Houston's Visit to Georgia Southern Brings Willie Fritz Back to an Old Home

The No. 25 Cougars head coach returns to Statesboro, where he coached from 2014-15, but says Saturday's game is strictly business.

Houston coach Willie Fritz makes his first return to Statesboro, Georgia, in 11 years when the No. 25 Cougars visit Georgia Southern at Allen E. Paulson Stadium on Saturday. Fritz coached the Eagles for two seasons, 2014 through 2015, guiding the program's move up from Division I-AA to FBS play.

Fritz described the matchup as a work trip rather than a reunion, saying he might return for a homecoming game years after he retires. It is the first time in his 34-year head coaching career that he has brought a team back to one of his former stops. The home-and-home series between the schools was announced in 2016, before he took the Houston job.

His first Georgia Southern team went 9-3, won the Sun Belt title, and nearly upset North Carolina and Georgia Tech. The Eagles became just the third program to win a conference championship in its first FBS season, after Nevada in 1992 and Marshall in 1997. Fritz left with a 17-7 record and a bowl victory.

Among Houston's storylines, receiver Trent Walker has six catches for 64 yards on eight targets through three games after arriving from Oregon State, where he had 149 receptions for 1,724 yards over two seasons. Receiver Muizz Tounkara, out since preseason camp with a left foot injury, is close to returning, while nose guard Myles Parker's status is uncertain after turf toe. Eligibility rulings for receiver Stephon Johnson and safety Myles Rowser remain pending.

Houston fell to Texas Tech 28-26 on Friday, a game that included a costly false start near the goal line in the third quarter that forced the Cougars to settle for a field goal. The Cougars' Oct. 3 home game against UCF is set for an 11 a.m. kickoff on ESPN2.