The Cougars struck early, finishing their first drive with kicker Dalton Witherspoon drilling a 46-yarder, his longest field goal of the night. Houston then scored on four consecutive drives putting the Cougars up 31-3 with 10:25 left in the first half. That explosive Houston offense was nowhere to be found in the second half in which they only scored once. The missed tackles that haunted the Cougars in their season-opener against the fifth-ranked Sooners went uncorrected in Saturday's game against the overmatched Panthers. The Cougars are going to have to dig deep on both sides of the ball if they want to stand a chance against No. 20 Washington State next week.
No. 1 Clemson looked comfortable as they won their record-tying 17th straight game with a 24-10 victory over the Aggies on Saturday. The Tigers wanted to leave no doubts that they were a better team than the Aggies after Texas A&M'S nail-biting 28-26 loss to Clemson in 2018. "We wanted to leave no doubt this year," Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence said. "I think we did that." Aggie quarterback Kellen Mond, who threw for 430 yards against Clemson in their meeting last season, left much to be desired after being restricted to only 236 yards passing with an interception and a fumble on Saturday. Toward the end of the first half, Clemson receiver Tee Higgins reached behind him to grab a pass from Lawrence at the A&M 2. Two plays later, Lawrence scored on a 1-yard run sending the Tigers up 17-3 at the half. The Aggies never recovered. Aggie coach Jimbo Fisher will have plenty to harp on in practice this week as his team struggled on both sides of the ball. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney was especially proud of how his secondary responded to keep the Aggies out of the end zone. There was "a lot of talk about our secondary in last year's game versus A&M and these guys responded," Swinney said. Clemson is expected to hold firm to its No. 1 position and the Aggies will likely take a huge dive down the rankings. Texas A&M hosts Lamar next week and Clemson returns to ACC play at Syracuse.
LSU quarterback Joe Burrow was on fire, delivering all the big throws for the Tigers in their near-perfect 45-38 win over the Longhorns Saturday night. Burrow threw for 471 yards and four touchdowns. "Man, he was so fired up," LSU coach Ed Orgeron said. "The kid is a baller. He lives for that moment and I'll tell you what, those were some tough plays." Burrow was laser-focused after the half when he was 15-of-18 passing for 251 yards and two touchdowns. LSU receiver Justin Jefferson had nine receptions for 163 yards and three scores. Jefferson's final touchdown reception came when Burrow dropped back to avoid a blitz and fired the pass. The completion was good enough for a first down but Jefferson broke a tackle and sped down the sideline for a touchdown. LSU's new wide-open offense was razor sharp but the defense missed tackles and gave up huge plays and scoring drives. With kickoff temperatures hovering around 100 degrees, it's no wonder LSU players had trouble with cramps all night. Texas fans booed when they thought LSU players were stalling. When asked if LSU's cramping halted his team's momentum, Herman said "Yes." Longhorn quarterback Sam Ehlinger, who matched Burrow nearly blow for blow, finished with 401 passing yards and four touchdowns. Texas is at Rice next week and LSU hosts Northwestern State.
Texas Tech quarterback Alan Bowman threw three touchdown passes and the Red Raiders coasted to a 38-3 victory over UTEP on Saturday night. The Red Raider defense allowed just 131 yards total offense in Texas Tech's eight-straight win against UTEP. "Obviously we never want to punt but to walk off the field and know, probably like they are not going to score, they are definitely not going to score," Bowman said. "For them to have our back like that on offense just makes it more of, `OK, we can try to make this throw because we know they are going to the field and they are going to make a stop in the next possession.' So it definitely opens up a lot more for us and gives us a little bit more confidence.
Senior receiver Denzel Mims stole the show with three touchdowns and 147 yards on 12 receptions for Baylor in their 63-14 win over UTSA on Saturday. Baylor third-year starting quarterback Charlie Brewer completed 12-of-16 passes for 163 yards and three touchdowns while only playing the first half. Kickoff temperature was 99 degrees but the turf was much warmer. "Felt like it was 150 degrees," said Brewer, who was sent to the locker room early by coach Matt Rhule after feeling a burning sensation in his feet. "I'm good," said Brewer, who had X-rays to make sure there were no issues. "Feet were hot. I tried to go back in, and he wouldn't let me." The Bears followed up their 39-point season-opening victory by scoring their most points since 2015. Baylor is off next week and UTSA is home next Saturday against Army.
Wake Forest quarterback Jamie Newman threw for 312 yards passing and three touchdowns leading the Demon Deacons to a 41-21 victory over Rice on Friday night. Senior receiver Scotty Washington finished with 158 receiving yards on 7 receptions and three touchdowns for Wake Forest in their relentless takedown of the Owls. Rice quarterback Tom Stewart was 19-of-30 for only 185 yards and a touchdown after replacing starter Wiley Green, who was carted off the field in the first quarter. Rice faces No. 9 Texas in Houston next week and Wake Forest hosts North Carolina.
Cooper Rothe kicked three field goals and Tyler Hall snagged a pick-six to lead Wyoming to a 23-14 victory over Texas State on Saturday. The Bobcats controlled the first half but Hall intercepted a pass from Gresch Jensen and dashed 72 yards for the score, giving Wyoming a 20-14 lead in the fourth quarter. Rothe kicked a 19-yard field goal, sealing the win for Wyoming on the final quarter.
What looked like a minor blip after an emotional series win in Los Angeles has turned into something more concerning for the Houston Astros.
Swept at home by a Guardians team that came in riding a 10-game losing streak, the Astros were left looking exposed. Not exhausted, as injuries, underperformance, and questionable decision-making converged to hand Houston one of its most frustrating series losses of the year.
Depth finally runs dry
It would be easy to point to a “Dodger hangover” as the culprit, the emotional peak of an 18-1 win at Chavez Ravine followed by a mental lull. But that’s not the story here.
Houston’s energy was still evident, especially in the first two games of the series, where the offense scored five or more runs each time. Including those, the Astros had reached that mark in eight of their last 10 games heading into Wednesday’s finale.
But scoring isn’t everything, not when a lineup held together by duct tape and desperation is missing Christian Walker and Jake Meyers and getting critical at-bats from Cooper Hummel, Zack Short, and other journeymen.
The lack of depth finally showed. The Astros, for three days, looked more like a Triple-A squad with Jose Altuve and a couple big-league regulars sprinkled in.
Cracks in the pitching core
And the thing that had been keeping this team afloat, elite pitching, finally buckled.
Hunter Brown and Josh Hader, both dominant all season, finally cracked. Brown gave up six runs in six innings, raising his pristine 1.82 ERA to 2.21. Hader wasn’t spared either, coughing up a game-losing grand slam in extra innings that inflated his ERA from 1.80 to 2.38 in one night.
But the struggles weren’t isolated. Bennett Sousa, Kaleb Ort, and Steven Okert each gave up runs at critical moments. The bullpen’s collective fade could not have come at a worse time for a team already walking a tightrope.
Injury handling under fire
Houston’s injury management is also drawing heat, and rightfully so. Jake Meyers, who had been nursing a calf strain, started Wednesday’s finale. He didn’t even make it through one pitch before aggravating the injury and needing to be helped off the field.
No imaging before playing him. No cautionary rest despite the All-Star break looming. Just a rushed return in a banged-up lineup, and it backfired immediately.
Second-guessing has turned to outright criticism of the Astros’ medical staff, as fans and analysts alike wonder whether these mounting injuries are being made worse by how the club is handling them.
Pressure mounts on Dana Brown
All eyes now turn to Astros GM Dana Brown. The Astros are limping into the break with no clear reinforcements on the immediate horizon. Only Chas McCormick is currently rehabbing in Sugar Land. Everyone else? Still sidelined.
Brown will need to act — and soon.
At a minimum, calling up top prospect Brice Matthews makes sense. He’s been mashing in Triple-A (.283/.400/.476, 10 HR, .876 OPS) and could play second base while Jose Altuve shifts to left field more regularly. With Mauricio Dubón stretched thin between shortstop and center, injecting Matthews’ upside into the infield is a logical step.
*Editor's note: The Astros must be listening, Matthews was called up Thursday afternoon!
The Astros are calling up Brice Matthews, their top prospect on @MLBPipeline
via @brianmctaggart pic.twitter.com/K91cGKkcx6
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) July 10, 2025
There’s also trade chatter, most notably about Orioles outfielder Cedric Mullins, but excitement has been tepid. His numbers don’t jump off the page, but compared to who the Astros are fielding now, Mullins would be a clear upgrade and a much-needed big-league presence.
A final test before the break
Before the All-Star reset, Houston gets one last chance to stabilize the ship, and it comes in the form of a rivalry series against the Texas Rangers. The Astros will send their top trio — Lance McCullers Jr., Framber Valdez, and Hunter Brown — to the mound for a three-game set that will test their resolve, their health, and perhaps their postseason aspirations.
The Silver Boot is up for grabs. So is momentum. And maybe, clarity on just how far this version of the Astros can go.
There's so much more to discuss! Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday.
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