Houston Cougars

The Houston Cougars are the sports teams for the University of Houston. They are also called the Coogs, UH, or just Houston. The name "Cougars" was suggested by John R. Bender, a teacher and old football coach at the school. The teams play in the NCAA's Division I and the Football Bowl Subdivision as part of the Big 12 Conference.

The school colors are scarlet red and albino white, and the mascot is a cougar named Shasta. One big rival is Rice University, with whom they played together for many years (see also Houston–Rice rivalry).

Houston has a long history in sports, including the famous Phi Slama Jama and a sixteen-time national champion men's golf team. The university has many sports places on campus, such as TDECU Stadium, Fertitta Center, and Schroeder Park.

Before 1960, Houston was in several groups, including the Lone Star Conference, Gulf Coast Conference, and Missouri Valley Conference. From 1960 to 1971, they played alone. Later, from 1971 to 1996, they were part of the Southwest Conference. After that ended in 1996, Houston helped start Conference USA. In 2013, they joined the American Athletic Conference, and in 2023, they became part of the Big 12 Conference.

Sports sponsored

The newest sport added was women's golf. Two players from UH took part in the 2014 season, and a full team started in the 2014–15 season.

Basketball

The Houston Cougars men's basketball team plays for the University of Houston in NCAA Division I. The team is in the Big 12 Conference. The last time they played in the NCAA tournament was in 2025. They are coached by Kelvin Sampson. Their home games are at the Fertitta Center, which opened in 2018–19 after the old Hofheinz Pavilion was updated. While the center was being updated, they played at H&PE Arena at Texas Southern University.

Famous players for the team include Basketball Hall of Famers Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler, as well as Otis Birdsong and Hall of Famer Elvin Hayes. Each of these players has had their number retired. Famous coaches are Guy Lewis, Clyde Drexler and Kelvin Sampson.

In recent years, the team has done very well under coach Kelvin Sampson. Houston went to the Final Four in 2021, their first time since 1984. After moving to the Big 12 Conference in 2023, they quickly showed they could compete. They won the conference titles in 2024 and 2025, and in 2025 they also won the Big 12 tournament and reached the national championship game. The women's team has been in the NCAA Tournament in 1988, 1992, 2004, 2005, and 2011.

Football

The University of Houston had its first football team in 1946. The Houston Cougars football team now plays in NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision. After 18 seasons in C-USA, they joined the American Athletic Conference in 2013.

The team used to play at Robertson Stadium until it closed in 2012. In their first season in the AAC, they played at Reliant Stadium and BBVA Compass Stadium; the new TDECU Stadium opened on the old Robertson Stadium site in 2014.

The 2015 Houston Cougars football team, led by new coach Tom Herman, had one of its best seasons ever. They finished with a 13–1 record and won the American Athletic Conference (AAC) Championship. They played in the 2015 Peach Bowl, beating ninth-ranked Florida State. The team is now coached by Willie Fritz, who became head coach in December 2023. The Cougars joined the Big 12 Conference on July 1, 2023.

Golf

The Houston Cougars men's golf program, started in 1946, is one of the best in NCAA history. Under legendary coach Dave Williams, the team won 16 NCAA team national championships from 1956 to 1985. The program has had eight individual national champions and many PGA Tour players, such as Fred Couples and Fuzzy Zoeller. The team now competes in the Big 12 Conference under head coach Jonathan Dismuke.

Baseball

Corey Julks and Connor Wong played for the team in 2015 at Minute Maid Park.

The baseball team, like the other teams at the university, is in the Big 12 Conference and plays in Division I. They play at Schroeder Park and are coached by Todd Whitting. The Houston Cougars baseball program has been in 22 NCAA Regionals, four Super Regionals, and two College World Series.

Softball

The Houston Cougars softball team is in the Big 12 Conference of Division I. They play at Cougar Softball Stadium on campus. The team started in 2001 and has been in nine NCAA Regionals and two Super Regionals.

Cross Country

The Houston Cougars men's cross country team represents the University of Houston in NCAA Division I. The team’s biggest moment was in 1960 when they won the NCAA Division I men's cross country championship, the only team title in the program’s history. Houston now competes in the Big 12 Conference.

Championships

NCAA team championships

The Houston Cougars have won 17 NCAA team national championships. All of these championships are in men's sports. They won one championship in cross country in 1960 and sixteen in golf from 1956 to 1985.

You can find more information about big school championships at Big 12 Conference national team titles, List of NCAA schools with the most NCAA Division I championships, and List of NCAA schools with the most Division I national championships.

Notable Non Varsity Sports

The University of Houston has exciting teams that are not part of their main sports. One of these is the Ice Hockey Club. This team competes in the American Collegiate Hockey Association. It started in 1935 but stopped for a while. It returned in fall 2023 and played its first game against East Texas Baptist University. Since then, the team has played against rivals like the University of Texas at Austin, Southern Methodist University, Texas Christian University, University of Texas at San Antonio, and Texas State University. Their home games are at the Sugar Land Ice & Sports Center, and they have built a strong fan base.

Another team is the Rugby Club. They play college rugby in the Southwest Collegiate Rugby Conference of Division 1-A Rugby. They used to play in a lower division before moving up.

The Cricket Club also won the 2019 National College Cricket Association championship.

Rivalries

See also: Houston–Rice rivalry

The Houston Cougars have a strong rivalry with nearby Rice University. They play each other in football most years for a special trophy called the "Bayou Bucket," named after Houston's nickname, the "Bayou City."

Houston also used to compete often with Texas Tech University when they were in the same conference. Even though they don't play as often now, people are excited again because both teams are now in the Big 12 Conference together. In the past, the University of Texas was another big rival for Houston when they were both in the Southwest Conference. This led to a special tradition called the Houston Cougar Paw.

Athletic facilities

Most of the University of Houston's big sports places are along Cullen Boulevard, the main road through the campus. Sometimes, teams play at places not on campus, like the Astrodome and Rice Stadium. The golf programs play off campus because the school doesn’t have its own golf course.

The school’s sports places include:

• TDECU Stadium – Football
• Memorial Hermann Football Operations Center
• Fertitta Center – Men's and Women's Basketball, and Volleyball
• Schroeder Park – Baseball
• Cougar Softball Stadium – Softball
• Tom Tellez Track at Carl Lewis International Complex – Outdoor Track & Field and Soccer
• John E. Hoff Courts – Tennis
• CRWC Natatorium – Swimming & Diving
• Athletics/Alumni Center – Indoor Tennis and Indoor Track & Field (Training: All Sports)
• Yeoman Fieldhouse – Indoor Track & Field
• Golf Club of Houston – Men's and Women's Golf
• Dave Williams Golf Academy – Men's and Women's Golf

The Houston Dynamo of Major League Soccer played at Robertson Stadium until 2011.

Athletic Directors