Brandon Rose throws late pick as Houston field goal secures 17-14 win over Utah

HOUSTON — A road trip to Houston was supposed to be the cure all for Utah's offensive woes — or at least be the game to jump start what has been an inept offense for much of the season.

If not against Houston — a team that only averaged a nation-worst 13.4 points per game coming into Saturday night — then when?

But not all endings are happy.

Houston picked off Utah backup quarterback Brandon Rose at midfield with less than two minutes left to play, and then drained the clock to settle for a game-winning 43-yard field goal to beat Utah 17-14 at TDECU Stadium in Houston.

Immediately, the Houston (3-5, 2-3 Big 12) sideline rushed the field and celebrated as a team with the fans in the west end zone as the Cougars picked up their second win of Big 12 play.

"We seem to keep finding the same blueprint to lose," Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said.

Utah (4-4, 1-4 Big 12) finished the night with 306 yards of total offense — more than Houston — but only had 12 first downs, 90 rushing yards, and an offense that couldn't, ultimately, put points consistently on the board.

On top of the offensive struggles, Utah place-kicker Cole Becker missed two field goals in the first half — field goals that could have proved to be the difference in the game — and the defense allowed Houston to run for 228 yards.

"Super frustrating. We played tough," Utah linebacker Karene Reid said. "Obviously, it's not good enough. Shouldn't have allowed 17 points to start off with. We've got to be better."

In the end, though, it was the offense ... again.

Utah looked to be in the driver's seat early when freshman quarterback Isaac Wilson hit Brant Kuithe with a quick tunnel screen pass on the second play of Utah's opening drive, and the veteran tight end did the rest en route to a 71-yard touchdown to give the Utes some early momentum Saturday night on the road.

Game on.

But as the game developed, there wasn't much to show for the effort on the offensive side of the ball. Wilson was eventually replaced by Rose in the third quarter in what Whittingham said was a way to "get a spark, trying to create something."

Wilson finished the night throwing for 171 yards and one touchdown on 13-of-22 passing.

Rose didn't fair so well in his first series, either, with Utah going three-and-out. But on the ensuing Houston drive, Utah's defense came up big.

Linebacker Johnathan Hall picked off Houston quarterback Zeon Chriss and took it to the Cougars' 22-yard line. Three plays later, Micah Bernard found pay dirt on a 14-yard rushing touchdown to give the Utes a 14-7 lead.

Chriss fought back from the interception and led Houston on a 10-play, 85-yard drive that was capped off with a 28-yard passing touchdown to Joseph Manjack IV to even up the score 14-14 with 8:29 left in the game.

As Utah looked for a game-wining drive, with time quickly fading, Rose threw an interception at midfield on third-and-3 to end all hopes. Rose finished the game for the Utes with 45 yards on 7-of-15 passing.

Whittingham said the upcoming bye week will give the team a chance to assess the quarterback position, as well as every other inefficiency the team has. But the Utes are running out of time.

"We'll grade the film, and there's a good body of work from each guy in this game," Whittingham said of the QB situation. "Of course, Isaac has a much bigger body of work in the season, but we'll see how (Rose) did with his reads, and what he did with the opportunities that he had, and then make a decision which one we're going to go with.

"But I'm not saying Isaac has lost his job — and everybody's got to play up to a certain standard, and so the quarterback position is no different — and so we'll take a long, hard look at that and see where we are."

But losses continue to pile up, and the offense continues to find ways to not move the ball, even with a new offensive coordinator calling plays.

"He was put in a tough spot," Whittingham said of offensive coordinator Mike Bajakian. "You think he's going to create a miracle in five days on the job? That's not going to happen. But I thought we added some things to the offense that were helpful. ... The end result still not where we needed to be. But, again, you don't expect him to be a miracle worker in five days, just not realistic."

Bernard said he didn't have a public answer for why Utah continues to struggle each week, saying he "can't answer that."

"I'm not gonna answer that," he said. "I know what it is, but I'm not gonna answer that."

Houston's Chriss finished with 61 yards, two touchdowns and one interception on 6-of-13 passing. Chriss added to the rushing total with success on the ground, finishing with 45 yards on 17 carries.

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