No. 10 Utah Rallies Past No. 14 Houston 21-13, Stays Unbeaten
Houston led 10-0 midway through the third quarter in Salt Lake City, but Devon Dampier ran for 150 yards and two touchdowns as No. 10 Utah scored 21 second-half points for a 21-13 win that left the Utes as the Big 12's lone unbeaten team.
No. 14 Houston had No. 10 Utah shut out for 40 minutes on Saturday night. It was not enough. The Utes scored 21 second-half points and beat the Cougars 21-13 at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, improving to 7-0 and 4-0 in the Big 12 as the conference's lone remaining unbeaten team.
Houston's defense set the early terms. The Cougars led 3-0 at halftime on a 24-yard Jonathan Dimas field goal, after twice driving inside the Utah 10 and coming away with only those three points, and extended the lead to 10-0 midway through the third quarter on a 15-play, 75-yard drive that took 8:14 and ended with Makhi Hughes scoring from 2 yards out. Conner Weigman threw for 282 yards for Houston, and Amare Thomas caught five passes for a season-high 133 yards.
Utah quarterback Devon Dampier turned the game with his legs. He got the Utes on the board with a 22-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter, and Wayshawn Parker put Utah ahead for the first time, 14-13, on a 5-yard direct-snap run with 11:57 left. Dampier finished with a season-high 150 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries, plus 204 passing yards, despite two interceptions.
The ending was a strip sack. With Utah clinging to a one-point lead, Jackson Bennee forced a fumble from Weigman with 2:15 remaining, Jireh Moe recovered at the Houston 9, and Dampier scored on the next play to make it 21-13. Houston drove back into scoring range, but Utah stopped the Cougars on fourth down to close it out. Houston falls to 6-2 and 3-2 in the Big 12 and heads into its bye week before hosting Cincinnati on Nov. 7.
