This List of Houston Cougars head football coaches includes those coaches who have led the Houston Cougars football team that represents the University of Houston in the sport of American football. The Houston Cougars currently compete in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and have been members of the Big 12 Conference since the 2023 season. Eighteen men have served as the Cougars' head coach, including two who served as interim head coaches, since the Cougars began play in the fall of 1946.[1] Willie Fritz was named head coach on December 3, 2023.
Note: Through 2024 season.
| Name | Term | GC | OW | OL | OT | O% | CW | CL | CT | C% | PW | PL | PT | DCs | CCs | NCs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1946–1947 | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| 2 | 1948–1954 | — | |||||||||||||||
| 3 | 1955–1956 | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| 4 | 1957–1961 | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| 5 | 1962–1986 | — | |||||||||||||||
| 6 | 1987–1989 | — | |||||||||||||||
| 7 | 1990–1992 | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| 8 | 1993–1999 | — | — | ||||||||||||||
| 9 | 2000–2002 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||
| 10 | 2003–2007 | — | — | — | |||||||||||||
| Int. | 2007 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||
| 11 | 2008–2011 | — | — | — | |||||||||||||
| 12 | 2011–2014 | — | — | — | |||||||||||||
| Int. | 2014 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||
| 13 | Tom Herman[2] | 2015–2016 | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| 14 | Major Applewhite | 2016–2018 | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| 15 | Dana Holgorsen | 2019–2023 | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| 16 | Willie Fritz | 2024–present | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| Totals | 893 | 476 | 402 | 15 | 13 | 16 | 1 | 6 | 11 | 0 | |||||||