Slow start costs OSU at No. 20 Houston, 35-32
Two empty red-zone trips early outweighed 29 second-half points. Homecoming vs. Colorado is next.
HOUSTON — Oklahoma State moved the ball to the Houston 5-yard line and the Houston 2-yard line on its first two possessions Saturday night and came away with three points. By the time the Cowboys found the end zone, they were chasing.
No. 18 Oklahoma State scored 29 second-half points but fell 35-32 to No. 20 Houston at TDECU Stadium in Houston, Texas. The loss snapped a four-game OSU winning streak and was the Cowboys' first in Big 12 play.
OSU dropped to 4-2 overall and 2-1 in the conference. Houston, which has won four straight, improved to 6-1 and 3-1.
"The slow start stuff has to stop," OSU head coach Eric Morris said at his postgame press conference. "We're two different teams, first half, second half right now, and it blows my mind to be honest with you."
Points left on the field
The night started the way OSU wanted. OSU cornerback LaDainian Fields intercepted Houston quarterback Conner Weigman on the Cougars' opening possession, Fields' second interception of the season.
The Cowboys drove to the Houston 5 but stalled on third-and-goal, and OSU kicker Sam Keltner hit a 23-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead midway through the first quarter.
On the next possession, OSU reached the Houston 2 and went for it on fourth down. The Cougars held, and Morris said afterward that he will revisit the choice not to take the points.
"Hindsight's 20-20," Morris told reporters after the game. "Maybe if I'd kicked that field goal early, here we are, we're in a tied ballgame, we'll find a way to get into overtime. That's something I've gotta soul search on."
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Houston coach Willie Fritz, whose team went the other way on its own fourth-down calls, put it plainly after the game.
"In a game like that, three points don't help you a whole lot," Fritz said.
Houston took a 7-3 lead late in the first quarter on a 12-play, 75-yard drive capped by Weigman's 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Patrick Overmyer.
Late in the second quarter, Houston safety Kentrell Webb made a leaping interception of an OSU quarterback Drew Mestemaker pass on third-and-long. The Cougars converted a fourth down on the short field, and Weigman found receiver Amare Thomas for a 7-yard touchdown with 2:22 left in the half. Houston led 14-3 at halftime.
Trading blows
OSU took the second-half kickoff and went 75 yards in eight plays. OSU running back Ayo Adeyi finished it with a 13-yard touchdown run around the right side, cutting the lead to 14-10.
Houston answered immediately. Thomas' 51-yard catch set up Weigman's 2-yard touchdown pass to Trent Walker, and the Cougars led 21-10 with 9:05 left in the third quarter.
The Cowboys came right back with a 10-play, 90-yard drive that ended with Mestemaker's 2-yard touchdown pass to OSU wide receiver Wyatt Young, making it 21-17.
Then came the sequence that defined Houston's night. Facing third-and-long at his own 28, Weigman scrambled 44 yards up the middle. On fourth-and-3 from the OSU 21, he threw to the back of the end zone, where Thomas held on through pass interference for a touchdown and a 28-17 lead with 2:00 left in the third.
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Hawkins makes it a game
OSU needed one play to answer. Mestemaker hit OSU running back Caleb Hawkins on a short throw, and Hawkins went 66 yards for a touchdown. Mestemaker's two-point pass to OSU wide receiver Justin Bowick cut the deficit to 28-25 with 11:57 left.
Houston needed just five plays and 2:04 to restore the margin. Weigman's 48-yard touchdown pass to Koby Young down the left sideline made it 35-25 with 9:48 to play.
The extra point compounded the damage. OSU was flagged for roughing the snapper — "Rushed the snapper there at the end," Morris said — and Houston's ensuing squib kick pinned the Cowboys at their own 4.
OSU went 96 yards anyway. A 10-play drive ended with Mestemaker's 8-yard touchdown pass to Bowick with 4:54 left, and the Cowboys trailed 35-32.
They never got the ball back. Weigman hit Walker for 18 yards on third-and-7, OSU spent its final timeout with 2:12 left, and Weigman ran 8 yards for the first down that let Houston kneel out the clock.
Key performances
Hawkins finished with 193 yards from scrimmage. Houston entered the game fourth nationally in rush defense, according to OSU Athletics, and held him to 68 yards on the ground. He made up for it as a receiver, setting a career high with 125 receiving yards.
That total is two receiving yards shy of the OSU record of 127 held by running back Terry Brown against Kansas in 1968, according to OSU Athletics. It was the first 100-yard receiving game by an OSU running back since Ollie Gordon II had 116 against Kansas in 2024.
"His pass [protection] pro's been phenomenal all year," Morris said of Hawkins.
Mestemaker completed 22 of 34 passes for 365 yards and three touchdowns, with one interception. He was 16 of 19 for 241 yards and all three touchdowns after halftime. It was his fifth straight 300-yard game, the second-longest active streak in the FBS, according to OSU Athletics.
Morris said Houston's pressure, including some zero blitzes, kept Mestemaker uncomfortable early.
"Probably not his best performance, but he's maybe the toughest kid on our team," Morris said.
OSU linebacker Ethan Wesloski led the Cowboys with nine tackles.
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By the numbers
The teams were nearly even in yardage — Houston 505, OSU 499 — but the Cougars held the ball for 35:12 to OSU's 24:48.
Weigman completed 24 of 33 passes for 343 yards and five touchdowns. Thomas caught seven passes for 126 yards and two touchdowns, and Walker added seven for 104 and a score.
Houston converted 7 of 13 third downs and all three of its fourth-down attempts. Three of the Cougars' five touchdowns came on third down and one on fourth, according to OSU Athletics. OSU converted three third downs
"I thought we were really bad in the secondary tonight," Morris said. "We lost in man-to-man coverage, we lost in zone coverage."
Houston won the turnover battle 2-1, and OSU committed a season-high nine penalties for 71 yards.
Looking ahead
The loss knocked OSU out of the AP Top 25. In the poll released Sunday, the Cowboys fell from No. 18 to first among teams receiving votes, effectively No. 26, with 128 points. Houston climbed six spots to No. 14, its highest AP ranking since 2016.
OSU returns to Boone Pickens Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 24, to host Colorado for homecoming. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. on FS1.
"This loss here on the road by three points isn't gonna define this team," Morris said. "I know what kind of group we have."
Houston travels to No. 10 Utah on Oct. 24.
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