STATESBORO, Ga. – From more than 60,000 screaming fans to a more intimate gathering of 25,000.
From a high-stakes Top 25 showdown to a rare road trip to face a Group of Six opponent.
No. 25 Houston (2-1) will look to rebound from its loss to Texas Tech when the Cougars face Georgia Southern (1-2) on Saturday at Allen E. Paulson Stadium.
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“We have to move on,” UH coach Willie Fritz said after the Cougars’ 28-26 loss to then-No. 13 Texas Tech, which wasn’t decided until a two-point conversion fell inches short with 49 seconds left.
Fritz said the Cougars must “turn the page” as they play their final non-conference game before a stretch of eight Big 12 games over the final nine weeks of the regular season.
The game is part of a home-and-home series originally announced in 2016 – when UH was still a member of the American Athletic Conference. The Cougars are the first Power Four program to ever visit Georgia Southern.
“Introducing a Top 25 team and Power Four team to Paulson Stadium for the first time in history makes it a special game,” Georgia Southern coach Clay Helton said.
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There are plenty of connections between the two programs.
Fritz was Georgia Southern’s head coach for two seasons from 2014-15, helping the Eagles make the transition from Division I-AA to FBS. In his first season, Fritz led the Eagles to a 9-3 record – narrowly losing to North Carolina State and Georgia Tech – and the Sun Belt title. Georgia Southern became just the third team in history to win a conference championship in its first year of FBS membership, joining Nevada (Big West in 1992) and Marshall (Mid-American Conference in 1997).
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Fritz, in his third season at UH, said he has “plenty of good memories” from his two seasons at Georgia Southern, but this weekend’s visit is a “work trip.”
“Here in 10 or 15 years, I’ll retire and go back and watch a homecoming game,” Fritz said. “But this is a business trip.”
Meanwhile, there’s a UH tie on the other sideline. Helton played quarterback under his father, Kim, for two seasons in the early 1990s and later joined his staff as an assistant coach. Kim Helton, who led the Cougars to the Conference USA title in 1996, is expected to be at Saturday’s game.
“Houston is a special place,” Clay Helton said.
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There’s also a connection between the two starting quarterbacks. Georgia Southern’s Max Johnson, who is in his seventh college season, was the starter at Texas A&M in 2022 when he suffered a hand injury and was replaced by Conner Weigman, a true freshman who was one of the nation’s top quarterback prospects. A year later, Johnson moved back into the starter’s role after Weigman suffered a season-ending foot injury.
Fritz said the Big 12 opener against Texas Tech was a “good test” and the Cougars “learned something about ourselves.”
While the Cougars went toe-to-toe with the Red Raiders for four quarters, they couldn’t cash in on a couple of red-zone chances, settling for two field goals, and struggled defensively on a handful of plays in the second half that resulted in big gains for the Red Raiders.
“I always talk to my coaches on Sunday after a game. What would you have done different?” Fritz said during his weekly appearance on SportsTalk 790 AM. “What would you have done the same? What would you have done more of? What would you have done less of?”
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What’s worked early in the season is a rushing attack led by Makhi Hughes and Re’Shaun Sanford II that averages 264 yards per game, which ranks 11th nationally. Weigman is off to a strong start, completing 70% of his passes for 707 yards with seven touchdowns and only one interception. All-Big 12 receiver Amare Thomas and Koby Young are tied for the team lead with three touchdown catches, while tight end Patrick Overmyer has been the team’s second-most targeted player in the passing game with 15 catches and two touchdowns. UH has been working to get wide receiver Trent Walker more active in the offensive game plan. Walker, Oregon State’s leading receiver last season, has just six catches for 64 yards.
Georgia Southern’s defense presents some challenges, ranking among the top 35 nationally in total defense (255.3 yards per game), rushing defense (88.7) and passing defense (166.7). The Eagles are allowing 17.7 points per game.
“Defensively, there are some similarities to what Tech did last week,” Fritz said. “They’re talented. They’ve got some good players.”
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This article originally published at UH tries to bounce back and turn page at Georgia Southern after a heartbreaking loss in Lubbock.
