Rice football is going bowling. The Owls have been tabbed to face Texas State in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl.
Rice Football returns to the postseason for the second time in as many years under head coach Mike Bloomgren. This time though, the Owls didn’t sneak in as a five-win team. Rice secured bowl eligibility with a sixth win in their regular season finale over Florida Atlantic, setting the stage for their next game which will come in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl against Texas State.
The SERVPRO First Responder Bowl is played on Saturday, December 26 at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Unversity Park, Texas. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. CT. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
Head coach Mike Bloomgren issued this statement following the announcement:
“Our players cannot wait to get to Dallas and experience all the First Responder Bowl has to offer. After the Lending Tree Bowl last December, they came to work every day over the last year with the mindset to not only return to a bowl, but to come home as champions. That determination drove them to close the season with wins in our last two games to earn this opportunity and I know will continue as we prepare for Texas State.”
Rice and Texas State have met four times, but it’s been a while since the two Texas-based programs have played. Rice won the most recent game 38-28 in Houston in 1987.
Memphis defeated Utah State in last year’s SERVPRO First Responder Bowl. Air Force, Louisiana and Western Kentucky are the most recent winners since SERVPRO took over the sponsorship rights. The bowl had previously been played under the following names: Heart of Dallas Bowl and TicketCity Bowl.
Rice Football Bowl History
Rice has played in 13 bowl games in program history and holds a postseason record of 7-6. Rice went 3-1 in four bowl games under previous head coach David Bailiff and is 0-1 under Mike Bloomgren.
| Season | Bowl | Opponent | Result |
| 1937 | Cotton Bowl Classic | Colorado | W, 28–14 |
| 1946 | Orange Bowl | Tennessee | W, 8–0 |
| 1949 | Cotton Bowl Classic | North Carolina | W, 27–13 |
| 1953 | Cotton Bowl Classic | Alabama | W, 28–6 |
| 1957 | Cotton Bowl Classic | Navy | L, 7–20 |
| 1960 | Sugar Bowl | Ole Miss | L, 6–14 |
| 1961 | Bluebonnet Bowl | Kansas | L, 7–33 |
| 2006 | New Orleans Bowl | Troy | L, 17–41 |
| 2008 | Texas Bowl | Western Michigan | W, 38–14 |
| 2012 | Armed Forces Bowl | Air Force | W, 33–14 |
| 2013 | Liberty Bowl | Mississippi State | L, 7–44 |
| 2014 | Hawaii Bowl | Fresno State | W, 30–6 |
| 2022 | Lending Tree Bowl | Southern Miss | L, 38–24 |
Rice Football vs Texas State history
| Season | Location | Result |
| 1920 | Houston, TX | W, 48-0 |
| 1923 | Houston, TX | L, 19-16 |
| 1986 | Houston, TX | L, 31-6 |
| 1987 | Houston, TX | W, 38-28 |
Make sure you’re subscribed to The Roost on Patreon for breakdowns of the matchup, practice reports and more as the 2023 Rice Football season marches onward for a few more weeks.
