Two high-scoring teams looking to rebound from a loss to a highly ranked contender square off when Cincinnati visits No. 17 Houston for a Big 12 matchup Saturday afternoon.
Both teams are coming off losses to No. 3 Utah. Houston (6-2, 3-2) is returning from a bye, losing the previous week to the Utes, 21-13, in Salt Lake City while Cincinnati (5-3, 2-3) fell in a 42-6 halftime hole at home last week and dropped a 49-25 decision.
Houston boasts the 12th-best total offense in the country (470.5 yards per game) and averages 36.0 points per game. Conner Weigman leads the charge, ranking eighth nationally with 2,053 passing yards and 20 touchdowns against just two interceptions. The Cougars lead all of college football with a remarkable 60% third-down conversion rate.
Defensively, Houston relies heavily on a run defense that is allowing just 100.5 yards per game while the pass defense can be leaky, yielding 257.4 yards per contest.
The Cougars will be tested by Cincinnati’s bruising ground game, which enters ranked seventh nationally at 229.4 yards per game.
However, the game may be decided by how well the Bearcats’ struggling defense handles Weigman and Houston’s third-down efficiency. If Cincinnati suffers another slow start like it did against Utah, Houston’s ball-control offense could dominate the time of possession.
Cincinnati ranks 18th nationally in total offense (455.4). J.C. French IV has thrown 13 touchdown passes and Cole Tabb has been a breakout star with 752 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns.
Tabb leads the nation in yards per carry (9.52) while posting four 100-yard games. He averaged 140.7 yards over his last three games against Utah, Texas Tech and West Virginia.
Cincinnati also capitalizes in the red zone, converting a Big 12-leading 81.3% of its trips into touchdowns.
“It’s one of the things about the Big 12; everybody’s pretty good. There’s a lot of good teams in this league. You don’t come to play; you’re going to get beat,” Cougars coach Willie Fritz said. “One of our slogans is 1-0 and our guys will never catch me looking ahead or looking back behind.”
Bearcats coach Scott Satterfield expressed a similar sentiment.
“I feel like each game is a new season for every team. For us next week, you turn the page,” he said. “Everything is all about Houston (now), you know? And so you learn from the things that you’ve done in the past, but, man, you’ve got to focus everything you can on Houston to try to put together a plan for our guys to execute.”
The major concern for Cincinnati is its defense. The Bearcats allow 442.5 yards per game (132nd in FBS) while giving up 29.3 points per contest. Opponents convert 43.9% of third downs against Cincinnati, a vulnerability that Houston’s high-efficiency offense will look to exploit.
The Bearcats are playing a Top 25 team for a third straight week, beating then-No. 8 Texas Tech, 37-24, on Oct. 24 before falling to then-No. 6 Utah last week.