Four storylines as No. 14 Houston football heads to Colorado

No. 14 Houston’s current ranking means little if it can’t sustain its success through the remainder of the season, coach Willie Fritz emphasized on Monday.

“You’ve got to finish the year. You’ve got to keep playing well,” Fritz said. “Ranked right now doesn’t mean a whole lot. We want to be ranked as high as we can at the end of the season. That means we accomplished some things.”

To accomplish their goals, the Cougars must go unbeaten over their final three games, beginning with Colorado on Friday in Boulder, Colo.

Here are four storylines ahead of the matchup:

Careful with Colorado

Fritz believes Colorado gave No. 2 Utah “the best game out of anybody this season,” of all the teams that have encountered the Utes so far.

Despite its 1-5 mark in Big 12 play, three of Colorado’s losses have been by 10 points or fewer, with its 27-24 defeat to Utah being the closest any team has come to toppling the conference-leading Utes.

Colorado’s steadiest source of offense has come through the air, as it enters Friday with the No. 6 passing attack in the Big 12, averaging 255.4 yards per game.

Houston’s passing defense has struggled at times this season, allowing 252.9 passing yards per game, with only three teams surrendering more among Big 12 counterparts.

“You’re going to have great success defensively if you line up correctly,” Fritz said. “First and foremost, teams are making that difficult because they do a lot of different things. You’ve got to line up correctly, have your eyes in the right place, and then know your assignment and do it to the best of your ability.”

Maintaining November success

Houston opened November with a 31-24 home victory over Cincinnati, a stark contrast to last season, when it began the month with 45-35 home loss to West Virginia, and two weeks later, a 17-14 loss to TCU to dash the Cougars’ Big 12 Championship hopes.

The Cougars boast a 5-0 record at TDECU Stadium this season, compared to 3-3 last year.

After going 6-0 away from home last season, Houston has suffered two road losses this year, both to current top-15 opponents: No. 2 Utah and No. 12 Texas Tech.

“I would’ve liked to have done the part we did before,” Fritz joked.

Fritz knows that in order for Houston to maintain its momentum through November, the Cougars cannot afford to overlook any opponent, regardless of record.

“Like I said before, this weekend is going to be no different,” Fritz said. “Everybody in this league is pretty good. If you don’t hook it up and play well, you’re going to get your butt beat.”

Re’Shaun’s return to prominence

Last Saturday against Cincinnati, junior running back Re’Shaun Sanford II posted his best performance in college, totaling 126 rushing yards, including a breakaway rushing touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

Over the past week, Sanford has been named to the midseason Comeback Player of the Year watch list and was chosen as the Comeback Player of the Week for his efforts vs. Cincinnati.

“I’m just happy for him,” offensive coordinator Slade Nagle said. “I think everybody is.”

The Harker Heights, Texas, native has suffered season-ending ACL injuries to each knee in two of the past three preseasons.

Sanford has set single-season career-highs in rushing yards (573) and touchdowns (3) during his comeback campaign.

“He has worked extremely hard,” Fritz said. “I’m really proud of our coaches, too. Strength coaches, coach (Kurt) Hester, coach (Bennie) Wylie and his staff… Coach Jordy (Joseph). Just believing in him. But obviously it all comes down to Re’Shaun doing all the work, and he certainly did and he deserves any accolades that he gets.”

Sanford, alongside senior running back Makhi Hughes (606 rushing yards) has helped form one of the top backfield tandems in the Big 12, combining for 1,179 rushing yards through nine games.

Playoff push

The margin for error? Zero.

The avenues? Possibly two.

Houston, despite two losses, is squarely in the Big 12 Championship Game picture with three games remaining: two consecutive on the road against Colorado and West Virginia, before facing Baylor at home to round out the regular season.

The Cougars are one of five Big 12 teams (BYU, Arizona, Baylor and Oklahoma State the other four) with a 4-2 conference record, and are competing for a spot in the conference championship game.

An Oklahoma State win over 5-1 Texas Tech this weekend could further complicate the conference standings, potentially reshaping Houston’s path to Arlington.

But winning the conference title in Arlington might not be Houston’s only way to punch its College Football Playoff ticket.

Houston rose to No. 14 in the College Football Playoff rankings on Tuesday, bringing it closer to the 12-team playoff and an at-large bid.

As of Friday afternoon, the Cougars have a 21% chance to make the playoff, according to ESPN’s College Football Playoff Predictor.

A 10-2 finish to the regular season would strengthen Houston’s case for an at-large bid, even if the Cougars fall short of reaching the Big 12 Championship Game.

Still, Houston’s fate is not entirely in its own hands, and it can only focus on the motto that has kept it in contention this far into the season: going 1-0 every week, starting with Colorado on Friday at 9:15 p.m. CT.