2023 Houston Cougars football team

2023 Houston Cougars football
ConferenceBig 12 Conference
Record4–8 (2–7 Big 12)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorEman Naghavi (1st season)
Defensive coordinatorDoug Belk (3rd, 5th overall season)
Base defense4–2–5
Home stadiumTDECU Stadium
Seasons
← 2022
2024 →
2023 Big 12 Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 3 Texas y$^   8 1     12 2  
No. 16 Oklahoma State y   7 2     10 4  
No. 15 Oklahoma   7 2     10 3  
Iowa State   6 3     7 6  
No. 18 Kansas State   6 3     9 4  
West Virginia   6 3     9 4  
Texas Tech   5 4     7 6  
No. 23 Kansas   5 4     9 4  
UCF   3 6     6 7  
TCU   3 6     5 7  
Houston   2 7     4 8  
BYU   2 7     5 7  
Baylor   2 7     3 9  
Cincinnati   1 8     3 9  
Championship: Texas 49, Oklahoma State 21
  • ^ – College Football Playoff participant
  • $ – Conference champion
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2023 Houston Cougars football team represented the University of Houston in the Big 12 Conference during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Cougars were led by Dana Holgorsen in his fifth season as their head coach. The Cougars played their home games at TDECU Stadium in Houston, Texas.

In September 2021, Cincinnati, BYU, Houston, and UCF accepted bids to join the Big 12 Conference.[1] On June 10, 2022, the American Athletic Conference and the three American Athletic Conference schools set to depart from the league (Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF) announced that they had reached a buyout agreement with the conference that would allow those schools to join the Big 12 in 2023.[2] BYU had previously operated as an independent prior to accepting a membership invitation to join the Big 12.

On November 26, head coach Dana Holgorsen was fired.[3] He finished with a record of 31–28 in five seasons.

  1. ^ "Big 12 Conference Adds Four New Members". Big12Sports.com. Big 12 Conference. September 10, 2021.
  2. ^ "American Announces Agreements With UCF, Cincinnati and Houston on Departure" (Press release). American Athletic Conference. June 10, 2022. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  3. ^ "Houston Fires Coach Dana Holgorsen After Loss to UCF".