By Tony Thomas
After three losing seasons in his five-year tenure with the Houston Cougars, Dana Holgersen is out as head coach and Wille Fritz is the new boss in H-Town. Fritz is coming off a 23-4 record over the past two seasons and making the Tulane Green Wave relevant again. Cougars’ fans hope he can accomplish the same with Houston. It will not be easy, as Houston has lost a ton of talent via graduation, NFL Draft declarations, and the transfer portal.
However, the Cougars return talent and experience at the offensive skill positions, QB Donovan Smith (out with an injury, will miss spring practice), their top two receivers in Samuel Brown (62 catches, 815 yards, 3 TDs), and Joseph Manjack IV (46 catches, 577 yards, and six TDs). Also, the Cougars return their top rusher in Parker Jenkins, who led the team with 464 yards and three touchdowns. This bodes well as Fritz likes to run a balanced offense.
On defense, half of the projected starting unit will be made up of transfers, but talented none the less across all three levels of that side of the ball.
In addition, Fritz went into the transfer portal to find talent to fill positions of need, including three that will make a positive impact on Saturdays this fall.
QB Zeon Chriss
Previous School: Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns
6’3”, 210 lbs.
A native of Baton Rouge, LA, Zeon Chriss comes to Houston with dual-threat skills in his arsenal. Chriss passed for 1,222 yards, 11 touchdowns, and five INTs, and completed 66% of his passes. In addition, Chriss rushed for 492 yards and six more scores, and averaged 6.74 yards per carry.
𝐓𝐎𝐔𝐂𝐇𝐃𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐋𝐎𝐔𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐀𝐍𝐀!
Zeon Chriss with the 8-yard TD run and Louisiana takes the lead for the first time today.
UL – 34
TXST – 30
4Q | 2:21 pic.twitter.com/IW2Y6mNMWq— Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns® Football (@RaginCajunsFB) October 7, 2023
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Against Buffalo, Chriss completed 22 of 29 passes (76%) for 249 yards, one TD and two INTs in a 45-38 win. In addition, he added two rushing touchdowns against the Bulls. In the Texas State game, Chriss completed 13 of 17 passes (76%) for 205 yards and three touchdowns in a 34-30 win.
With Smith out, Chriss gets more of an opportunity to show what he can do and get ahead of the learning curve on his new playbook. Chriss’s dual threat skills will be lethal in Fritz’s offense.
TE Maliq Carr
Previous School: Michigan State Spartans
6’4”, 230 lbs.
The 2nd leading receiver for the Spartans in 2023, Maliq Carr caught 30 passes for 352 yards and three touchdowns, and posted three games with five or more catches.
Michigan State TE/power forward Maliq Carr getting loose pic.twitter.com/MqBM1d32PL
— Nick Baumgardner (@nickbaumgardner) October 15, 2022
Against Indiana, Carr turned a season-high seven catches for 117 yards and two touchdowns in a three-point victory over the Hoosiers.
DL Keith Cooper, Jr.
Previous School: Tulane Green Wave
6’5”, 275 lbs.
In 2023, Keith Cooper, Jr. racked up 33 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, and two pass breakups. Cooper made at least one tackles in 12 of 14 games last season. Against UTSA, Cooper posted six tackles, two tackles for loss and two sacks in a 29-16 win over the Roadrunners. For his collegiate career, Cooper has 73 tackles, 10.5 sacks, and 16 tackles for loss to his credit. Look for Cooper to become a starter in the Week 1 opener vs the UNLV Rebels.
Keith Cooper is joining Willie Fritz, Shiel Wood, and Corey Platt Jr. at Houston.
This isn’t a surprise based on rumors, but he had offers from South Carolina and BC, and will give up the opportunity to get a Tulane degree.
With Gerald Chatman still on staff, does Deal stay? https://t.co/B8CNKM1ZgS pic.twitter.com/JZ35r2CN4A
— Isaac Popper 🟦 (@ipopStats) December 17, 2023
If Smith heals from his surgery within the proper time frame, he will be the likely starter at quarterback. But Chriss will push him for playing time. If anyone can get the Cougars back on winning track with the talent they have on the roster, it is Fritz. Saturdays will be fun in H-Town this fall.
