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Rice Football 2023: Houston presser quotes and depth chart

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Rice football hosts Houston this week. Here’s what Mike Bloomgren had to say about the matchup at hand and a few depth chart notes.

Head coach Mike Bloomgren and a set of players met with the media for their customary weekly availability. They recapped last week’s game and looked ahead at their upcoming matchup with Houston.

Listen Now: The Roost Pod – Breaking down Rice Football vs Texas

We touch on those items, then dig into the Rice football depth chart and what the team looks like heading into the weekend. First, the quotes:

Press Conference Quotes

“We got a great rivalry game coming up, great traditions versus the team right across town. Celebrating the Bayou Bucket is always a great time…. We certainly recognize that coach Holgerson’s team is very talented and we know that it’s going to be a game where we have to play good, clean football for 60 minutes if we want to get the results we want.” – Mike Bloomgren on playing Houston

“The stadiums are four and a half miles apart, driving on roads. It’s probably more like three [miles] as the crow flies. And you’ll hear from [Myron Morrison and Chike Anigbogu], the fact that they’re going to play a lot of their old teammates, a lot of guys they played against in high school. Anytime you play a team in Texas, that’s really cool. But in your own city. That’s fun. The rivalry is real.” – Mike Bloomgren on the Bayou Bucket Rivalry

“One thing that I find encouragement in is a lot of the big plays and explosives that they had are the result of self-inflicted wounds that are something that is very fixable on our end. Those are things, like we mentioned that big jump from week one to week two, very flexible errors were made that weren’t even as much physical as they were mental. That’s going to be completely patched up in our next game.” – Linebacker Myron Morrison on areas to improve on defense after Texas

“That’s everything. That’s a goal I’ve had since I started playing football. Just knowing that my guys have faith in me and my love for them is reciprocated. It’s huge.”
– Linebacker Chike Anigbogu on being named captain this year

Depth Chart

Rice Football

Depth Chart Notes

There weren’t any changes to the official depth chart this week. Everything ties out exactly to how things looked entering the season opener against Texas. That doesn’t necessarily mean the Owls’ will approach their personnel plans the same way — for that stay tuned to our practice update later in the week for our subscribers.

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Rice Football 2023 Game Preview: Houston

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Rice football returns home this week to host the Bayou Bucket matchup against rival Houston. How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

Following a tough loss to Texas, Rice football looks to rebound against another familiar foe from the Lone Star State. They’ll face Houston this week, hosting the Bayou Bucket matchup after playing across town a year ago. The Cougars are coming off a narrow victory over UTSA, edging the Roadrunners by a field goal. Here’s everything you need to know about this week’s matchup between Rice and Houston.

Kickoff time | 6:00 PM CT
Venue | Historic Rice Stadium – Houston, Texas
TV | NFL Network (Viewing Guide)
Radio | Varsity Radio App (Online)

Audio / Visual Preview

We’ll preview Rice football vs Houston on this week’s episode of the Blue and Gray Preview Show, streaming live on Wednesday at Noon on the Rice Athletics YouTube channel. Look for a recap of the game on the site afterward as well as on The Roost Podcast, which should be released early next week. Find us on the podcast page or wherever you like to listen to podcasts. (And consider leaving us a 5-star review while you’re at it.)

Sizing up the contenders

Houston bought itself some breathing room with a season-opening win over UTSA, but expectations remain high for Dana Holgerson and company in their first year as members of the Big 12. They play their first league game the week following the Bayou Bucket against TCU, but they can’t afford to look ahead quite yet.

As for Rice football, avoiding a 0-2 start is paramount. Losing to Texas is forgivable, dropping another game in a row to Houston would be disappointing and amp up the pressure for the rest of the way. This would be a big one for the Owls if they can find a way to bring home the victory.

Series History

All Time | Houston leads, 33-11
Last Five | Houston leads, 5-0
Last Meeting | Away 2022, Houston won 34-27

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Rice Football Stat Notables

Passing | Daniels – 14/26 (53.8 percent), 149 yards, 1 TD, 2INT
Rushing | Connors – 8 carries, 23 yards (3.5 yards per carry), 0 TD / Otoviano – 6 carries, 1 yards (0.2 yards per carry), 0 TD
Receiving | McCaffrey – 2 receptions, 22 yards (11.0 yds/rec), 1 TDs / Groen – 4 receptions, 28 yards (7.0 yds/rec), 0 TD
Tackles | Fresch, Wyatt – 8 / Morrison – 7 / Devones, M. Williams – 6
Pass Breakups | Jean – 2 / Fresch – 1 / Narcisse – 1
Interceptions | n/a

Houston Stat Notables

Passing | Smith – 22/34 (64.7 percent), 233 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT
Rushing | Smith – 13 carries, 31 yards (2.4 yards per carry), 0 TD / Mathis – 8 carries, 38 yards (4.8 ypc), 0 TD
Receiving | Brown – 6 receptions, 106 yards (17.7 yards per reception), 0 TD / Manjack – 6 receptions, 67 yards (11.2 yds/rec), 1 TD
Tackles | Robinson – 6 / Haulcy, Hogan – 5 / Seven tied with four
Pass Breakups | Hamilton, Ugwoegbu – 1
Interceptions | Fleming – 2 / Payne – 1

Houston X-Factor | Keep the ball in front of you

There have been 126 FBS teams to play at least one game so far this season. Houston has allowed more plays on defense of 10 or more yards than all but 16 of those teams. Exclude the teams that played in Week 0 and have two games to reach that total and the tally is down to eight squads more prone to allowing a chunk play on defense than the Cougars.

Now, some of that is to be expected when you play Frank Harris and what is expected to be a potent UTSA offense. Nevertheless, the results are the continuation of a trend that dates back into last season. The Cougars were the 10th worst defense nationally in that metric a year ago. They give up big gains.

The Rice offense struggled against Texas. Even if they have their hands full up front against Houston, a leaky defense can help overcome any size advantages the Cougars have up front. It’s crucial Houston finds a way to keep the ball in front of them and make opposing offenses earn every yard. If they don’t it’s unlikely they’ll be holding many teams to 14 points again any time soon.

Rice X-Factor | Win the line of scrimmage

Proving the offensive struggles were a fluke last week against Texas has to be at the top of the Owls’ to-do list for this game. For one, the proof of concept in an offense that found success throughout camp would be huge for this team’s psyche, but even more than that, they’re going to need points to beat Houston.

Getting those points has to start in the trenches. The Rice defensive line held its own against Texas. The offensive line did not. Both sides of the ball should have more manageable opportunities this week and allow Rice to play a more balanced version of football than they were able to on opening weekend.

In this matchup last season, Rice was able to go toe-to-toe with Houston and present themselves as equals for nearly the entirety of four quarters. For a team moving up in conference affiliation with a roster full of talent, another such performance is a must. Winning up front will allow Rice to run the ball and dictate how this game is played. If they can do that, they’ll be in the driver’s seat.

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One Final Thing

Rice football narrowly missed an upset in this game a year ago, and the 2023 version of the Cougars doesn’t have Clayton Tune, Tank Dell or Derek Parish. It’s still a very talented football team, but it’s not one that should be in an entirely different weight class like the squad the Owls faced in their opening game. And technically, a win this weekend would be the Owls’ first Power 5 victory under Bloomgren.

Quarterback JT Daniels shared some perspective following Saturday’s defeat. “As much as we would have wanted a different outcome I think there’s a ton to learn from and this doesn’t kill your season,” he said. He spoke of the teams’ aspirations in the AAC and the Owls’ intentions to compete for the league title.

Houston isn’t in the AAC anymore, but this game could very well serve to set the tone for the Owls’ season moving forward.

And with realignment swirling, this game is the final scheduled contest between these two crosstown rivals as things currently stand. In the event future meetings aren’t forthcoming — that’ll be a hot-button topic this week, I’m sure — It sure would be nice to go out on top.

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American Conference Football 2023: Week 1 Roundup

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American Conference Football was back in action this weekend. Here’s the latest from the teams on the gridiron in Week 1.

Team Week 1 Result Record Up Next
Charlotte vs South Carolina St W, 24-3 1-0 vs Maryland
ECU at Michigan L, 30-3 0-1 vs Marshall
FAU vs Monmouth W, 42-20 1-0 vs Ohio
Memphis vs Bethune Cookman W, 56-14 1-0 at Arkansas St
Navy — OFF — — 0-1 vs Wagner
North Texas vs California L, 58-10 0-1 at FIU
Rice at Texas L, 37-10 0-1 vs Houston
SMU vs LA Tech W, 38-14 1-0 at Oklahoma
Temple vs Akron W, 24-21 1-0 at Rutgers
Tulane vs South Alabama W, 34-17 1-0 vs Ole Miss
Tulsa vs UAPB W, 42-7 1-0 at Washington
UAB vs NC A&T W, 35-6 1-0 at Georgia So
USF at WKU L, 41-24 0-1 vs FAMU
UTSA at Houston L, 17-10 0-1 vs TXST

Notable Results (Standings)

Have a day, Mr. Pratt

It doesn’t get much better than this: Michael Pratt’s stat line from Tulane’s season-opening win over South Alabama. Pratt completed 14-of-15 passes for 294 yards and four touchdowns, leading the Green Waves past the Jaguars in commanding fashion and establishing themselves as one of the teams to beat in all of the Group of 5.

Houston holds serve

UTSA and Houston played a barnburner last fall, setting the stage for a highly anticipated rematch this season. There were a lot less points, but the game still went down to the wire, with Houston prevailing once again. Frank Harris was intercepted three times, spoiling what might have been a marquee victory for the Roadrunners to open the season.

Golesh debut spoiled

USF was the only AAC program that fell to a non-Power 5 program in Week 1. In their first game under new head coach Alex Golesh, the Bulls ran into the buzzsaw that is the Western Kentucky offense. The Hilltoppers piled up points in bunches, taking swift command and holding serve to the finish.

Looking ahead – Key storylines

P5 Hunting

Six AAC teams will take on Power 5 opponents next weekend: Tulane hosts Ole Miss, Rice hosts Houston, SMU visits Oklahoma, Temple visits Rutgers, Charlotte visits Maryland and Tulsa visits Washington. Of that quartet, SMU and Tulane put forth the most impressive performances in Week 1. Could they notch the first P5 win for the conference this season?

This just got interesting

Texas State stormed onto the national radar with an upset win over Baylor. Now UTSA’s home game against Texas State in Week 2 takes on additional importance. Could one of the AAC’s presumed frontrunners be in danger of falling to 0-2? The Roadrunners will be favorites, but the Bobcats might not be pushovers after all.

Buckets!

Rice didn’t win in their season opener against Texas, but they did cover the spread and the defense showed some life. They played Houston to the final possession a year ago and would love to avoid falling to 0-2 to start the season. The Bayou Bucket could be a fun one in Week 2.

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Texas overwhelms Rice Football as the Owls fall in lopsided opener

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Rice Football delivered the first blow, but it was Texas that had the last laugh as the Longhorns overwhelmed the Owls in the trenches to hand them a season-opening loss.

The final score might not have been completely indicative of the intensity of Saturday’s season-opening matchup between Rice football and Texas. The Owls kept things close through the first half until the defense ran out of gas, worked to the max under the sweltering Austin heat as the Owls’ offense struggled to get into gear. Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:

Throw the first punch

You couldn’t have drawn it up much better than this. Texas received the opening kickoff, picked up a couple of yards and found itself facing a fourth-and-two from its own 33-yard line. Rather than play it safe, the Longhorns rolled the dice. The Owls overwhelmed quarterback Quinn Ewers in the backfield and forced a short throw, turning Texas over on downs on their first possession.

“That’s something that doesn’t really surprise us,” linebacker Myron Morrison said postgame. “We consider ourselves one of the best short-yardage defenses in the country.”

Rice would get three points for their efforts, picking up one first down before turning to Tim Horn who booted through a 42-yard field goal to give the underdogs the lead. Head coach Mike Bloomgren had mentioned this week that he didn’t believe the game would be too big for his team this time around and that certainly seemed to be the case from the opening whistle.

Rice entered the second quarter trailing 7-3 and went into halftime down 16-3. In both instances, Rice was very much so in the game and had given Texas reason to be concerned, at least on one side of the ball. This was a matchup that hadn’t been interesting in the second half in the last several meetings. Rice kept the game in reach at the halftime whistle.

Defense makes its mark

How about that defense? This unit lost Ikenna Enechukwu, Trey Schuman, Quint Titre, George Nyakwol and others from last year’s squad and somehow looked even more dangerous. The front seven engineered two fourth-down stops in plus territory in the first half and gave Ewers all he could handle, racking up two sacks and several more near misses that still managed to impact the game. Coleman Coco and De’Braylon Carroll noticeably impacted the game.

Texas was a five-touchdown favorite on Saturday largely because oddsmakers believed the Longhorns would be able to move the ball. Texas did that to some extent — the Longhorns finished with 458 yards gained — but the Rice defense never lost its composure and seemingly always bounced back following a big Texas gain.

Through the air, Sean Fresch and Tre’shon Devones kept the ball in front of them and prevented Ewers and Texas from connecting on home run balls down the field. Instead, Texas was forced to do much of its damage after the catch.

Although the box score won’t be kind to the defense after surrendering 37 points, when field position and the lack of help from the Owls’ offense is taken into account, it’s hard to walk away from this one not feeling largely positive above this side of the ball. There were missed tackles, missed assignments and missteps, but the defense was not the problem on Saturday, far from it.

Oof, Offense, Oof

While the defense rose to the occasion, the offense was largely stuck in quicksand throughout the game. Handed so many opportunities by their counterparts on the other side of the ball, quarterback JT Daniels and company did little to return the favor. His Rice debut was largely underwhelming, he completed 14 of 26 passes for 149 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.

In the aftermath, Bloomgren pumped the brakes on putting the all blame on his quarterback, and for good reason. The Texas defensive line had its way with the Rice offensive line from start to finish, flustering Daniels and making him through with hands in his face and arms on his jersey. “You can’t evaluate quarterbacks like that,” Bloomgren said.

The unit had the opportunity to go back to the drawing board at halftime but came out of the gates with a false start on the first snap of the half which proceeded a quick three-and-out. The ensuing drive did move the chains once, but a fourth-and-one stop by the Texas defense turned the ball over on downs.

In many ways, that short yardage stop, an area the Owls have found tremendous success in during recent years, typified the Owls’ largest offensive problem on Saturday: the trenches. Plain and simple, Rice was simply outmanned up front. They had no answer for the sheer power of the Longhorns inside and it completely crippled their offensive attack. “The best quarterback in the world needs something,” Bloomgren said of the protection. “There were a lot of times I didn’t feel he had those opportunities today.”

Rice football won’t face many teams with the combination of size and strength Texas possesses up front this season. Before writing this unit off entirely, let’s see how they fair against a more evenly matched front.

Onto the next

It would have been a remarkable, unforgettable beginning to the season had Rice football done the unthinkable and upset a ranked Texas team on the road to begin the 2023 season. Those dreams have passed, and Rice is on to what the Owls hope to be the more representative portion of their schedule.

Oddsmakers aren’t infallible, but Saturday’s matchup with the Longhorns should be the only time this season Rice will be an underdog but four or five touchdowns — a margin the Owls managed to cover. No, from this point onward, every game is not only winnable, but victory should be achievable without herculean means.

Rice gave Texas a scare, stayed relatively healthy and got a good look at what will likely be the most talented opposition they’ll face this season. Now it’s time to move on. All eyes are now on Houston as Rice readies for a rematch of a game that went down to the wire last season and is anticipated to be extremely competitive once again.

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Rice Football: Behind enemy lines with Texas expert Eric Henry

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Texas is next up on the 2023 Rice football schedule so we’re going behind enemy lines with Texas insider Eric Henry of 247 Sports.

Longhorns’ insider Eric Henry was kind enough to stop by and answer a few questions about the upcoming season-opening matchup between Rice Football and Texas. The answers below should shed some light on the Owls’ upcoming opponent.

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