Houston head coach Dana Holgorsen on the sidelines in week two during his team’s game against Texas Tech. (Courtesy Houston Athletics)

Dana Holgorsen urges Houston fans to show out against Kansas

Clovis Shropshire
September 14, 2022
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4 minutes read

Houston head coach Dana Holgorsen has a message for fans ahead of Saturday’s home opener against Kansas. He wants them to show up.

Saturday’s game will be the second straight against a Big 12 opponent, or as Holgorsen dubbed it, UH’s preview of the new conference. The Cougars lost in week two to Texas Tech. UH will join the Big 12 on July 1, 2023.

“Our fanbase needs to understand that this is a big opportunity for the University of Houston and what the future is going to be,” Holgorsen said.

Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark, who visited the Houston campus on Monday, was planning to be in attendance for Saturday’s game, but he no longer plans to do so, according to the Lawrence Journal-World. Holgorsen said there needs to be a transition within the university, one of which is with attendance at games.

UH has not had over 30,000 fans in attendance for a home game since Nov. 10, 2018, when the Cougars hosted Temple. 30,862 people saw the Owls defeat Houston.

TDECU Stadium, which has 40,000 seats, has not had a sellout since Nov. 18, 2016, when 42,822 people packed into the stadium to see Houston host and dominate then No. 3 Louisville led by quarterback Lamar Jackson.

“We got an opportunity this weekend to start to make that transition,” Holgorsen said.

The season-high attendance number at TDECU Stadium in 2021 was 28,712, which was for the team’s final game of the season against Memphis. The Cougars defeated the Tigers for their 10th straight win in that matchup.

During Yormark’s visit on Monday, the commissioner was asked if he viewed the football games’ attendance numbers at Houston as a concern. He said it was not.

“Attendance I don’t think is an issue,” Yormark said. “If you look at all Big 12 teams, we’re playing to 90+ percent capacity. There (are) great rivalries, great brands that will be coming and calling this venue home, so no concerns there at all.”

Despite Yormark’s comments, the head coach wants more people to rally around the program, in particular the students. UH needs thousands of students to show up and support the program, Holgorsen said on Monday.

“It’s good to be at home, and it needs to feel like home,” Holgorsen said.