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Conference USA Football 2022: Week 5 Roundup

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Conference USA Football was back in action this weekend. Here’s the latest from the teams on the gridiron in Week 5.

Team Week 4 Result Up Next
Charlotte vs UTEP L, 41-35 — OFF —
FAU at North Texas L, 45-28 — OFF —
FIU at New Mexico St W, 21-7 vs UConn
LA Tech — OFF —  — vs UTEP
MTSU vs UTSA L, 45-30 at UAB
North Texas vs FAU W, 45-28 — OFF —
Rice vs UAB W, 28-24 — OFF —
UAB at Rice L, 28-24 vs MTSU
UTEP at Charlotte W, 41-35 at LA Tech
UTSA at MTSU W, 45-30 vs WKU
WKU vs Troy L, 34-27 at UTSA

Notable Week 5 results – Standings

Who’s the bully now?

Much was made by the folks in Birmingham last week of Rice football head coach Mike Bloomgren’s postgame comments from a year ago in which he called UAB the bully of Conference USA. Evidently, that didn’t sit well with the Blazers, who came to Houston looking for revenge. They left with a loss. Rice is 3-2 overall and 1-0 in conference for the first time since 2013 when they won the C-USA title.

UTEP goes East

For the first time in the long history of UTEP football. the Miners have won a game played in the Eastern Time Zone. Heading into Saturday, UTEP was 0-27 on games played on the East Coast until they beat Charlotte on the road to move to 3-3 on the season.

The only 2-0 team in Conference USA

Granted, only three teams have played multiple conference games through Week 5 and preseason favorite UTSA is 1-0 in their lone game, but North Texas currently stands atop the Conference USA standings at 2-0. For all the ire Seth Littrell has endured in recent years, his team is out to its best start in conference play since 2017.

Looking ahead – Key storylines

Title Game Rematch

Points were flying and players were making plays when Western Kentucky and UTSA met up in last year’s Conference USA Football Championship game. On a week where several C-USA squads have the week off, this should prove to be one of the most compelling storylines with potentially significant ramifications on who goes back to the championship game this season.

Here’s your chance

Head coach Miike MacIntyre knew wins were going to be hard to come by in his first season at the helm at FIU. Saturday’s upset of New Mexico State notwithstanding, the Panthers’ upcoming game against UConn might be the last real opportunity for this team to scratch out a win for a while.

Staying in contention

UAB entered the season with conference championship expectations. Middle Tennessee did not, but hope ballooned upward following their big win over Miami. Now both programs sit at 0-1 in conference play. One of the two will fall to 0-2 next weekend, which won’t technically eliminate them from a conference title run, but would put those aspirations on life support at the very least.

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Rice Football 2022: Owls rally late, knock off UAB at home

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Rice Football took a few punches but weathered the storm, knocking off UAB at home in their conference opener by a final score of 28-24.

It wasn’t pretty for a full four quarters, but when the dust settled, Rice football was 3-2. For the second consecutive season, the Owls took down the Blazers, this time doing the deed at home. The Owls are 1-0 in conference play with plenty of momentum heading into the bye. Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:

Start strong…. check

As good as Rice football has been in recent weeks, their opening quarters have been rather disappointing. Entering this game UAB had outscored their opponents 42-0 in the first quarter until Rice marched down the field and let Ari Broussard punch one in on fourth-and-goal from the one.

The score was the first Rice opening quarter touchdown since the McNeese game and the first opening drive score of any kind since the opening game against USC. It capped off an 11-play, 75-yard drive including a pivotal third down conversion by TJ McMahon’s legs.

The Roost Podcast: Stay tuned for the game recap this week – Rice football vs UAB

Not to be outdone by the offense, the Rice defense opened with an equal level of intensity. Gabriel Taylor read the eyes of UAB quarter Dylan Hopkins and jumped a route to the flats for his second interception of the season. Early on, everything was coming up Owls.

Things got bumpy, fast

Unfortunately, Rice football could not sustain that gusto for much longer. Broussard fumbled the ball on the three-yard line, handing UAB an extremely short field that led to an equalizing score. Then Broussard was flagged for a hold on special teams which negated a 56-yard punt and handed the Blazers 28 extra yards of free field position.

After leading 7-0, Rice allowed 17 straight points to the Blazers, not reversing the run until the second half. In the second quarter with UAB backed up in their own endzone, the Rice defense allowed UAB to connect on a 71-yard reception. The usually fundamentally sound Owls drew 10 penalties for 75 yards on the night, bailing on the Blazers on more than one occasion.

Over the past few seasons, Rice football has slowly risen their quality of play from one good quarter a game to two or even three solid quarters. There really hasn’t been a truly elite four-quarter showing from this team yet this season, although they’ve played well enough to win despite their inconsistencies in most of their games.

On Saturday, Rice was great in the first quarter and great in the third. The second was bad. The fourth was excellent. And in the end, that’s all that mattered.

What’s the answer for the offensive line?

Trey Phillippi posted a commendable performance in his first career start against Houston last week. For the most part, the offensive line was able to contend with the UH pressure, but the game-sealing fumble might not have happened had the Owls gotten just a little more protection from their five men up front.

It didn’t really feel like any individual was at fault. UAB was just better in the trenches and it put the entirety of the Owls’ offensive gameplan under duress from their second drive onward.

After the strong opening drive, Rice had trouble in the trenches. The Owls averaged 3.0 yards per carry but unlike in prior games, few booming pass plays were to assuage concerns of the running game was struggling. TJ McMahon was under duress all night long, and while he did make some big plays, he wasn’t able to carry the offense on his own.

With no answers as to when former starting guard Braedon Nutter will return, it’s looking like Rice is going to have figure it out with the guys that they have. Now, it’s entirely possible they’ve already faced the best defensive fronts they’ll play for the rest of their season. Less pressure and more continuity will help whoever Rice lines up on the offensive line. But regardless, there has to be some strides made up front.

Adapt, adapt adapt

One of the biggest criticisms of Rice football in the past few years has been its offensive philosophy. Run, run and throw on third down became an almost predictable cadence at times. Offensive coordinator Marques Tuiasosopo was brought in to address those concerns and collectively, both he, Bloomgren and the offensive staff has done a 180.

It was hard to see a light at the end of the tunnel for the Rice offense going into halftime. Then Rice got creative with the football. Luke McCaffrey got some carries on sweeps. They moved the chains on a unique pattern to him out of the backfield. They sprinkled in Cam Montgomery for a big play. With the game on the line, they dialed up a play action call on third and seven with McMahon wisely electing to keep it.

Faced with a stagnant attack, Rice had to do something … and they did. In fact, the Owls have made some impressive second half adjustments throughout all of their non-USC games so far this season. They’ve figured something out on offense. And if the defense continues to be effective (with some turnovers sprinkled in) this team’s ceiling remains very high.

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Rice Football 2022: UAB Insider gives his take on Owls vs Blazers

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Rice Football is set for a big game this weekend against the UAB Blazers. UAB beat reporter Evan Dudley from AL.com tell us what to expect.

Longtime friend of the site Evan Dudley was kind enough to stop by and answer a few questions about the upcoming matchup between Rice Football and UAB. The answers below should shed some light on the Owls’ upcoming opponent.

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Rice Baseball: 2022 MLB Owls update – Sep 29

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The 2022 MLB season is underway and Rice baseball alums are busy on the mound and at the plate. Here’s the latest from the MLB Owls.

Ford Proctor – San Francisco Giants

Proctor made his MLB debut on September 24 against the Arizona Diamondbacks, picked up his first major league hit the following day and added his first major league RBI this week, as well.  He’s now appeared in four games. A third round pick of the Rays in 2018, Proctor made it to the Show after five minor league seasons, almost entirely with the Rays until he was traded at the deadline to the Giants this year.

That would have been enough for a debut week, but Proctor didn’t stop there. On Thursday he mashed a grand slam, his first career home run.

Through September 29, Proctor is hitting .200 with one extra-base hits, one walk and threestrikeouts. His OPS is .750 and he’s collected five RBI.

Anthony Rendon – Los Angeles Angels

On Wednesday Rendon was activated from the Injured List and began officially serving his five game suspension. He’s expected to be available for the team’s final three game series in Oakland.

Rendon left off his season hitting .228 with 15 extra-base hits, 23 walks and 32 strikeouts. His OPS is .707 and he’s collected 24 RBI.

J.T. Chargois – Tampa Bay Rays

Chargois saw action in two games this week, earning his third hold of the season along the way. On Sunday he worked a scoreless inning against the Blue Jays, following it up with a scoreless inning on Tuesday against the Indians.

Through September 29, Chargois has a 2.79 ERA with a 1.034 WHIP. He’s averaging 6.5 strikeouts per nine innings.

Lucas Luetge – New York Yankees

Luetge posted an interesting box score in his lone outing this week. He closed out the seventh inning and opened the eighth for the Yankees against the Red Sox and was credited with both a blown save and a win, his fourth of the season. He allowed one inherited runner to score, but was not charged with any runs on his ledger.

Through September 29, Luetge has a 2.78 ERA with a 1.364 WHIP. He’s averaging 9.5 strikeouts per nine innings.

Glenn Otto – Texas Rangers

Otto worked 5.2 innings against the Guardians this week, allowing one earned run before being lifted in the fifth inning. He was one out away from recording another quality start.

Through September 29, Otto has a 4.73 ERA with a 1.342 WHIP. He’s averaging 6.9 strikeouts per nine innings.

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Rice Football Recruiting: 2023 RB Daelen Alexander commits to Owls

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The first running back of 2023 Rice Football recruiting class has jumped on board. Pflugerville rusher Daelen Alexander has committed to the Owls.

On June 22, Daelen Alexander committed to Air Force, but that’s not where this story stops. Rice football swooped in a few weeks later and offered Alexander, despite his prior commitment. Now, officially, the Owls have won out. Alexander has flipped his commitment to the Owls and is the newest member of the 2023 Rice football recruiting class.

Alexander marks the first player Rice has flipped from another FBS program under head coach Mike Bloomgren’s tenure. Rice has historically been early to offer several of their eventual signees. Adding Williams to the fold is a particularly noteworthy advancement for the program on the recruiting front. He held offers from Air Force, Army and Navy at the time of his commitment.

Alexander is the first running back in the 2023 Rice football recruiting class and the first true high school running back commit the Owls have had since the 2020 class. Dean Connors was the only scholarship back the Owls added this past cycle and he came from the JUCO ranks.

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Alexander’s speed jumps off the screen in his film. When he hits the hole and accelerates it’s hard to catch him in open space. He can break free with a wiggle and then it’s off to the races. He has good vision and anticipation, setting himself up to make the next man miss while he’s already en route. At 5-foot-10, 200 pounds, he packs a punch on his way down the field, too.

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