Houston coach Willie Fritz’s Cougars have made a splash in college football this season after romping to a 7-1 record with quarterback Conner Weigman, who is ranked No. 22 in PFSN’s QB Impact under center. The Cougars are also ranked No. 22 in the AP Top 25 Poll for the first time in three years.
After beating the Arizona State Sun Devils 24-16 last week, the Cougars’ first win over a ranked opponent on the road since 2017, Houston entered the Week 10 clash against the West Virginia Mountaineers as two-touchdown favorites.
Fans Complain About Ranked Teams’ Sparse Support
Despite the Cougars’ lofty rankings in the AP Top 25 Poll, pictures of a sparsely populated TDECU Stadium against West Virginia went viral on X.
One fan expressed his indignation at the low fan turnout, stating that it would affect any future move to either the Big Ten or SEC in a college football conference realignment move. He wrote, “Disgusting. Loss of words with our fan base. When realignment happens in 2031, the fans will be the SOLE thing keeping us from moving to potentially the B10 or SEC IF B12 falls apart…”
Disgusting. Loss of words with our fan base. When re-alignment happens in 2031, the fans will be the SOLE thing keeping us from moving to potentially the B10 or SEC IF B12 falls apart…
— George Nassif (@GeorgeNassif91) November 1, 2025
“Weak ass crowd,” another fan tweeted.
Weak ass crowd @BarstoolCoogs
— WVU Barstool (@WVUBarstool) November 1, 2025
“Nobody’s getting up at 8 to watch the coogs man not yet,” one fan tweeted.
nobody’s getting up at 8 to watch the coogs man not yet
— Carter (@CarterR213) November 1, 2025
“This is why.. no matter how good y’all are at basketball (which y’all are, I don’t deny it).. I just can’t take y’all seriously as a big12 sports program. Y’all’s fans are MIA and the support just isn’t there.. something needs to be done,” another fan opined.
This is why.. no matter how good y’all are at basketball (which y’all are, I don’t deny it).. I just can’t take y’all seriously as a big12 sports program. Y’all’s fans are MIA and the support just isn’t there.. something needs to be done.
— RedRaiderPlaya (@TTU_86) November 1, 2025
“We would unironically do so well in the SEC… if it weren’t for the FANS. A&M and LSU can get 100k people and students to show up every game and we can’t get 40,000? Pathetic honestly,” one fan tweeted.
We would unironically do so well in the SEC… if it weren’t for the FANS. A&M and LSU can get 100k people and students to show up every game and we can’t get 40,000? Pathetic honestly
— Cougar Joe (@JoeTheCoogFan) November 1, 2025
“Like seriously words cannot express my frustration with our fans. We’re 22nd in the country. Let’s be serious. There is absolutely zero excuse for this to be the student section and for the rest of the stadium to look similar when we’re 7-1,” another fan wrote.
Like seriously words cannot express my frustration with our fans.
We’re 22nd in the country. Let’s be serious.
There is absolutely zero excuse for this to be the student section and for the rest of the stadium to look similar when we’re 7-1. https://t.co/dPIs4mn4JM pic.twitter.com/NoJg4WHCO0— #22 Barstool Coogs (@BarstoolCoogs) November 1, 2025
While it is glaring in football, the support for the Cougars’ other sports also dwindles. The situation was so concerning that one of the coaches had to take it upon himself to get students to watch their games.
Ranked College Football Team’s Fans Called Out by Basketball Coach
After the Houston Cougars’ basketball team’s exhibition win against the Mississippi State Bulldogs on Sunday, outspoken coach Kelvin Sampson criticized the program’s students for not attending home games at TDECU Stadium. Sampson referenced the Cougars’ 31-28 home win against the Arizona Wildcats in Week 8 as an example of the student section not doing enough for the program.
“Willie is a winner. He did an awesome job getting them in here,” Sampson said. “He knows what he’s doing, but we gotta support him. We had homecoming last week, and 15,000 fans, come on man. Our fans got to support Willie. They got to support the kids. We’ve got a big game coming up this weekend. We need to fill that place. I mean, that matters.”
He then gave reasons to the fans to show up: “Most fans want to wait until you win, right? Well, we’re winning. Come on, let’s fill up our TDECU. We’ve got a great coach, a great coaching staff. We’ve got a bunch of kids that are fighting their hearts out every game. We just put the nation on alert with that Arizona State win. I can’t wait to see them on Saturday against West Virginia.”
Despite Sampson’s call to the Cougars fans, the pictures of the lowly populated TDECU Stadium still painted a stark picture during Houston’s college football game against West Virginia in Week 10 action.
