Houston Cougars Release Baseball Schedule Ahead of 2026 Season

As previously mentioned, the Cougars will begin the 2026 season on the road playing in the Puerto Rico Challenge (Feb. 13-Feb. 16), where they will face Wake Forest, Boston College, Manhattan, and Washington. Todd Whitting and his squad will then head back to Houston for their home-opening series against an extremely talented UTRGV team (Feb. 20-Feb. 22).

After their three-game stint against the Vaqueros and a midweek against Sam Houston, the Cougars will participate in the Frisco Classic (Feb. 27-March 1) where they will take on Oregon State, Iowa, and Alabama. The Beavers and Crimson Tide could both end up being opportunities for Houston to find some ranked wins over quality opponents.

The Cougars will then be in Houston for a large part of March with nine straight home games from March 3 to March 18. The Cougars will take on Arkansas-Pine Bluff in a three-game series before beginning conference play against the Kansas State Wildcats (March 13-March 15).

The Cougars will then hit the road for a three-game series against the Kansas Jayhawks from March 20 to March 22, before a midweek game with Texas on March 24. Houston will return home for a three-game series against the Baylor Bears (March 27-March 29) before hitting the road for an away series against Texas Tech (April 2-April 4).

After a quick series against the BYU Cougars in Houston (April 9-April 11), the Cougars will get back on the road for a midweek against Texas A&M before an away series against West Virginia (April 17-April 19). Coach Whitting's team will stay on the road towards the end of April with a series against TCU in Fort Worth (April 24-April 26).

After a home series against Cincinnati (May 1 -May 3), the Cougars will host a talented Lamar program before hitting the road for a series in Tucson against Arizona (May 8-May 10). Houston will close their regular season at home against the Arizona State Sun Devils (May 14-May 16).

Why the Cougars Could Make their Mark on the College Baseball World

Last season, the Cougars dominated their out-of-conference schedule, winning 11 of their first 16 games. Although they were scheduled to face No.16 Texas and No.7 Oregon State, both games against a ranked opponent were canceled due to weather complications.

Despite finishing the season 30-25 with a win over Kansas State in the Big 12 tournament, the Cougars likely weren't considered for an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament due to a weak out-of-conference schedule. Going 12-17 in Big 12 play doesn't help things either.

Now, with a wide variety of talented freshmen and a baseball program that's hungry to see the postseason, Houston has the potential to make some noise in the Big 12 under Coach Whitting. Entering his 16th season as the Cougars' head coach, Whitting has recently turned Houston into a competitive baseball program within the Big 12.

In their first season as a member of the Big 12, the Cougars ended the season with a conference record of 7-21. In the following season, Whitting and his squad improved upon that mark by adding five wins to their total during league play by going 12-17.

With some steady improvement over the last few seasons, the Cougars will have their sights set on their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2019.