz's statements on Houston's preparation during the team's bye week show both a clear focus on what lies ahead for the program and the necessary recovery for the players after a rough win.
With a 3-0 start and a chance to begin the season 4-0 for the first time since 2016, the Cougars have an opportunity to build momentum before heading back into one of their tougher stretches of Big 12 play. If the team can exercise their bye week demons from last year, the Cougars may raise the bar for what’s possible this season.
