Conner Weigman completed 14 consecutive passes at one point and rushed for a career-high 111 yards and two touchdowns to lead Houston to a 24-16 victory Saturday over No. 24 Arizona State in Tempe, Ariz.
The Cougars (7-1, 4-1 Big 12) and Sun Devils (5-3, 3-2) met for the first time as conference opponents, and Houston’s win marked the first time the school had beaten a ranked team on the road since 2017, when it beat No. 17 South Florida.
Weigman completed 17 of 22 pass attempts for 201 yards, with a touchdown and no interceptions. His rushing total was produced on a team-high 21 attempts.
The Sun Devils suffered their first loss in Tempe with Sam Leavitt as the starting quarterback, snapping an 11-game run.
Leavitt’s top target, receiver Jordan Tyson, did not play because of a hamstring injury, and Leavitt himself was forced to the locker room during Arizona State’s first possession to undergo concussion protocol.
When he returned, the Sun Devils trailed 10-0.
Leavitt exited the game again with 7:15 remaining in the game due to an undisclosed injury. His backup, Jeff Sims, engineered a scoring possession that ended with his 27-yard touchdown pass to Chamon Metayer with 5:18 left that cut the lead to 24-16.
After Houston was forced to punt, Arizona State gained possession at its 5 -yard line with 2:08 left. But Sims had three incomplete passes and the Sun Devils turned the ball over on downs at their 11.
Weigman’s 50-yard run up the middle helped set up an Ethan Sanchez 26-yard field to give Houston a 3-0 after the first possession of the game. He capped the next drive with a 1-yard touchdown run.
One of the 14 consecutive successful pass attempts for Weigman was a 7-yard connection with Tanner Koziol that put Houston ahead 17-0 with 10:10 left in the third quarter.
Weigman then scored his second touchdown run from one yard, increasing the lead to 24-0 with 1:06 remaining in the third quarter.
Arizona State cut the lead to 24-6 on a 3-yard touchdown pass from Leavitt to Cameron Harpole with 13:56 left in the game. The two-point conversion attempt failed.
Jesus Gomez, who missed two attempts earlier in the game, nailed a 47-yard field goal that cut the lead to 24-9 with 11:24 left.
