Houston stared down a late surge and answered with a 13-play, 52-yard march that ended on Ethan Sanchez’s 41-yard field goal as time expired to beat Arizona 31-28on Saturday at TDECU Stadium in Houston. The Cougars move to 6-1 overall and 3-1 in the Big 12, clinching bowl eligibility for the first time since 2022 while matching their best start since 2021.

Head coach Willie Fritz set the tone in a “Bowl Bound” shirt.

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“That is one of our goals. You want to play in a bowl game,” Fritz said. “I have never been to a bad one. I have been to a bunch of them. They are all good. So, we are excited about that.”

Cougars quarterback Conner Weigman was the engine.

He went 15 of 23 for 164 yards and three touchdowns and added 98 rushing yards with a 10-yard score.

“We have not been bowl eligible in a couple years, so to be able to go back to a bowl, that is an awesome opportunity for this program,” Weigman said. “That was a four-quarter dogfight. They stayed in the game and fought.”

Weigman tossed strikes of 52 and 15 yards and ran one in to help build a 21-14 halftime lead. He later found Amare Thomas for a 2-yard touchdown to go up 14 in the third. Arizona answered with two fourth-quarter rushing scores to tie it at 28 before Sanchez iced it.

Once again, Houston won the line of scrimmage. Dean Connors churned 100 yards on 20 carries, and the Cougars outgained the Wildcats 232 to 112 on the ground, part of a 396 to 381 total edge.

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“We are running the ball better,” Fritz said. “We are doing a much better job of running the football.”

The defense bent against Noah Fifita’s 269 yards on 24 of 26 passing, yet delivered four sacks, six tackles for loss, and key third and fourth down stops while Houston finished 10 of 16 on combined money downs.

Up next: Houston travels to Arizona State with real momentum and a bowl ticket already punched.