Willie Fritz knows his Houston football team will have to play a near-perfect game to beat No. 17 Kansas State on Saturday.

And it starts with winning the revenue battle.

“Three weeks ago we were plus-four (in turnovers) … and we won the game on the road,” Fritz said during his weekly press conference. “The next week we were minus four and lost the game. We have to do a great job of increasing sales.”

According to Fritz, Houston has a 2-1 record in their last three games, with wins over TCU and Utah where they forced a total of six turnovers. In their 42-14 loss to Kansas, they didn't force a single turnover – and the Cougars threw four interceptions.

Houston (3-5, 2-3) enters Saturday's Big 12 home game against Kansas State (7-1, 4-1) as a 12.5-point underdog.

Here are the highlights from Fritz's weekly press conference.

Fritz on only completing six passes in the 17:14 win against Utah:

“I did that for a couple seasons at Georgia Southern. I think we averaged 383 yards rushing per game one year. … We didn’t throw the ball very often. You must find your way to victory. We played damn well in defense.

“A big play that probably goes unnoticed is we score our first touchdown and get a 15-yard penalty. We have to kick off from the 20. Jack (Martin) hits a 75-yard kickoff and we go down the field and cover it well and they had a ball (penalty) on the play and they start at the 18th…If you can get them to do it To get to the long field, you could give up a first down or two. Get the stop, be in the driver's seat, and then get on the field with your offense.

Fritz on what he would have done differently with Houston's two failed fourth-down chances:

“Yes, I would have scored touchdowns. That would have been good.”

“A big barometer for victory is what we call four-point games. Scoring touchdowns instead of field goals We wanted to try… We had a missed block assignment that hurt us on one of them. Then we had difficulty replacing the center quarterback on a quarterback sneak, which was discouraging.

“But the other part of it is if you don’t get the touchdown, they have to go 99 (yards). We played pretty good defense. It's not a guarantee, but it almost guarantees you'll get it done. “I'll get the ball back in pretty good field position, which is what happened with one of them.

Fritz on the balance of the Big 12:

“Every game will be tough. This is a very, very balanced and competitive league.”

Fritz on running back J'Marion Burnette, who had his best game of the season against Utah:

“He’s a big guy who can run fast. Good moves. Good view. His first run of the game was outstanding. 230 and has excellent speed.”

Fritz on how difficult it will be to beat Kansas State:

“I think we started the season with the fifth-toughest schedule in the NCAA. When the season ends it will be interesting to see where we stand. Everyone in the Big 12 is pretty darn good. This is another tough opponent.” We talk about what we call the plan to win. It will be difficult for us to beat them if we don't get a big part of the plan to win.

“We have to achieve a plus increase in sales. This will be very, very important. They have two excellent running backs and an excellent quarterback who can also run the ball. So we have to do some good work in the run game. … We just have to stick to our plan so we have a chance to win on Saturday.

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