The Houston Cougars will be back in action this weekend, taking on Cincinnati at home. Every game is now a must-win for Houston in order to keep its Big 12 Championship hopes alive.

Although the No. 17 Cougars are 10.5-point favorites entering the game, it can be hard to say what to expect when going up against Cincinnati, given the way its season has gone so far. Houston is 6-2 and looking to stay undefeated at home against its former American Athletic Conference rival.

Cincinnati is 5-3 and 2-3 in the Big 12. The Bearcats haven't been a consistent team at all in 2026 and it's been a struggle to determine how Cincinnati might play on any given week. Cincinnati beat No. 8 Texas Tech at home 37-24 back in Week 8.

Cougars Face An Interesting Opponent

The Wildcats led 24-6 at halftime. The closest that the Red Raiders came was 24-15 in the third quarter after a pick-six. Cincinnati responded with two critical touchdown sequences by its offense to pull away and make a historic home top-10 upset.

Cincinnati junior running back Cole Tabb ran for 173 yards and one touchdown on just 16 carries. It was the best game of the season for him with an average of almost 11 yards per carry. He broke out off for a 58-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.

Even with this big win, Cincinnati got blown out at home the following week at the hands of top-10 Utah with a score of 49-25. The Wildcats were down 42-6 heading into halftime. That just shows the unpredictability of Cincinnati.

The Wildcats also lost at the hands of West Virginia on the road, 45-42, and lost to No. 22 Arizona on the road, 34-7. It hasn't fared well for Cincinnati on the road, with the only two Big 12 wins at home. Cincinnati beat the other Wildcats from Kansas State 31-26 in Week 4.

Tabb has been consistent throughout the year, and Houston must slow him down to get the poor version of Cincinnati. The 5-foot-8 running back has 752 yards and 10 touchdowns on 79 carries for almost 10 yards per carry.

Additionally, Cincinnati senior quarterback JC French IV has all three of his interceptions in the last two games. He also has 20 total touchdowns, with seven of them on the ground, so Houston must contain his running.

If the Cougars can dominate the run game department, that can help avoid any potential upset from a Cincinnati team that will be coming in looking to make a point fresh off an embarrassing loss to Utah.