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2024-2025 Rice Basketball Season Preview

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Rice Basketball embarks on a new era under head coach Rob Lanier this season. What will the new-look Owls be able to offer in his debut season on South Main?

Emotions are always high when you hire a new coach. A new day dawns and all the prior struggles and frustrations are momentarily thrust back into the depths. But the games will eventually start again and the neverending cycle of hope and tragedy that plagues all sports will soon return. New Rice basketball head coach Rob Lanier is responsible for ensuring those woes are shortlived and the Owl faithful see a product on the court that makes them proud.

Lanier didn’t shy away from those obligations when he first addressed Rice fans the day he was hired. “We’re gonna win. It ain’t a hope. It ain’t a dream. It’s a reality. So you can get prepared for that,” he said at the podium that afternoon. In a short time, those words will be put to the test.

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Rice Football 2024: UConn presser quotes and depth chart

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Next up for Rice football: UConn. Here’s what Mike Bloomgren had to say about the matchup 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 the Tulane game and looked ahead at their upcoming matchup with UConn.

More: Game Preview: Rice Football vs UConn

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

“If you remember the fight scenes from Star Wars where the lasers are flying everywhere, that’s kind of what it looks like post snap on their defense. Coordinator does a great job… it looks like chaos to the offense, but it’s all really well planned and really well coordinated.” – Mike Bloomgren on the UConn defense

“EJ did not practice yesterday. We had all the imaging done Sunday and all the things match… imaging was exactly the same as it was prior when we had done it in the preseason… He feels a lot better today than yesterday.” – Mike Bloomgren on the status of QB EJ Warner

“I don’t know if we can count the other team to make more mistakes. We’ve got to be more violent in how we take the ball away and attack the ball, the second guy in ripping it out. We’ve had opportunities for multiple interceptions that we just haven’t completed. When the ball’s in both our hands, we’ve got to make those things go ” – Mike Bloomgren on forcing more turnovers

“Try not to get taken down. It’s one thing that my uncle used to always tell me playing football, you’re a bigger dude. Let them know it. Don’t get taken down by the first defender.” – Tight end Elijah Mojarro on his mindset after the catch

“Pressure and responsibility, I think it’s something to be grateful for, something to seek after because that means there’s opportunities and there’s different ways we can help other people.” – Defensive end Michael Daley on pressure and responsibility

“We’re a group of fighters. I think, one play in particular, that reminds me was the play that Mojo had a few weeks ago where he’s literally throwing defenders off him. I think that’s the culture and the environment that we’ve created here at Rice. Since we have guys that are going to fight through whatever we got going, regardless, if we’re down, regardless if we’ve lost. We’re all going to have that rice fight never dies, mentality.” – Defensive end Michael Daley on the team’s culture and minset

Depth Chart

Rice Football

Depth Chart Notes

Left tackle Ethan Onianwa returns to the depth chart this week which shifts Chad Lindberg to left guard. Trace Norfleet is listed as the starting right guard, but we’ll have more details on how the front five is likely to shake out in our practice notes later in the week. That will be especially important regarding the status of EJ Warner, which is up in the air even considering the good imaging news after he left the Tulane game with an injury on the Owls’ final offensive possession.

On defense, defensive tackle Elroyal Morris returns to the two-deep after being replaced by Aquantis Clemmons a week ago. Andrew Awe is listed as the starting Mike linebacker, a role that has seemingly bounced back and forth every other week between him and Ty Morris. Safety Tyson Flowers has shifted over to the Viper safety spot with Daveon Hook moving over to free safety. On the second team, corner AJ Stephens moves in front of Ephraim Dotson.

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The Roost Podcast | Ep 189 – Rice Football misses shot at Tulane upset

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Rice football missed their shot to take down the Tulane Green Wave on the road. What to make of the turnovers, defensive showing and more.

A heroic defensive effort could not make up for five turnovers by the Rice football offense. Tied midway through the fourth quarter as multi-touchdown underdogs, the Owls were unable to pull off the upset and must now wrestle with the repercussions which include a rough record and a few looming injuries.

You can find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, give a listen to Episode 189.

Episode Notes

DCTF

The Roost Podcast is now part of the Dave Campbell’s Republic of Football Podcast Network. You’ll still get the same content with the same hosts, but now under the DCTF banner.

Homefield

We’re thrilled to partner with Homefield Apparel, the premier proprietor of college football clothing. First-time buyers can use the code ROOST for 15% off their order. The Owls hoodie is a personal favorite as is the Luv-Ya-Owls shirt. Make sure you check out the brand-new sailor hat (pictured below) as you shop the Rice collection or pick up something else (or both)!

You can also grab the Luv-Ya-Owls shirt if you haven’t picked one up yet!

Homefield

Patreon

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Recapping Rice Football vs Tulane

  • Five turnovers. Five!
  • EJ Warner plays pretty good, picks or no picks
  • The running game is still strangely absent
  • This defense could be really special, even if it’s not perfect
  • Picking up the pieces after the loss

Where can you find us?

The Roost Podcast is part of the Dave Campbell’s Republic of Football Podcast Network. You can find this podcast and all of our partner podcasts on Apple, Spotify and wherever you get your podcasts.

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Rice Football 2024 Game Preview: UConn

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Rice football hits the road this week to take on UConn. How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

UConn (4-3) saw a three-game home wining streak snapped this weekend in a one-score loss to Wake Forest. They’ll play host to a Rice football squad still reeling from a missed opportunity in New Orleans in which the Owls were tied with the Green Wave in the fourth quarter but were unable to finish the game. Here’s everything you need to know about the matchup between Rice and UConn.

Kickoff time | 2:30 PM CT 
Venue | Pratt & Whitney Stadium – East Hartford, CT
TV | CBS SN (Viewing Guide)
Radio | Varsity Radio App (Online)

Audio / Visual Preview

We’ll preview Rice football vs UConn on this week’s episode of the Blue and Gray Preview Show, kicking off live on Wednesday on the Rice Athletics YouTube channel.

Update: The Rice Football Blue and Gray Preview Show has been canceled this week because of scheduling conflicts. We’ll be back next week.

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.

Sizing up the contenders

If Rice football wants to make a bowl game, it’s hard to envision a path to six wins that doesn’t include the Owls winning this game. They still have Navy and Memphis on the schedule after this and haven’t yet played South Florida which could have quarterback Byrum Brown back at some point before they meet up in the season finale. 

UConn is hunting for a bowl berth, too, something they achieved in Year One under Jim more in 2022 but not in either of the previous two seasons. The Huskies have more wiggle room than the Owls do should they lose this game, but getting one win away with four more to go would be reassuring for UConn which ends the season with a road trip to UMass.

Series History

All Time | UConn leads, 1-0
Last Five | UConn leads, 1-0
Last Meeting | Home 2023, UConn won 38-31

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Rice Football Stat Notables

Passing | Warner – 160/263 (60.8 percent), 1573 yards, 10 TD, 9 INT
Rushing | Connors – 74 carries, 472 yards (6.4 yards per carry), 6 TD / Atkins – 24 carries, 158 yards (6.6 yards per carry), 2 TD
Receiving | Sykes – 38 receptions, 452 yards (11.9 yds/rec), 3 TD / Campbell – 21 receptions, 250 yards (11.9 yds/rec), 1 TD / Connors – 41 receptions, 282 yards (6.9 yds/rec), 1 TD
Tackles | Morris – 37, Fresch – 35, Taylor – 34
Pass Breakups | Fresch/Ahoi – 5, Taylor -2 
Interceptions | Flowers/Williams/Mutombo – 1

UConn Stat Notables

Passing | Fagnano – 57/98 (58.2 percent), 999 yards, 11 TD, 3 INT
Rushing | Robinson – 59 carries, 433 yards (7.3 yards per carry), 4 TD / Edwards – 71 carries, 346 yards (4.9 yards per carry), 3 TD
Receiving | Bell – 25 receptions, 534 yards (21.4 yds/rec), 4 TD / Sheffield – 29 receptions, 312 yards (10.8 yds/rec), 2 TD / Gathings – 18 receptions, 174 yards (9.7 yds/rec), 1 TD
Tackles | McDonald – 63, Faumuina-Brown – 54, Dixon-Williams – 32
Pass Breakups | McClean/Barton – 3, McDonald/Faumuina-Brown/Brinson – 2
Interceptions | Five tied with one each

UConn X-Factor | Hit some big plays

UConn, yes UConn, ranks in the Top 10 in the nation in offensive plays from scrimmage of 40+ yards. Widen that scope to plays of 30+ yards or more and this is still a Top 12 team, nationally. The Huskies have been an explosive play factory and it’s helped spur them to some of their biggest wins and keep them in the hunt against a couple of Power Conference opponents, too.

Rice has been vulnerable to the big play this season and more than once escaped it against Tulane than to some dropped passes by Green Wave receivers. Forcing the Owls to play catch up has been the best recipe for success against Rice this season. That’s a formula UConn should be able to replicate if they can get things going with a big play or two early.

Rice X-Factor | Don’t lose the turnover battle

Rice football turned the ball over five times against Tulane and (predictably) lost the game. Yet the crazy reality of that contest was that the game was still winnable with Rice trailing by three in the turnover battle and wasn’t until a backbreaking defensive touchdown scored by Tulane with two minutes left in the game that things were really ever out of reach.

Rice is 2-1 in games this season in which they’ve been at least neutral in turnover margin. Had a last-second field goal against Charlotte gone in instead of out, Rice could very well be sitting at 3-0 in games in which they don’t turn the ball over against their opponents and winless when they do. 

Rice is -2 or worse in that measure in every game they’ve lost this season except the Charlotte game. If they could just hang onto the football and maybe, just maybe, force a turnover or two themselves they should have enough just to win one. 

Injury Report (Subscribers only)

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One Final Thing

All that’s left to play for this season is a third straight bowl appearance. While admittedly underwhelming considering the expectations this team had before the season, such an accomplishment would in itself be a rarity for this program. It’s a cause worth seeking, no matter how far it deviates from prior aspirations. This isn’t the NFL. You can’t tank for a better draft pick. If you can find a way to win, you gotta win.

There will be plenty of time to adjudicate blame and decipher the failures that have started to accumulate during a frustrating 2024 campaign. But this collection of players and coaches still has something to play for and they’re going to play five more games, regardless of how the first seven have transpired. 

UConn has yet to lose to a non-Power conference team this season. Their only losses came at the hands of Maryland, Duke and Wake Forest, two of which were one-score games. A win over the Huskies would mean something to this team. Hopefully, they can find a way to get it done and buy themselves some hope for one more week. 

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AAC Football 2024: Week 8 Roundup

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AAC Football was back in action this weekend. Here’s the latest from the teams on the gridiron this week.

Team Record  This Week Result Up Next
Army 7-0 (6-0) vs ECU W, 45-28 — OFF —
Charlotte 3-3 (2-1) at Navy L, 51-17 at Memphis
ECU 3-4 (1-2) at Army L, 45-28 vs Temple
FAU 2-3 (0-3) at UTSA L, 38-24 — OFF —
Memphis 6-1 (2-1) vs North Texas W, 52-44 vs Charlotte
Navy 6-0 (4-0) vs Charlotte W, 51-17 vs Notre Dame
North Texas 5-2 (2-1) at Memphis L, 52-44 vs Tulane
Rice 2-5 (1-3) at Tulane L, 24-10 at UConn
Temple 2-5 (1-2) vs Tulsa W, 20-10 at ECU
Tulane 5-2 (3-0) vs Rice W, 24-10 at North Texas
Tulsa 2-5 (0-3) at Temple L, 20-10 vs UTSA
UAB 1-6 (0-4) at USF L, 35-25 — OFF —
USF 3-4 (1-2) vs UAB W, 35-25 — OFF —
UTSA 3-4 (1-2) vs FAU W, 38-24 at Tulsa

Notable Results and Storylines // (Standings)

Memphis holds on

For a team that did not trail from the midpoint of the second quarter onward, it sure felt like Memphis escaped with a win on Saturday evening against North Texas. The Tigers corralled a late on-side attempt and still had to pick off a pass in the endzone with time expiring to close out a win over the Mean Green. Memphis is 6-1, but they haven’t really appeared like the sort of AAC juggernaut many had expected them to be prior to the season.

Tulane survives

Three touchdown favorites, Tulane didn’t expect to find themselves locked in a tied ballgame in the fourth quarter with Rice football. The Owls had their chance, but five turnovers, one of which led to another Tulane defensive touchdown, quelled any real thoughts of an upset. The Green Wave won, and that’s all that will matter down the road.

49ers not for real

One of the more surprising starts to conference play came from Charlotte, who found themselves in the upper third of the conference standings after a 2-0 start in league play which includes victories over Rice and East Carolina, neither of which is a true contender. When faced with a Navy squad with real tenacity on both sides of the ball, Charlotte wilted. Not a surprise, but one less pretender now adorns the top of the standings.

Looking ahead – Key storylines

CFB Playoff meets AAC

One of the marquee games of the upcoming weekend involves an AAC team, albeit not one that many would have expected entering the year. The undefeated Navy Midshipmen head to Metlife Stadium to take on a Notre Dame team that still has College Football Playoff aspirations. However, so does Navy. This one will be must-see TV.

Tulane get’s opposite test

Tulane was tested by the Rice defense a week ago and only escaped thanks to a woeful Rice offense who couldn’t hang on to the ball. Can the Green Wave handle the inverse in a North Texas team that can seemingly score at will but won’t play much defense of any kind?

Save your (post) season

UTSA clearly isn’t going to be challenging for a conference championship this season, but the Roadrunners are still alive for the postseason as they prepare for a road trip to a dismal Tulsa squad. That game takes on adding importance with UTSA’s win over FAU keeping them alive and on a path for a bowl berth. The schedule gets tough down the road, making this a must-win game for the Roadrunners if they want to go bowling.



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