Even if the week zero was an explosion, I finally have the feeling of bite inside that football is officially back with a complete slate of Big 12 games.
Although there is still a lot of action this weekend, we had several large-scale games on Thursday while four Big 12 teams were in action. The conference ended up going and here are my thoughts on Thursday evening.
Houston’s defense looks ready
I know that the emphasis on the Houston Cougars was on the new quarter-Arrière Connor Weigman, but I couldn’t help but be impressed by the way Houston’s defense looked at Stephen F. Austin.
The cougars held the loggers at only 144 yards in the evening and forced two reversals. In addition to that, they only abandoned 1.6 yards per race and allowed Stephen F. Austin to convert to less than 20% of their third attempts to decline. Even with a new defensive coordinator in Austin Armstrong, I thought that the cougars had resumed where they had stopped from last season.
If they can get a coherent game from Connor Weigman and the offensive, I have no doubts about making a bowl match this season. In addition, they could play a spoiler for certain teams who compete for a Big 12 title later in the year.
Hauss Henjy is it ok?
Before leaving the match with an injury to the lower body, the quarterrier of Oklahoma State Hauss Henjy played quite well. He controlled the offense and showed his athletics several times with beautiful races.
Hauss led consecutive records for the cowboys offensive to open the match before leaving. Unfortunately, he did not return as Zane Flores took over and did a decent job by filling. I know it was a cupcake game, but it was good for Oklahoma State to win its first victory on the football field in more than 340 days after losing nine consecutive games to finish their 2024 season.
Tayven Jackson should have started
Between the ugly weather time and the bad offense, I did not know if UCF could go alive against Jacksonville State. The Knights gave the quarter Cam to the nod to start, and that led them to score no point in the first half. In fact, the largest offense I saw on the field occurred before the match when a crazy fan ran on the field during the delay.
But things have changed once Tayven Jackson entered the match later in the first half because the offensive showed a certain life. He led two score records in the fourth quarter after his team fell 10-3 at the end of the match. I just wanted him to have had a chance earlier in the game, but I still think he should be the guy who goes ahead for the UCF.
Cincinnati’s turnover
The problem in this game was the turnover. The cincinnati bearcates groped the ball at the end of the first half on their own territory, which led to a touchdown before half time. Then, with the game in play, Brendan Sorsby made a bad pass that was chosen with less than a minute in the match. Even if they did not score there, Cincinnati was in the range of goals on the field to have a chance to link the match to 20.
Know that they lost but I liked the fight I saw of the defense of Cincinnati against the Nebraska. They did an excellent job by stopping the race against a solid offensive line for Huskers. The godfather Dontay Corleone ate blocks and really released the seconds.
Although it was a home match for the bearcates, the crowd was around 99% of Nebraska fans in Arrowhead, so it was more like a road game. I thought Cincinnati waged a hell of a fight on Thursday evening and without these two reversals, they may have even won the match.
