| Year: | 1973 |
| Team: | Houston Cougars |
| Sport: | football |
| Conference: | Independent |
| Coachrank: | 13 |
| Aprank: | 9 |
| Record: | 11–1 |
| Head Coach: | Bill Yeoman |
| Hc Year: | 12th |
| Off Scheme: | Houston Veer |
| Def Coach: | Don Todd |
| Dc Year: | 2nd |
| Stadium: | Houston Astrodome |
| Champion: | Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl champion |
| Bowl: | Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl |
| Bowl Result: | W 47–7 vs. Tulane |
The 1973 Houston Cougars football team, also known as the Houston Cougars, Houston, or UH, represented the University of Houston in the 1973 NCAA Division I football season. It was the 28th year of season play for Houston. The team was coached by 12th-year head coach Bill Yeoman who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2001. The team played its home games in the Astrodome, a 50,000-person capacity stadium off-campus in Houston at the Astrodomain. Houston competed as a member of the NCAA in the University Division, independent of any athletic conference. It was their fourteenth year of doing so. The Cougars had been admitted to the Southwest Conference two years prior, but were ineligible for conference play until the 1976 season.[1] After completion of the regular season, the Cougars were invited to the Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl where they defeated the Tulane Green Wave.[2]
| Name | Position | Alma mater (year) | Year at Houston | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Army (1948) | 12th | |||
| Freshman assistant coach | Hardin–Simmons (1964) | 2nd | ||
| Offensive backs coach | Oklahoma (1954) | 11th | ||
| Billy Willingham | TCU (1951) | 8th | ||
| Barry Sides | Offensive line coach, defensive ends coach | Houston (1968) | 5th | |
| Clarence Daniel | Huron (1955) | 2nd | ||
| Larry French | Colorado State (1965) | 4th | ||
| Nebraska-Omaha (1951) | 11th | |||
| Carroll Schultz | Freshmen coach | Louisiana Tech (1948) | 12th | |
| Bobby Baldwin | Freshmen coach | Houston (1958) | 9th |