HOUSTON — Zeon Chriss threw for 103 yards and a touchdown without an incompletion as Houston rallied in fourth quarter to beat No. 17 Kansas State 24-19 on Saturday.
Trailing 19-10 to start the fourth quarter, Chriss threw a 1-yard touchdown to Maliq Carr with 11 minutes left. After forcing a punt, Chriss rushed for a 41-yard touchdown with 2:31 to go.
Chriss, who finished 11 of 11, also rushed for 75 yards and caught a pass for eight yards.
Michael Batton intercepted Avery Johnson on the next drive.
After Houston (4-5, 3-3 Big 12) was forced to punt with 40 seconds left, the Wildcats drove to the Cougars’ 39 with 4 seconds left, but Johnson’s heave was knocked out of the end zone.
The win was Houston’s first win over a ranked team since beating No. 19 SMU 44-37 on Oct. 30, 2021.
Donovan Smith rushed for a 1-yard touchdown midway to begin the second quarter to give Houston a 7-3 lead.
Johnson finished 23 of 39 for 238 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions for Kansas State. He found Keagan Johnson for a 7-yard touchdown pass with nine seconds left in the first half to give the Wildcats (7-2, 4-2) a 16-10 halftime lead. Johnson finished with 76 yards receiving.
DJ Giddens rushed for 50 yards and a touchdown as Kansas State outgained the Cougars 327-232.
The game was delayed 55 minutes to start because of lightning.
Kansas State: The loss hurts the chances of the Wildcats making the Big 12 championship and the College Football Playoff.
Houston: The Cougars finished 3 for 3 in the red zone after struggling last week against Utah.
Kansas State could potentially drop out of the rankings after the loss.
Kansas State hosts Arizona State on Nov. 16, while Houston plays at Arizona on Nov. 15.
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