WVU pulls off 45-35 road upset against No. 22 Houston
HOUSTON, Texas (WCHS) — The West Virginia Mountaineers rolled into Houston, Texas to take on the No. 22 ranked Houston Cougars on Saturday, with the Mountaineers seeking its first win in Big 12 conference play.
After keeping even with Houston all game, WVU pulled away in the fourth quarter to take a 45-35 upset on the road over the Cougars.
Freshman QB Scotty Fox Jr. had himself a day, going 13/22 for157 yards and a touchdown while also carrying the ball 10 times for 65 yards and two touchdowns. Diore Hubbard and Cyncir Bowers also had a rushing touchdown apiece, while Fox's passing touchdown went to Cam Vaughn.
The Mountaineer defense came up big as well, intercepting Houston QB Conner Weigman twice, with one of them going all the way for an 80-yard pick six courtesy of Jordan Scruggs. Houston also fumbled the ball back to WVU as well in the second quarter.
For the Cougars, Weigman had a rushing touchdown despite ending the day with -27 rushing yards thanks to three sacks from WVU. Amare Thomas hauled in three receiving touchdowns as well.
The game was evenly matched in some areas. In time of possession, WVU only had the ball a minute longer than Houston, while WVU had 403 total yards compared to Houston's 400.
The win is Rich Rodriguez's first conference win with WVU in his return season. It's also Rodriguez's first Big 12 win, as when he last coached WVU in 2007, the Mountaineers were playing in the Big East Conference.
It also stops a five-game losing streak for the Mountaineers, with their last win prior to Saturday coming at the Backyard Brawl against Pitt in September.
WVU improves to 3-6 on the 2025 season and 1-5 in Big 12 play. The Mountaineers will return to Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown next Saturday, Nov. 8 to host Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes. That game is slated to kickoff at noon on TNT, TruTV and HBO Max.
Meanwhile, No. 22 Houston falls to 7-3 on the 2025 season and 4-2 in conference play. The loss will likely drop the Cougars back out of the Top 25 rankings. The Cougars will hit the road to take on the UCF Knights on Friday, Nov. 7 at 8 p.m., which will be televised on FOX Sports 1.
