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Owls to start Wiley Green vs North Texas

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Rice football has been forced to dig deep into the quarterback depth chart. Wiley Green will start for the Owls in lieu of an injured Evan Marshman.

Wiley Green started the fall as the fifth quarterback on the Owls’ roster. On Saturday he will start against North Texas because of injuries suffered by Shawn Stankavage and Evan Marshman in successive games.

Marshman started the Owls’ Week 8 game against FIU and played well. He completed 11-of-15 passes for 107 yards and threw one interception. He was even more productive on the ground, rushing for 68 yards and two scores. Unfortunately for Marshman and the Owls, his final run proved to be dangerous.

Marshman took off, found space and was greeted with a flurry of opposing jerseys at the goal line. He plunged through the scrum for the touchdown, landing awkwardly before being immediately rushed to the medical tent. He did not return to the game, and he won’t suit up again for the Owls any time soon. Precise details of his injury have not yet been made public, but like Stankavage, this injury will cause him to miss multiple weeks if not longer.

That makes Green, the former scout team quarterback, the next man up for the Owls against North Texas. After him, the depth chart gets murky. Jackson Tyner is one of the few men standing at the position which has prompted the coaching staff to dig deeper for possible solutions. In addition to Tyner, wide receiver Austin Trammell and running back Juma Otaviano will take reps at quarterback this week.

Rice will play its third different starting quarterback in three weeks against North Texas. That’s not what any coach would hope for, but the raw talent Green possesses makes Bloomgren hopeful. “He can spin it,” Bloomgren said, adding that he’s been impressed with his progression this fall.

Green understands the gravity of the situation, but say’s his preparation remains the same.  “At the end of the day, it’s football. No matter if it’s the ones or the threes it’s football and I’ve been playing it since elementary school.” That may be true, but this weekend won’t be just another game. It will be his first collegiate start.

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This week in CUSA – Looking ahead at Week 9

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Rice football fell at home to UAB in Week 7. How did the rest of the conference fare and what’s next for Conference USA football in Week 9?

Team Last Week Result This Week
Charlotte at MTSU L, 21-13 vs Southern Miss
FAU at Marshall L, 31-7 vs LaTech
FIU vs Rice W, 36-17 at WKU
LaTech vs UTEP W, 31-24 at FAU
Marshall vs FAU W, 31-7  — OFF —
MTSU vs Charlotte W, 21-13 at ODU
North Texas at UAB L, 29-21 vs Rice
ODU at WKU W, 37-34 vs MTSU
Rice at FIU L, 36-17 at North Texas
Southern Miss vs UTSA W, 27-17 at Charlotte
UAB vs North Texas W, 29-21 at UTEP
UTEP at LaTech L, 31-24 vs UAB
UTSA at Southern Miss L, 27-17  — OFF —
WKU vs ODU L, 37-34 vs FIU

Notable Week 8 results

All aboard the Blazers’ train

UAB has become one of the best stories in college football. Two years ago they had no football team, now they’ve clinched their second consecutive bowl trip and their best start in program history. The job that head coach Bill Clark has done in Birmingham is outstanding, including their latest big win over a North Texas team that was the favorite to win the division entering the season. Now it’s UAB out in front and nobody has been able to stand in their way.

Western Kentucky is bad, but their luck couldn’t be worse

The tragedy that befell the Hilltoppers in Week 7 has to be seen to be believed — and even then, you still might not believe it. WKU was in position to force overtime against Old Dominion, instead, they allowed a game-winning field goal at the buzzer in the most befuddling of circumstances.

Rice is alive

Things were looking pretty bleak for the Owls who seemed to have lost their momentum completely. After an encouraging start to the year the Owls were shutout against UAB in Week 7. They responded with an inspiring performance against FIU, leading the Panthers on the road after the first quarter. They weren’t able to hold on to win, but the insertion of redshirt sophomore quarterback Evan Marshman has this team believing in themselves again.

Week 9 storylines

Last chance

One CUSA team that is trending in decidedly the wrong direction is FAU. The Owls have all but squandered any hopes of winning the East and will be fretting their bowl aspirations soon if they can’t turn things around. They’re 3-4 entering Week 9 with a home game against a dangerous Louisiana Tech team. If the Owls can’t bounce back they might be staying home this winter.

Can Old Dominion get on a roll?

Barring whatever exactly happened against WKU, Old Dominion would still be looking for their first conference win against Middle Tennessee. They were gifted a win against WKU, but the offensive production was a positive step. If the Monarchs can keep that side of the ball rolling they’ll be able to contend down the stretch. That starts against Middle Tennessee.

UTEP isn’t bad?

UTEP is 0-7. It’s hard to put too much stock in a team that has yet to win a game, but the Miners have come precariously close more times than they’d like. One of their last four games has been decided by more than seven points and each of their conference games have been winnable. Knocking off UAB is unlikely, but they’re playing well enough that a win on Saturday is absolutely on the table.

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Owls’ offense found a rhythm that worked

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It took several weeks, but Rice football has found their offense once again thanks to a strong performance from new starting quarterback Evan Marshman.

Rice began fall camp with an open competition for the starting quarterback position. Jackson Tyner, sam Glaesmann and Shawn Stankavage split reps with the starters. Glaesmann was moved to wide receiver and Tyner has been bumped behind two freshmen on the depth chart. Stankavage was the starter through the first seven weeks before his injury against UAB opened the door.

Redshirt freshman Evan Marshman, who began the fall on the scout team, beat out true freshman Wiley Green for the start against FIU. After struggling to move the ball with Stankavage (and briefly Tyner) at the helm of the offense against UTSA and UAB, Marshman led the team on two touchdown drives against FIU.

Rice quarterbacks combined to lead one scoring drive in the eight quarters leading up to the FIU game. That includes outings from Stankavage, Tyner and Marshman. Against FIU, Marshman led the Owls on three scoring drives, taking both touchdowns in himself.

It’s impossible to separate how much of Marshman’s performance was his natural talent versus improved scheming and execution from the offense. Regardless, he put points on the board. If he can keep doing that, the Owls will be just fine. They’ll find a way to pick up their first conference win soon enough.

Marshman was quickly ushered to the medical tent following his second touchdown run, but was able to reenter the game. Green played sparingly and was unable to generate much offense, throwing two interceptions and completing one pass for eight yards. Marshman will be in line to start again next weekend against North Texas. That’s an encouraging sign for a once-struggling Owls offense.

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Owls show progress in road loss to FIU

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Rice football entered their Week 8 game against FIU as heavy underdogs, but the Owls gave the Panthers all they could handle before ultimately falling 36-17.

Rice led 7-0 at the end of the first quarter against FIU. The scoreboard at the quarter mark was a huge boost of confidence for a team that had struggled on both sides of the ball and was looking for reasons to keep the faith. The results Saturday gave this team confidence that they can hang with anyone, including an FIU team that entered the weekend as the top team in CUSA East.

It was the Owls’ seventh consecutive loss. There are no moral victories, but the Owls did take meaningful steps forward in several key areas. Here are a few immediate thoughts from the loss to FIU.

1. Fast start

The phrase “start fast” has been heard around the Patterson Center for several weeks now. This team has put themselves behind the gun in each of the past two games, but that wasn’t the case on Saturday.

Rice football’s opening drive against FIU was a thing of beauty. The running game was working, the passing game was perfect and the Owls marched down the field 75 yards to score their first touchdown since the Wake Forest game on Sept. 29. Evan Marshman, in his first career start, was 4-for-4 for 38 yards through the air. He added three carries for 23 yards on the ground and a touchdown, which came on a carefully scripted fourth-and-inches attempt from seven yards out.

That scoring drive didn’t magically erase several weeks of struggling, but the emotional impact it had on this team cannot be understated. The talk had finally become reality. Rice had an offense, and they were ready from the first snap.

The defense answered the challenge, too. FIU managed just six yards on four plays on their first drive of the game. The Owls forced a punt which set the offense up in good field position for their next drive. Rice led 7-0 after the first quarter thanks to strong starts from the offense, defense and special teams.

2. Offense incorporates just the right amount of change

The edict to go back to the drawing board and start from square one has paid off. Bloomgren said his team was going to figure out what they could do on offense to move the ball most effectively. The result was an offense that looked similar to their previous iterations but included a calculated dose of new wrinkles.

The insertion of the new quarterback included an emphasis on more shotgun and pistol formations. Marshman took plenty of snaps under center, but he was clearly more comfortable with the extra space to operate. When he had that extra space he made the most of it. For the first time this year designed quarterback runs became an integral part of the offense. Marshman had 11 carries for 68 yards and two touchdowns. For reference, Shawn Stankavage, who started the first seven games of the year, has 32 carries for 58 yards and no touchdowns on the ground.

Marshman’s touchdown was perfectly scripted. On fourth-and-inches the Owls brought in their jumbo package. Rather than throw the fade or run up the middle, two looks they’ve shown already this season, Marshman kept the ball on a rollout. FIU was caught completely off guard and he walked into the endzone completely untouched.

3. A few bad moments spoil an otherwise strong defensive day

Good defenses find a way to get off the field without allowing points. Being successful on the vast majority of your plays doesn’t matter if the five plays you miss result in big plays for the other team. That’s what was so frustrating about the halftime score. Rice put together some strong drives on both sides of the ball, but two bad plays turned a halftime lead into a deficit.

The Owls missed a tackle on a jet sweep which allowed FIU speedster Maurice Alexander to race to the endzone untouched for a 51-yard touchdown. On the next drive, James Morgan got behind the secondary and hauled in a 33-yard touchdown pass on third and long. Those two plays count, but if the Owls hold there the game is much closer than the scoreboard indicated.

The second half saw the same miscues. FIU’s third quarter touchdown drive was capped off by a 33-yard run and a 29-yard touchdown pass, both of which featured missteps by Rice defenders.

4. This team needs the explosive pop from Austin Walter

A few weeks ago Austin Walter let the nation in all-purpose yards. The versatile running back has a knack for the big play, something Rice has missed over the last few weeks. This offense is still a work in progress, making 10 play drives that stretch the length of the field a challenge. That challenge could be easier if Walter erases half that yardage on his own.

Walter hasn’t gone anywhere. He’s still getting plenty of carries and a few receptions each game. The difference has been the Owls’ opponents understanding of how this team wants to use him. They’ve stacked the box and made running more challenging for all the Owls’ back. For the most part, he’s being given respect through the air as well.

Rice made the first move, utilize Walter as their go-to offensive weapon. Opposing defenses have countered. The onus is now back on the Owls to find a way to get Walter the ball with room to run. If they can do that the big plays will come and the profile of the entire offense will rise tremendously. Walter had 50 all-purpose yards against FIU. He’s capable of so much more.

5. Final thoughts

For the first time in several weeks, Rice was in position to win this game in the fourth quarter. Even with their miscues, they found themselves down by nine points and had the ball coming back their way via an FIU punt. The Panthers faked the punt, converted the first down (with three flags for a blatant targeting penalty picked up) and scored later on the drive to extend the lead to 33-17

That big fourth down conversion, three Rice interceptions and a few deep plays for FIU were all huge plays in this game. Rice isn’t a good enough football team right now to make that many mistakes and still hope to win on the road in conference play. For the most part, FIU played well on both sides of the ball and didn’t turn the ball over. The -2 turnover margin equaled the two scores that separated Rice from FIU at the end of this game.

This was a tough loss, but it was tough because Rice could have won this game. It’s time to regroup and get ready for another challenging road test next weekend against North Texas.

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Keys to victory over FIU

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Rice football is still searching for their first win in conference play. The Owls will be underdogs against FIU, but a win is still within reach.

The road doesn’t get any easier for the Owls. After falling to UAB, the leader in the CUSA West, in Week 7 they’ll travel to Miami to play FIU, the leader in CUSA East, in Week 8. The Owls are beat up, but still retain plenty of confidence.

Here’s how they get it done against FIU:

1. Find the right mix up front

The offensive line has been a continual question mark for this team. After the Hawaii game the secret to stopping the Owls’ rushing attack seemed to get out. Opposing defenses stacked the box. Rice didn’t quit on the run, but their effectiveness since has been limited.

The struggles of guys like Jack Greene and Uzoma Osuji have opened the door for several new faces. Jake Skyptak got the start at left tackle against UAB. Freshman Clay Servin and Cole Garcia saw an increase in snaps, a trend which should continue against FIU.

Sooner or later, the Owls have to find the right mix. If the guys up front can’t block the right rushers or open up lanes for the running backs it doesn’t matter who’s lining up behind them. No running back or quarterback is going to find success if they’re being met in the backfield. This unit must take a step forward, especially with redshirt freshman quarterback Evan Marshman making his first start behind them.

2. Don’t give up any deep shots

The secondary had their moments this season when things looked to be turning around. They limited deep shots well against Southern Miss and held UTSA to less than 50 yards through the air and no passing touchdowns. They did not fare well against UAB. Justin Bickham, the star of the UTSA game, was the victim of a 95-yard touchdown pass. Brandon Douglas-Dotson gave up a 38-yard strike on the first drive of the game.

Rice has allowed 18 passing plays of 30 yards or longer this season. That’s two more than any other team in CUSA. They’re the only team in the conference to allow multiple 70+ yard completions against them. UAB was successful through the air against Rice, and it could have been worse. Quarterback A.J. Erdely missed a few receivers that had a step on Rice defenders.

If the Owls want to keep this close they can’t spot their opponents any free touchdowns. Successful deep shots and quick scoring drives must be avoided.

3. Win the turnover battle

Rice is second to last in CUSA with a -5 turnover margin. The defense has registered eight takeaways in seven games while the offense has turned it over 13 times. Only one team has turned the ball over more times than the Owls. Giving away extra possessions is the opposite of what this team needs right now.

The defense was the recipient of multiple short fields against UTSA. It set up easier scoring opportunities for the Roadrunners and ultimately leds to the Owls’ undoing in what could have been their first conference win.

Playing on the road isn’t easy, but the Owls can make the challenge more doable with a few big plays from their defense and better protection of the ball on offense. If they don’t win the turnover battle they’ll be in for another rough Saturday.

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