Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images
By Hunt Palmer
LSU and Houston will play Saturday night in the Kinder’s Texas Bowl.
The Cougars posted a 9-3 record in the Big 12 this season, Fritz’s second at the helm. Like he did at Tulane, Fritz has instilled a physical mindset into his football team. They run the football a ton and want to win the line of scrimmage.
There won’t be much that stands out statistically about this bunch, positive or negative. It’s just a solid club.
LSU is working to get its roster in order with opt outs and coaching staff shakeups. At least LSU will dress out a quarterback this time around.
Here’s a look at Houston by the numbers.
A reminder that the smaller the ranking, the better the statistic.
Green: Top 25
Red: Bottom 50
OFFENSE
Scoring Offense: 63rd, 28.3 points per game
Total Offense: 66th, 390.9 yards per game
Yards per play: 78th, 5.6 yards per play
Rushing Offense: 48th, 175.7 yards per game
Yards per carry: 81st, 4.2 yards per carry
Rushing Attempts per game: 21st, 41.9 attempts per game
Rushing Touchdowns: 87th, 16
Passing Offense: 84th, 215.3 yards per game
Passing Attempts: 98th, 28.3 attempts per game
Completion Percentage: 57th, 62.9%
Passing Touchdowns: 45th, 22
Interceptions Thrown: 71st, 10
First Downs: 51st, 21.3 per game
Third Down Conversions: 61st, 40.6%
Fourth Down Conversion attempts: 35th, 29
Red Zone Touchdown Percentage: 52nd, 63.4%
20-plus yard plays: 86th, 50
10-plus yard runs: 64th, 58
20-plus yard passes: 83rd, 35
Sacks Allowed: 38th, 1.6 per game
Tackles For Loss Allowed: 52nd, 5.2 per game
Time of Possession: 25th, 31:46 per game
There’s just not much remarkable about this Houston offense. Willie Fritz wants to run the ball, and the Cougars run it a lot. They don’t run it extremely well. Conner Weigman is a limited quarterback. He’s not going to consistently beat anyone through the air.
Though no real strengths are evident, there aren’t massive glaring weaknesses, either. The profile very much fits a middling Big 12 team in a mediocre bowl game.
DEFENSE
Scoring Defense: 41st, 21.8 points per game
Total Defense: 46th, 348.2 yards per game
Yards per Play Allowed: 39th, 5.2 yards per play
Run Defense: 44th, 133.3 yards per game
Yards per Carry Allowed: 40th, 3.7 yards per carry
Rushing Touchdowns Allowed: 48th, 16
Passing Defense: 59th, 214.8 yards per game
Completion Percentage Allowed: 44th, 60.2%
Yards per Passing Attempt Allowed: 48th, 6.8 yards per attempts
Interceptions: 37th, 12
Passing Touchdowns Allowed: 20th, 13
Sacks: 73rd, 2 per game
Tackles for Loss: 119th, 4.5 per game
Third Down Defense: 26th, 34.3%
Red Zone Touchdown Percentage Allowed: 9th, 44.7%
20-plus yard plays allowed: 58th, 49
10-plus yard runs allowed: 38th, 47
20-plus yard passes allowed: 89th, 40
This is a solid Big 12 defense. They’re not overly disruptive, but the metrics are pretty good across the board.
The strength has been situational. The Cougars have done a good job on third down and have been excellent in the red zone. That’s a place LSU’s offense has really, really struggled all season.
Like the offense, it’s just very average statistically. Not great, not awful.
That’s how you end up 9-3 in a weak league.
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