Houston Cougars (AP) Conner Weigman threw for 159 yards and three touchdowns in his Houston debut as the Cougars beat Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks 27-0 in the season opener for both teams.

Weigman, a transfer from Texas A&M, finished 15 of 24 and threw touchdown passes of 11 yards to Tanner Koziol and 39 yards to J’Marion Burnette in the first half as Houston (1-0) built a 17-0 halftime lead. Weigman, who also rushed for 39 yards, found Amare Thomas for a 20-yard touchdown in the third quarter.

“I felt like it was a lot of up and down,” Weigman said. “I feel like we beat ourselves, but we made plays when we needed to. It’s always good to start the season 1-0.”

Koziol, a Ball State transfer, finished with 63 yards on seven catches, and Thomas, a UAB transfer, caught three passes for 44 yards.

“He’s a dude. He’s a very smart football player,” Weigman said of Koziol. “I feel like he’s always in the right position, and he’s always where I need him at that moment. He doesn’t drop any balls. He’s a really special player.”

It was Houston’s first shutout since defeating Grambling 45-0 on Sept. 18, 2021, and first shutout in a season opener since beating UNLV 69-0 on Sept. 2, 1989.

“Outstanding job by the defense,” Houston coach Willie Fritz said. “It is really difficult to shut a team out nowadays. I don’t care what level you’re talking about – middle school or high school or NFL or college.”

Houston outgained the Lumberjacks 343-144.

Sam Vidlak was 13 of 26 passing for 52 yards and an interception, and Gavin Rutherford was 4 of 7 passing for 53 yards and an interception for SFA (0-1). Kylon Harris caught four passes for 20 yards, and Jordan Nabors had 21 yards on three receptions.

The Takeaway

SFA: The Lumberjacks could get very little going offensively as the Cougars’ defense was in the backfield most of the night. The Lumberjacks finished with 39 yards rushing.

Houston: The Cougars looked much improved from last season when they were one of the worst offensive teams in the nation. The Cougars’ defense had two sacks, two interceptions and held SFA to 3 of 16 on third downs.

“I feel like today we were definitely locked into our keys, our assignments and doing our jobs to where we were able to fly around and play fast, and the game felt like practice,” defensive back Marc Stampley II, who had one of the interceptions, said.

Up Next

SFA plays at Abilene Christian on Sept. 6.

Houston plays at crosstown rival Rice on Sept. 6.

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