Conner Weigman produced 11 of Houston's 13 explosive plays
Past the box score: where Houston won this one.
On to the details. Houston handles Oregon State, 33-20 at TDECU Stadium. Houston was the steadier side of a 13-point win. Conner Weigman threw for 305 yards on 30 attempts with one touchdown and ran nine times for 30 yards and one score.
The big plays only went one way
Houston produced 13 plays of 15+ yards to Oregon State's 7, led by Conner Weigman (involved in 11), Amare Thomas (involved in 4) and Patrick Overmyer (involved in 3). Houston scored on 54% of its drives to Oregon State's 25%: Conner Weigman (12 pts), Amare Thomas (6 pts) and Makhi Hughes (6 pts). That's what carried Houston.
How the two sides actually played on the night.
The difference-makers
Conner Weigman threw for 305 yards on 30 attempts with one touchdown and ran nine times for 30 yards and one score, with three third-down conversions and a hand in 11 plays of 15 yards or more. Amare Thomas caught eight passes for 133 yards, one of them for a touchdown, with two third-down conversions and a hand in four plays of 15 yards or more. Patrick Overmyer caught six passes for 84 yards — a hand in three plays of 15 yards or more. For Oregon State, Braden Atkinson threw for 376 yards on 48 attempts with one touchdown and lost 31 yards on seven carries, though one of them reached the end zone, including two of them from inside the 20, four third-down conversions and a hand in seven plays of 15 yards or more. Jesse Legree caught five passes for 136 yards, one of them for a touchdown — that score from inside the 20 and a hand in three plays of 15 yards or more. Eric Olsen caught four passes for 54 yards. Javion White was the disruptive one for Houston: 2 sacks, 2 TFLs, 2.5 tackles.
The snaps that mattered
Three plays carried most of the swing. Braden Atkinson's 71-yard throw to Jesse Legree on 1st-and-10 at Q1 07:50. Then Re'Shaun Sanford II's 56-yard run for a touchdown on 1st-and-10 at Q2 06:27. Later, Conner Weigman's dropback that came up short on 2nd-and-7 at Q4 12:47.
How we got here
Houston struck first through Conner Weigman, led 19-7 at the half and Houston got the final points on a late score by Conner Weigman.
Who got home
Two names to keep: Javion White (2 sacks, 2 TFLs, 2.5 tackles) for Houston and Sailasa Vadrawale III (1 INT, 1 fumble rec, 2 PBUs, 4 tackles) for Oregon State. 1 of Houston's 4 sacks came from the defensive line — a change from the 67% it had averaged over the previous 10 seasons.
What it means
Historically similar games since 2019 — close margin, both offenses held far below norm — and how often that offense outperformed this level the following week.
Houston was the better team and looked it; Oregon State has fixable problems.
Discussion
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