Devon Dampier, No. 10 Utah surge past No. 14 Houston to stay unbeaten

Oct 24, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Utes quarterback Devon Dampier (4) scrambles during the first quarter against the Houston Cougars at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images Quarterback Devon Dampier ran for a season-high 150 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries to rally No. 10 Utah to a 21-13 victory over No. 14 Houston on Saturday night in Salt Lake City. Dampier also threw for 204 yards and had two interceptions. The Utes (7-0, 4-0 Big 12) are one of three FBS teams that remain undefeated. Conner Weigman threw for 282 yards to lead Houston. Amare Thomas racked up a season-high 133 yards on five catches for the Cougars. Houston (6-2, 3-2) suffered its first loss in six games against the Utes after blowing a double-digit lead. The Cougars scored their first touchdown on a 15-play, 75-yard drive that chewed 8:14 off the clock to open the third quarter. Makhi Hughes capped the lengthy drive by plowing across the goal line from 2 yards out to extend the Cougars' lead to 10-0 with 6:46 remaining in the quarter. Dampier finally got Utah on the board with 4:25 left in the third on a 22-yard scramble. He also had runs of 16 yards and 12 yards to power the scoring drive. The Utes took their first lead at 14-13 with 11:57 left in the game on Wayshawn Parker's 5-yard run off a direct snap. Jackson Bennee forced a fumble on a strip sack of Weigman with 2:15 remaining, and Jireh Moe recovered the ball at the Houston 9-yard line. Dampier sprinted in for a touchdown one play later to seal the comeback victory. Houston twice drove inside the Utah 10 before halftime and came away with only three points. Amare Thomas took a short pass 56 yards on the Cougars' second drive to get Houston into the red zone. The Cougars drove to the Utah 3 but came away empty when James Chenault Jr. broke up Weigman's fourth-down pass in the end zone. Utah drove to the Houston 27 after getting the fourth-down stop, aided by runs of 22 yards and 20 yards from Dampier. But Kentrell Webb picked off a pass from Dampier on the goal line to end the drive. A 33-yard scramble by Weigman to the Utah 7 on Houston's ensuing drive helped set up a 24-yard field goal from Jonathan Dimas with 3:44 left before halftime. The Utes were shut out in the first half for the first time since a 13-7 loss to TCU in 2024. --Field Level Media