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South Florida struck first and kept laying it on in what proved to be the final game of the 2025 Rice Football season. Unable to win a sixth game and earn bowl eligibility, the Owls’ season ends at 5-7 with a one-sided loss in Tampa. Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:
South Florida struck for three quick touchdown drives to put Rice football on the defensive from the start. The Owls’ defense allowed 10.2 yards per play on those first three drives, providing little resistance to the admittedly ultra-efficient South Florida offense.
That South Florida was able to move the ball was one thing, but the ease with which they racked up multiple long touchdown plays was most problematic.
Rice entered this game ranked dead last in the American Conference with 20 scrimmage plays of 40+ yards allowed. No other team had allowed more than 16. The Owls added to that number early against the Bulls as quarterback Byrum Brown threw touchdowns of 47 yards and 60 yards before the midpoint of the second quarter.
The deficit would only grow from there, leaving the offense quite a sizable hole to attempt to climb out of over the course of the next two quarters and change. But while all three phases showed there’s room for improvement, the lack of resistance the defense provided of any sort left this game out of reach before the offense and special teams had a chance to get going.
Punters don’t get a lot of airtime, and while there have been a lot of things that haven’t gone according to plan in a season that ends without a postseason appearance, Alex Bacchetta has been a bright spot. The Owls veteran punter was largely serviceable, at best, a season ago. Ranking 11th in the conference in net punting, with 37.7 net yards per punt and ninth with an average of 41.2 yards.
Entering Saturday, Bacchetta has boosted both of those marks. This year, he’s up to 40.4 net yards per attempt and a 44.8-yard average. Against USF he punted six times, averaging 43.3 yards per punt with a long of 51 yards. Those numbers will likely elevate him into the top five in the conference in average and keep him near a 40-yard net. That’s a solid season worth some recognition.
Quarterback Chase Jenkins became the first Rice football quarterback to start every game in a regular season since Driphus Jackson in 2015, but unfortunately, he would not finish all 12 games. Jenkins left the UTSA game with a lower-body injury several weeks ago and was knocked out of the Owls’ final game in the late minutes of the second quarter following a blow to the head.
Drew Devillier replaced him and got his longest extended look as the quarterback in this offense thus far. Some of his passes in that emergency fill-in drive went long, but he did get the team within field goal range and looked much more composed when he returned in the second half.
Devillier took that first snap after the break 10 yards on the ground, showcasing his ability as a runner, even if he might not be as fleet of foot as Jenkins. He orchestrated a 7-play, 61-yard drive sparked by a long run from Aaron Turner before giving way to Lucas Scheerhorn, who opened the fourth quarter.
Scheerhorn didn’t complete any passes, but ran the ball effectively, with a long carry of 20 yards. Originally recruited to run an option system at Kennesaw State, his level of comfort in the offense was evident, in spite of a fumbled low snap that resulted in a turnover. Ultimately, Jenkins still projects as the future at quarterback for this program, but live game reps should prove valuable for both moving forward.
There will be plenty of time to dissect this season — and we’ll have plenty of analysis on The Roost in the days ahead — but for the time being, the dichotomy of expectations rings as the defining dissonance that will forever mark head coach Scott Abell’s first season on South Main.
On paper, this season was a success. They beat Vegas’ preseason 3.5 win total expectations by a game and half and posted wins over two bowl teams: Louisiana and UConn. But games aren’t played on paper, nor are programs constructed on them.
“You always reflect on year one and you ask yourself the question, Hey, did we set the culture? I mean that’s got to be the primary goal. And so, without question, we did,” Abell said in his post-game comments.
In some ways, the hope inspired by the 3-1 start challenged the conventional wisdom that wins weren’t the conventional currency of Year One. Abell’s team inspired hope in a year that was meant to be a table setter for the seasons to come.
“How do we rate success this year will be when we really evaluate how we grew, and then are we ready to take the next step for the program? The next step is to compete with these teams,” Abell said, referring to the upper tier of programs in the American like Memphis, North Texas and South Florida.
“And when you show flashes of it, you get excited, but that’s all we did this year against this top tier, we showed a flash here and there. We showed a quarter here and there. We got to play four quarters. We got to get back the development time, which this program desperately needs. We need to continue to build the roster. I’m excited about doing that. Looking forward to doing that.”
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The offense took a step forward against North Texas, but there’s a long way to go to keep up with the elite teams in the American Conference. South Florida should pose a similar challenge and the Owls have been tirelessly working on the practice field this week to turn in a more successful result.
The final week of the regular season is upon us. Rice football enters its finale following a home loss on Senior Day to North Texas, while South Florida returns home from a more successful road trip in Birmingham, where they took down UAB with relative ease. Here’s everything you need to know about the matchup between Rice and South Florida.
Kickoff time | 6:00 PM
Venue | Raymond James Stadium – Tampa, FL
TV | ESPN+ (Viewing Guide)
Radio | Varsity Radio App (Online)
With two conference losses, a trip to the American Championship game is wishful thinking for South Florida entering this final game. However, it still might be possible for an emphatic win and some chaos in the ranks ahead of them to make things interesting. Regardless, the Bulls have their eyes on a 10-win season and they won’t get there without beating Rice on Saturday.
The Owls find themselves in a different place, seeking a sixth win to secure bowl eligibility in Scott Abell’s first season on campus. This team would happily take a postseason berth any way they could get it, even if it came as a 5-win team courtesy of an APR bump, but everyone would rest much easier if they could find a way to secure that postseason trip for certain with an upset over South Florida.
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Make sure you check out The Roost Podcast every week this season as we review the Owls’ most recent game, breaking down the key moments, decisions and their impact on the outlook of the program moving forward.
All Time | Tied, 1-1
Last Five | Tied, 1-1
Last Meeting | Home 2024, Rice won 35-28
Passing | Jenkins – 113/163 (69.3 percent), 986 yards, 9TD, 2 INT
Rushing | Jackson – 162 carries, 808 yards (5.0 yards per carry), 6 TD / Jenkins – 140 carries, 497 yards (3.6 yards per carry) – 5 TD / Hardeman – 74 carries, 310 yards (4.2 yards per carry), 2 TD
Receiving | Dickmann – 36 receptions, 319 yards (8.9 yds/rec), 3 TD / Turner – 46 receptions, 275 yards (6.0 yds/rec)
Tackles | Awe – 87 / Morris – 73 / Williams – 66
Pass Breakups | Crump (Suspended) – 6 / Williams, Porter – 5
Interceptions | Kane, Stevenson, Wyatt – 1
Passing | Brown – 210/317 (66.2 percent), 2883 yards, 24 TD, 7 INT
Rushing | Brown – 160 carries, 904 yards (5.7 yds/car), 13 TD / Davenport – 80 carries, 546 yards (6.8 yds/car), 6 TD / Franklin – 60 carries, 380 yards (6.3 yds/car), 4 TD
Receiving | Singleton – 44 receptions, 752 yards (17.1 yds/rec), 6 TD / Koger – 32 receptions, 504 yards (15.8 yds/rec), 6 TD / Reuben – 10 receptions, 405 yards (13.1 yds/rec), 4 TD
Tackles | Harris – 95 / Shuler – 88 / Ward – 60
Pass Breakups | Shuler – 7 / Duclona – 4 / Rucker, Chenault, Stokes – 3
Interceptions | Chenault, Harris, Lee, Gaskins – 2 / Six tied with one each
Rice is a ball-control offense that wasn’t to dictate the terms of the game through possession and limiting opportunities for the other team. And while South Florida ranks dead last in the American Conference in time of possession per game, averaging less than 25 minutes per game, they have amassed an impressed 23.6 first downs per contest.
South Florida can strike fast. They can drive the length of the field. But what they’ve done so well this season is grind teams out so that by the time the second half arrives, defenses are tired and unable to mount a capable resistance. That’s been the breaking point for the Rice defense in recent weeks, able to stand tall in spots, but worn down by the constant battering an elite offense can provide.
To win this one, South Florida must maintain its consistency and move the ball effectively. If they can do that, the points will come.
Only one team in FBS has forced fewer turnovers than Rice football. One. The Owls’ six takeaways represent barely more than half a turnover per game and that’s simply not going to cut it against a quality opponent like South Florida.
A turnover-free day requires a near-perfect offensive effort and further contributions from everywhere else. Rice pulled off the feat against UConn, but that’s not a sustainable way to live for a team that doesn’t have any truly dominant phase to hang its hat on. Rice needs to steal some possessions and get South Florida playing off script. Turnovers are the best way to accomplish that.
It’s hard to put into words just how significant a bowl berth would be for this program after the year they’ve had under their first-year head coach. Things have been bumpy. The roster has its flaws. And still, they’ve found ways to win.
Practically, the Abell hire isn’t any more or less successful if Rice makes a bowl game or not, but the optics of being ahead of schedule by such a noticeable margin would have tremendous dividends for the program, both on and off the field.
Beating a nine-win UConn team should go down as one of the more impressive wins Rice football has had in several years. But fair or not, a FBS independent not named Notre Dame doesn’t carry the same cache that knocking off a top-flight American Conference team would. To stack South Florida on top of UConn and Louisiana would be quite a feat for a program that’s supposed to be “rebuilding.”
On paper, Rice football probably has no business winning this game, but that’s sort of the exact reason Abell was hired and his offense was welcomed to South Main. This is supposed to become a program that wins games like this, games when the masses have counted them out. It sure would be nice to see that come to fruition just one more time this season.
On a night with free ice cream and adult beverages being passed around in the stands, Rice football did its best to get the party started on the right foot. Once those initial cheers subsided, though, a ranked North Texas squad took control of the game and began to rack up style points to improve its perception in the eyes of the College Football Playoff committee. Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:
You couldn’t have scripted a more picture-perfect start on Saturday night. Rice football received the opening kickoff and promptly marched 86 yards in 12 plays, grinding six minutes off the clock before quarterback Chase Jenkins delivered a slashing touchdown run to put the home underdogs on top.
It would get even better from there. Following a quick three-and-out forced by the defense, the offense took over and doubled down with a 10-play, 71-yard drive which also ended in the endzone, this time courtesy of Aaron Turner.
Playing keep away from the prolific North Texas offense was always going to be the Owls’ best chance at pulling off this upset. Still, it’s one thing to know what to do and another thing to execute it. Rice held the ball for 11:56 on their first two drives, preventing the Mean Green from doing damage with their explosive offense.
Rice football found out just how narrow those margins were soon afterward. North Texas quarterback Drew Mestemaker ripped a 74-yard touchdown pass to Wyatt Young on the next possession. But that wasn’t the blow that stung the most.
On the ensuing Rice possession with the Owls leading 14-7, Rice was stonewalled on fourth-and-one in North Texas territory. The Mean Green took over and converted a fourth-and-one of their own before punching in the equalizing score.
“When they scored it to make it 14 all, you really felt, I don’t know it was a tension on our sideline or we kind of lost that energy that we had so much in the first quarter,” head coach Scott Abell said.
During the next Rice possession, Jenkins fired low on a third down pass, just missing out on a first down play by inches. The Owls punted, their first three-and-out of the game. Mestemaker hit Tre Williams on a 56-yard bomb on that next possessions and the Owls’ hot start had quickly turned into a first half deficit.
So much was going right for Rice in those opening moments, but the sheer athleticism and effectiveness of North Texas in those got-to-have-it moments turned this game on its head in a matter of minutes. That the Mean Green would convert an additional fourth down in the quarter only furthered the Owls’ misery.
“Some of that is we’ve got to grow up. They punched back. So how do you respond after you get punched back?” Abell asked. “And we didn’t respond very well. We came out and we threw the first couple of blows, it really could not have started better. And when they punched back, we didn’t respond after that.”
That would be the beginning of 42 unanswered points from the visiting team, turning a would-be-upset into a battle to avoid being blown off the field in the second half. And although North Texas running back Caleb Hawkins would put up an efficient 97-yard, three touchdown performance, it was the aerial attack of Mestemaker and the North Texas offense that proved impossible for Rice to combat.
Rice knew coming into this game they had to stop Wyatt Young, but it didn’t matter how they tried to cover him, the star receiver hauled in five passes for 295 yards and two long touchdowns. That yardage tally represented an American Conference record and was the most receiving yards by any player in the FBS this season, falling not too far short from a North Texas program record, too.
That doesn’t bode well for the Owls’ upcoming game against South Florida, which has it’s fair share of speed in their skill position ranks.
In many ways, the way things transpired against North Texas didn’t unearth new ground. A leaky secondary and an inconsistent offense were both well known deficiencies this program had carried throughout the season. But being able to explain a loss doesn’t mean much for a program still fighting to steal a sixth win.
Abell noted that North Texas a similar position not too long ago, but they’ve taken that next step to become a bonafide conference championship contender.
“When you build something, it doesn’t happen over night. I think our guys have done an incredible job this year. I’m proud of the steps we’ve taken for the program so far this year,” he said. “With the opportunity to get win six, which would speak volumes for this program and how young we are, when you look around our roster and the guys who are taking the field for us.”
Many of those issues can’t be waved away or drastically changed before Rice takes the field again next Saturday in Tampa. Still, this is a program that remains confident and daring despite a tough setback against the Mean Green.
“We know what’s at stake,” quarterback Chase Jenkins said. “We’re putting all our chips in to go to a bowl game.”
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