Fast Start Leads Houston to Home-Opening Victory

King, Porter pace Cougars in win

HOUSTON -- Paced by a three-touchdown effort from senior quarterback D'Eriq King and a career-high 120 rushing yards from junior running back Kyle Porter, the University of Houston Football team defeated Prairie View A&M, 37-17, in its home opener inside TDECU Stadium on Saturday night.

Three different Cougars found the end zone for Houston (1-1), including senior wide receiver Keith Corbin, who became the 48th Cougar in program history to rack up 1,000 receiving yards in a career, after pulling down a 21-yard pass from King for Houston's third touchdown of the contest.

Houston led from start to finish, taking an early lead after scoring twice on its first two possessions. A 46-yard field goal from senior kicker Dalton Witherspoon put the Cougars on the board first, capping off a nine-play, 36-yard drive. On the following drive, the Cougars charged down fiel, and Porter found open space to notch his first Houston touchdown on a 20-yard rush to give Houston a 10-0 lead at the 9:19 mark.

The Panthers (1-1) put up their first points of the day with less than six minutes to play in the opening frame when Prairie View A&M's kicker Zach Elder booted a 23-yard field goal through the uprights to make the score 10-3.

The Cougar offense continued to put on a show, scoring 14 points in the final three minutes of the opening quarter. Houston moved the chains 65 yards and found the end zone for the second time as King picked up his first of three touchdowns on the evening off a 1-yard rush.

On the ensuing drive, King connected with Corbin for a 21-yard pass to stretch the Cougar lead to 24-3. The 24 points scored in the first quarter was the most points Houston scored in a quarter since posting 24 points in the final period against Tulsa on Oct. 4, 2018.

In the second quarter, the Cougars continued to put points on the board as an 18-yard rush from King, extended the lead to 28. Later in the stanza, Witherspoon put an end to a seven-play, 20-yard drive with a 22-yard field goal, giving Houston a 34-3 advantage. After the Panthers scored their first touchdown of the game, the Cougars held a 34-10 lead heading into the break.

Coming out of the locker room, Witherspoon nailed career-high third field goal, which proved to be all the Cougars needed. A late touchdown from Prairie View A&M cut the Houston lead to 37-17, but the deficit was too much to overcome, as the Cougars cruised to the win.

UP NEXT
Houston competes in the AdvoCare Texas Kickoff on Friday against No. 22/21 Washington State inside NRG Stadium. Kickoff against the Huskies is slated for 8:15 p.m. CT on ESPN.