HOUSTON — Colorado coach Deion Sanders expressed uncertainty about his quarterback situation after the Buffaloes were dominated 36-20 by Houston in their Big 12 opener Friday night.

Sanders started Ryan Staub, who began the season as the third-string quarterback, against the hosting Cougars, but Colorado’s offense was underwhelming for most of the night. Staub, who was making his second career start and first since 2023, finished 19-of-35 passing for 204 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions.

“Staub didn’t play well,” Sanders said after the loss. “That wasn’t his best, to say the least.”

Asked how he plans to manage the quarterback situation moving forward, Sanders said, “I have no idea. Right now, I’m not thinking about that. I’m thinking about what transpired and how to prevent … that from happening again.”

Staub became the story of the week for the Buffaloes after entering last week’s win over Delaware and going 7-of-10, passing for 157 yards and two touchdowns. Though he started the 2023 season finale against Utah, he has primarily been a reserve quarterback and was third on the depth chart behind transfer Kaidon Salter and highly regarded freshman Julian Lewis.

Sanders gave Staub the starting nod Friday, but the offense struggled out of the gate, punting on its first four possessions. Then, late in the first half, Staub’s mobility and improvisation helped Colorado’s offense come alive as he led two touchdown drives to help the Buffaloes cut a double-digit deficit to two points at halftime.

The Buffaloes (1-2) started the second half much like the first, with four empty possessions, punting twice, turning it over on a Staub interception and turning it over on downs. Colorado finished the game with just 300 yards of total offense.

Sanders was frustrated with his team’s all-around performance.

“We’re not struggling, we’re getting our butts kicked,” Sanders said of the defense.

Colorado allowed Houston to rack up 209 rushing yards.

“I’m lost for words,” Sanders said. “No one could have told me that this game was going to turn out like this with the week of preparation that we had, with the meetings that we had, with the film study (we had) … It wasn’t good. It wasn’t good at all.

“I take full responsibility (for) the foolishness that went on out there that we tried to call football. It wasn’t that.”

Houston quarterback Conner Weigman, a transfer from Texas A&M, stole the show by accounting for 305 yards of offense and two touchdowns. The Cougars (3-0) are off to their best start since 2016. This is the first time the Cougars have won their Big 12 opener since joining the conference in 2023.

Big win for Houston

The Cougars struggled in their first two seasons of Big 12 play, going 4-8 each of the last two years after transitioning from the American Athletic Conference. However, head coach Willie Fritz, who is in his second year with the program after arriving from Tulane, seems to have rejuvenated the Cougars with the help of 30 transfers, including 11 on offense, to help revive a unit that was second worst in the FBS last season.

Friday’s 16-point win is Houston’s largest margin of victory in a Big 12 game since joining the conference. The Cougars’ 431-yard offensive output was their best since Sept. 30, 2023, breaking a streak of 21 consecutive games without reaching 400 yards.

For the third straight week, Houston did not turn the ball over. The Cougars were one of 20 teams that entered the week without committing a turnover, but they are the first to achieve three turnover-free games so far this season.

Cougars’ offense shines

Weigman, a former five-star recruit from Cypress, Texas, near Houston, looked like the player he was before injuries disrupted his time at Texas A&M. He was accurate, threw the ball with confidence and made big plays with his legs, rushing for 83 yards and two touchdowns, including an impressive juke for his second score. He finished 15-of-24 passing for 222 yards.

“He ran the ball extremely well,” Fritz said. “I think sometimes (people) underestimate his ability to run.”

The Cougars also got strong performances from running back Dean Connors and receiver Stephon Johnson. Connors had his second straight game of more than 100 yards from scrimmage, following up a 132-yard rushing performance last week by accounting for 111 yards on Friday (a team-high 89 rushing and 22 receiving).

Johnson, after catching just one pass in the first two weeks, caught five balls for 117 yards, including a 54-yard streak down the right sideline that helped set up Weigman’s second touchdown run and put the game out of reach.

The Cougars showed signs on Friday night that they could be a factor in the Big 12 this season, but Fritz warned his team not to get ahead of itself.

“It’s a big, big, big game for our program,” he said. “But that (win) counts as one. I told our guys (to) make sure they celebrate for a couple days … but we’ve got to move on. You sit around and revel in past successes, you’re not going to be as good as you can be.”

(Photo: Alex Slitz / Getty Images)