UConn Loses to Houston 24-17

Houston freshman Logan Holgorsen threw for 123 yards and a touchdown in his first start and the Cougars held off UConn 24-17 on Saturday.

Holgorsen, the son of coach Dana Holgorsen, had just 37 yards passing before finding Jeremy Singleton wide open down the left sideline for 58-yards and a third-quarter touchdown that put the Cougars ahead for good.

Houston (3-4, 1-2 American) stretched the lead with a late 13-play touchdown drive that ended with a 2-yard run from Bryson Smith.

UConn freshman Jack Zergiotis, who threw for 270 yards, hit Art Tompkins for a 7-yard touchdown with 1:40 left, but the Huskies failed to recover the on-side kick.

Kevin Mensah rushed for 93 yards for UConn (1-6, 0-4), which suffered its sixth straight loss, 22nd straight to a Bowl Subdivision team and 15th straight in the American Athletic Conference.

The Huskies held the ball for 36 minutes and outgained Houston 438-284, but managed just one other touchdown. That came in the second quarter when Zergiotis hit Matt Drayton over the middle for a 17-yard score that put the Huskies up 7-3, giving them their first lead since September.

The Huskies had a third-quarter drive stopped at the 2-yard line after a 58-yard run from Mensah.

The Cougars had a 10-7 lead at halftime after an interception by linebacker Donavan Mutin, set up a 12-yard run touchdown run from Kyle Porter. Porter finished with 60 yards on 15 carries.

Smith tossed a pass to Jeremey Singleton out of the wildcat formation that went for 45 yards and set up Houston's first score, a 42-yard field goal.

Holgorsen got the start over Clayton Tune, who suffered a hamstring injury in practice. D'Eriq King, who was touted as a Heisman candidate before the season, was asked to redshirt after a 1-3 start to the season.

THE TAKEAWAY

Houston needs to win three more games in its final five games to become bowl eligible for the seventh straight season.

UConn's last win against a Bowl Subdivision team came against Tulsa on Oct. 21, 2017, that also was their last win in the American Conference.

UP NEXT

Houston: The Cougars have a short week. They return home to face No. 19 SMU on Thursday night.

UConn: The Huskies travel to Massachusetts for what has become known as the U-Game against UMass.

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