Utah now carries the Big 12's Playoff hopes, remains unbeaten after surviving Houston New York Times (Online) Christopher Kamrani After a tough day for the Big 12 in which two of its undefeated teams took their first loss, No. 10 Utah put itself in the driver's seat of the conference race with a 21-13 home win over No. 14 Houston. The Utes (7-0, 4-0 Big 12) are the league's only undefeated team and are sure to move up in the Associated Press poll after No. 7 Ole Miss and No. 8 Texas Tech fall . Saturday night's win, which was Utah's first over a ranked team this season, also boosts the Utes' College Football Playoff hopes. In a defensive slugfest for much of the night, a key defensive call by Utah helped seal the deal in the final minutes. With the Utes clinging to a one-point lead with 2:20 left and Houston with the ball, defensive back Jackson Bennee knifed through the Houston front unblocked, leveled Cougar quarterback Conner Weigman, and forced a fumble, which Utah defensive tackle Jireh Moe recovered. On the next play, Utah quarterback Devon Dampier trotted in for a 9-yard touchdown run and an eight-point lead. The Cougars (6-2, 3-2) had one final opportunity, but the Utes' pressure packages forced Weigman to get rid of the ball quickly on his final three pass attempts, all of which fell incomplete. “Man, honestly, we knew this was gonna be a fight,” Dampier said after the win. “Houston's a well-coached team, players as well … The message was we talked about getting to the College Football Playoff, and we're here.” The Cougars came into Saturday as one of the nation's most productive offenses, ranked No. 2 in the FBS in points per possession, behind only Miami. And though Houston moved the ball, Utah allowed points on only three of seven Cougar drives. In addition to the late fumble, Utah forced two turnovers on downs and four punts. Credit the Utes for a sound game plan and a physical performance. They played fast, tackled hard and kept Weigman under pressure, sacking him three times. They also held Houston to just 2.8 yards per rush. The Cougars losing star tight end Patrick Overmyer, who left in the game with a first-half injury and didn't return, certainly factored into their offensive struggles. Overmyer, The Athletic 's midseason All-American tight end , led all FBS tight ends with seven touchdown receptions entering Saturday night. Much of the attention around Utah has been on its offense this season, one of the most creative units, led by one of the country's best dual-threat quarterbacks, Dampier. Though Dampier made plenty of plays on Saturday night (204 passing yards, 150 rushing yards and two touchdowns), it's the defensive effort that proved most valuable. — Sam Khan Jr. This story will be updated