Rice football couldn’t get past Wake Forest in their 2019 home opener. Much of the rest of Conference USA football didn’t fare much better in Week 2.
| Team | Week 2 | Result | Week 3 |
| Charlotte | at App St | L, 41-56 | vs UMass |
| FAU | vs No. 18 UCF | L, 48-14 | at Ball St |
| FIU | vs WKU | L, 20-14 | vs New Hampshire |
| LaTech | vs Grambling | W, 20-14 | at Bowling Green |
| Marshall | at No. 24 Boise St | L, 14 -7 | vs Ohio |
| MTSU | vs Tennessee St | W, 45-26 | vs Duke |
| North Texas | at SMU | L, 49-27 | at Cal |
| ODU | at Virginia Tech | L, 31-17 | — OFF — |
| Rice | vs Wake Forest | L, 41-21 | vs No. 9 Texas |
| Southern Miss | at Mississippi St | L, 38-15 | at Troy |
| UAB | at Akron | W, 31-20 | — OFF — |
| UTEP | at Texas Tech | L, 38-3 | — OFF — |
| UTSA | at Baylor | L, 63-14 | vs Army |
| WKU | at FIU | W, 20-14 | vs Louisville |
Notable Week 2 results
Scary stuff
Rice quarterback Wiley Green was down on the field for almost 15 minutes following a helmet-to-helmet collision with a Wake Forest defender on Friday night. He would leave the game and be transported to the hospital, where all post-injury testing came back negative. Rice would lose the game 41-21 with backup Tom Stewart accounting for a touchdown apiece through the air and on the ground in Green’s absence.
Sun not shining for Florida teams
Florida Atlantic and FIU were both projected to be among the upper echelon of C-USA East teams. Two weeks into the young season, both schools from the Sunshine State are 0-2. Florida Atlantic’s losses (Ohio State and UCF) have been more forgivable. It might be time to panic for FIU fans after dropping their first conference game to a Western Kentucky squad that fell to an FCS opponent in Week 1.
Isaiah still Green
Another C-USA East hopeful took a tumble in Week 2. The Marshall Thundering Herd went toe-to-toe with Boise State on the blue turf, including one final chance to tie the game midway through the fourth quarter. From midfield, sophomore quarterback Isaiah Green was picked off. Boise burned up the rest of the clock, winning 14-7. Once again, C-USA narrowly misses out on a signature win.
Week 3 storylines
Time for Fine?
North Texas quarterback Mason Fine has Heisman Trophy aspirations, but the Mean Green have a rigorous schedule and suffered their first loss in Week 2 against SMU. Keeping pace in C-USA is still in play, but any chances of fulfilling a New Year’s Six Bowl or more could fall away if North Texas misses on their marquee non-conference game. They trounced Arkansas on the road last year. Can they pull off another Power 5 upset against a stingy Cal team who knocked off Washington on Saturday night?
Give me a break
The quirky 2019 schedule has afforded teams two off weeks during the season instead of the traditional one. Old Dominion, UAB and UTEP each have their first off week in Week 3. All three of those teams enter their first respite with at least one win while UAB stands atop C-USA as the only 2-0 squad.
No rest for the weary
Most of C-USA suffered a loss in Week 2. Those losing teams won’t find much comfort from their schedules next weekend. Rice trades Wake Forest for a date with Texas. UTSA, who was rolled by Baylor, draws Army next. Southern Miss gets a feisty Troy team and Middle Tennessee trades Tennessee State for Duke. It could be another long weekend in C-USA.
