Houston wide receiver Stephon Johnson (5) sends love to the crowd after blocking a pass from SFA during the first half of an NCAA football game, Thursday, Aug 28, 2025, in Houston, Texas. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar
“I got heart!” a Stephen F. Austin player called out in Thursday night’s game. Houston’s defense had the answer, snatching it away in a 27-0 shutout.
“SFA’s getting a little chippy, if I’m being honest,” junior linebacker Jalen Garner said. “Honestly, I respect them. I met this one player, I don’t know who it was, but he was like, ‘Bless it, bless it, I got heart!’ I felt it, but we’re coming here to stop anybody coming; I promise you.”
Houston kept its promise, walking off the field with its first home-opening shutout since 1989 and first overall shutout since 2021. Football Championship Subdivision opponent or not, coach Willie Fritz understood how rare it is to hold any team scoreless.
“It is difficult to shut a team out nowadays. I don’t care what level you’re talking about, middle school, high school, NFL or college,” Fritz said. “We did an excellent job not allowing them to get behind us.”
The Cougars held the Lumberjacks to just 144 total yards, and SFA hadn’t even reached 70 yards before the fourth quarter.
It seemed the Houston defense picked up where it left off last year as the conference’s fourth-best unit.
Instead, it was showcasing a rebuild that ensued after several key departures. The performance brought an element of surprise that no film session could prepare the Lumberjacks for.
“We talked about it earlier this week. We knew that was going to be a problem for us. We didn’t know which film to watch with so many new coaches and so many new players,” coach Colby Carthel said.
This offseason, the Cougars welcomed new defensive coordinator Austin Armstrong to replace Shiel Wood, who departed for Texas Tech. And despite losing A.J. Haulcy and Jeremiah Wilson in the secondary, a duo that accounted for nine of the team’s 12 interceptions last season, the Cougars continued snatching balls with incoming transfers C.J. Douglas and Marc Stampley II carrying on the trend.
“We know we can play. Y’all saw what we did last year,” said Garner, who finished with a team-high six tackles. “We added a couple pieces, lost a couple pieces, but we’re still here and ready to play.”
Even with the shutout in hand, the Cougar defense knew it could have held on to more.
“We got our hands on a lot of balls,” Fritz said. “We could have had six or seven. We had a bunch in and out of our hands.”
Working to the point of perfection is the new Houston standard, leaving the team with some disappointment and reflection after the game.
“That’s how we all are. We are disciplined to get it perfect. That’s how Houston is now,” Garner said.
It’s only the first game, but Houston is already hunting for more ways to impose its will until the end.
“Around here, we have a very high standard,” Stampley said. “Honestly, we want to win by 50 every time if we can. Any win is honestly a good win, especially at this level. A win is a win.”
In terms of chasing excellence, Stampley said, “Honestly, there is no ceiling. Honestly, I feel we can take it as far as we want to go.”
sports@thedailycougar.com
