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Rice Football: 10 Takeaways from 2021 season

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The 2021 Rice football season was a roller coaster, and the ride wasn’t always enjoyable. What can we take away from the Owls’ four-win campaign?

The upset of UAB in Birmingham will be the pinnacle of a Rice football season that spanned the full range of emotions. Two shutout losses, two overtime losses and two-wins shy of the postseason proved the sobering reality that this program isn’t quite where they want to be. Not yet.

Nevertheless, our coverage of Rice football is far from over. We’ll be presenting The Roosties soon, our take on an annual Rice football awards show from The Roost Podcast. There will also be Team Superlatives released throughout December featuring more traditional awards like Team MVP, Offense and Defensive Player of the Year and more.

But before we get there, here are a few final thoughts on the 20201 Rice football season with some forward-thinking questions scattered throughout and promises of more to come.

Good

1. The offense is better

It was a rocky start, but Rice football topped 21 points each in seven of its final nine games and each of its final six. That included a 48-point outing against Texas Southern and 35 points in the finale against Louisiana Tech. Rice hadn’t strung together more than three consecutive 21-point outings under Bloomgren entering the year, so capping the season of with consistent touchdowns is a step in the right direction. OC Marques Tuiasosopo deserves a lot of credit.

2. The wide receivers might be the best unit on offense

That offensive evaluation came without Bradley Rozner on the field and without Jake Bailey in the Owls’ final game. Cedric Patterson stepped up and proved to be a difference-maker. August Pitre had some big catches in key moments. Kobie Campbell made several key plays when he was called upon. Rice has weapons in the passing game and they’re starting to make noise.

3. Return of key defensive pieces

This defensive might not have been anywhere close to the level of dominance they displayed during parts of the 2020 season, but it would have been better had De’Braylon Carroll and Treshawn Chamberlain played a part in it. Rice hopes to have both men back in the fold next season, starting the defense off on a better foot than they ended this past fall.

4. Up-and-coming talent

The lass several Rice football recruiting classes have been loaded with talent. We saw several key Bloomgren-era recruits play big roles this season. Jake Bailey became the go-to pass catcher. Braeden Nutter slotted in seamlessly on the offensive line. Jordan Dunbar, Sean Fresch, and Gabe Taylor secured starting roles on defense. True freshman Aidian Siano tallied multiple starts and never looked out of place. The talent is there and it’s starting to make an impact.

5. Four wins is better than two (or three)

Rice saw a modest tick upward in the win column this season. While that was short of the six-win expectation, the decision was made to retain head coach Mike Bloomgren heading into 2022. More will be said on that move in the coming days and weeks, but it’s worth noting that we shouldn’t miss the forest for the trees. Rice won more games this year than they had since 2015. That’s important, even if it comes alongside some real disappointments.

Fix

1. The secondary needs an overhaul

Rice lost several starting defensive backs to injury prior to the start of the 2020 season, but still managed to piece together a formidable back end. A similar rash of injuries struck this year, but the results were very different. Whether it was the installation of a new safeties coach, the reliance on younger, less proven players or a combination of both, something didn’t click. If Rice is going to have success moving forward they have to be at least decent against the pass. They weren’t this year.

2. Injuries aside, who is playing QB?

The ever-rotating quarterback carousel almost makes the list of improvement opportunities. Jake Constantine, Wiley Green, TJ McMahon and Luke McCaffrey all saw meaningful snaps this season. The latter three will be back. We’ll have more to say on how the quarterback position played out this year, but 2022 needs to be the year of health and competence reach an all-time high in this room. Furthermore, whoever wins the job needs to be developed into a player than can be successful over the course of a season.

3. Rice needs a true RB

The Rice running back room was a work-in-progress this season. Khalan Griffin did not take the step forward many hoped he might. Beyond him, converted tight end Jordan Myers was a key cog while Ari Broussard might have been the best option after all, working his way up from scout team. A camp injury left Juma Otoviano working scout team duties. This is a prime opportunity for a transfer addition or a consolidation of roles.

4. Finding a kicker is near the top of the priority list

Rice made one field goal longer than 30 yards in 12 games. That make was a 41-yard kick from Christan VanSickle in his first game taking over placekicking duties from Collin Riccitelli. The offense got much better on fourth down, but having a hand tied behind their backs when it came to the kicking game was a tremendous detriment to the offense as a whole.

5. If 2021 wasn’t a prove-it year, 2022 is

Ending the 2021 season without a bowl trip was a major disappointment in year four of Bloomgren’s tenure. There will be no more mulligans in 2022. There’s a lot of work to be done to get this team and this coaching staff over the hump and Bloomgren will have another offseason to get them there. 2022 is the year this team goes to a bowl, Bloomgren’s future depends on it.

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Rally falls short as Rice Football falls to UTEP on the road

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Rice football rallied from an early deficit to take a halftime lead, but could not hold on, running out of time as they fell to UTEP on the road.

Saturday’s Rice football game in El Paso was anything but boring. The game had lead changes, turnovers, big plays, scoring runs and fourth-down theatrics. A desirable result for the Owls was all it lacked when the time came for the final whistle. The loss drops the Owls’ record to 3-8 before their regular-season finale against Louisiana Tech next weekend. Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:

Weathering the storm

Starting fast has been an important talking point for Rice football all season long. No matter how you slice it, when they took the field at the Sun Bowl on Saturday, Rice was slow.

UTEP drove down the field with ease, cutting through the Rice defense on a 75-yard touchdown drive on their first possession of the game. Safety Kirk Lockhart was ejected for targeting during the drive, cutting an already thin secondary down even further for the remainder of the game.

The Rice offense took over after that sequence and proceeded to go three-and-out, gaining zero yards. The second drive wasn’t much better, a three-and-out netting three total yards.

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

Yet when the dust settled, Rice trailed UTEP by just seven points at the end of the first quarter. The defense rebound with two straight four-play drives, including a huge play by Desmyn Baker to cut through a well-blocked screen and neutralize the play for no gain. That got the ball back to the Rice offense.

Jake Constantine and company then manufactured a 15-play, 75-yard drive to tie the game, with two fourth-down conversions along the way. After the slow start, Rice found themselves in the middle of the second quarter in a tied game. Not fast, but gritty. Rice weather the storm and made sure this would be a four-quarter game,

Waking up

Early on in the season, Rice football would fold when their opponent threw the first punch. That’s how non-conference games against Houston and Texas ended in one-sided routs, and how Rice was blanked in conference play by UTSA. Even though the Owls haven’t found the win column of late, they have shown the ability to fight for four quarters.

After falling behind against UTEP, Rice fought back, scoring 21 points in the second quarter. Rice had managed 21 points in a half just twice entering this game. To put up 21 points in a 15-minute span, including two touchdowns scored less than a minute from each other, was arguably the most explosive outing from the offense this year.

It was the highest-scoring quarter since Rice scored 28 in a quarter against UTEP in 2016.

But it wasn’t just the offense that deserves credit for the quick answer. The defense held UTEP to 81 yards in the second quarter, zero third down conversions and two rushing yards on four attempts. The big play came following the Owls’ second touchdown when Gabe Taylor lept in front of a Gavin Hardison pass to prevent a quick answer by UTEP before the second quarter came to a close. Instead, Rice found paydirt:

Cedric Patterson’s big play put Rice ahead at halftime for the first time since they played UAB which was, not coincidentally, their last win. Unfortunately for Rice, they seemed to spend all their points at once.

Out of gas and overwhelmed by injury

Jake Bailey was supposed to be “the guy” for Rice football this year. One of the highest-rated recruits in Rice history, the heir apparent to Austin Trammell had understandably high expectations entering the 2021 season. He was productive early on, hauling in his first touchdown of the year against Texas Southern and racking up a career-best 83 receiving yards against Southern Miss.

But it was really when Jake Constantine became the guy at quarterback that Bailey took his game to the next level. Bailey put up 143 yards against North Texas, 143 yards against Charlotte and 80 yards against Western Kentucky. He tallied 58 yards against UTEP before leaving the game midway through the third quarter after a hard hit.

With Bailey already sidelined, Jake Constantine scrambled on third down and was tripped up two yards short and injured on the tackle. Luke McCaffrey came in cold and could not hit Patterson on a deep shot. Rice turned the ball over on downs.

Jordan Myers did not play in this game. Ari Broussard was limited solely to two short-yardage carries, scoring once. Cam Montgomery had a career-long 43-yard carry. Kobie Campbell came in for Bailey and had a pair of important receptions. The next-man-up played well, but in the end, Rice ran out of steam.

Amidst the turmoil, UTEP scored 24 unanswered points. Rice’s first score in the second half would come with 5:42 to play in the fourth quarter, a two-yard fourth-down touchdown run by McCaffrey. Unfortunately for Rice, it was too little, too late.

Searching to snap a streak

The difference between a four-win season and a five-win season might not matter all that much in the grand scheme of things, but finishing the season 2-0 felt much more important for this after coming painstakingly close in a couplet of overtime finishes in weeks prior.

Not only will the Owls not finish within striking distance of six wins, they’ll have started and ended the season on low notes, the bright spots coming in the middle of the year. Fair or not, how teams start and how they finish tend to linger in memories with more staying power than what happened in say, Week 7.

It also sets the stage for a dangerously crucial finale against Louisiana Tech. Rice football is currently riding a four-game losing streak. If they are unable to beat Louisiana Tech at home next weekend, they’ll bump that trend to five consecutive defeats. Selling an upward trajectory gets tougher when the team goes winless in the final month of the season.

The totality of the year will be evaluated once the dust settles, and that goes beyond any singular result. Nevertheless, going 1-0 this week just became even more important.

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Fourth down frenzy

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Rice Football 2021: UTEP presser quotes, updates and depth chart

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Up next Rice football visits UTEP in the Owls’ last road game of the season. Here’s what Mike Bloomgren had to say about the matchup, injury updates and depth chart notes.

Head coach Mike Bloomgren and a pair of players met with the media for their customary weekly availability. They discussed the loss to Western Kentucky and how the team planned to approach their upcoming game against UTEP. We’ll include updates from Bloomgren and those players, then dig further into the details of the Rice football depth chart and what the team looks like on the field headed into the weekend.

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The depth chart continues to fluctuate, although most of the changes of late can be attributed to injury. Rice football is been beat up down the stretch, but there shouldn’t be too many surprises this week. First, the quotes:

Press Conference Quotes

“I think Coach Dimel sees winning championships the same way I do. I think he’s had success doing it at whatever level of football he’s been at. When he’s won, we’ve talked about this before, that’s kind of the formula. We’re able to do those things and yeah, it’s interesting. I think both of us are over 35 minutes time of possession so something’s gonna have to give in this game. One of us is is going to lose that battle. But in any case, I think we see the game very similarly and probably because of our backgrounds, both being at the offensive line spot, we love the ability to control the game that way.” – Mike Bloomgren on similarities between himself and Dana Dimel

“Aidan is a guy that we saw on recruiting film and fell in love with instantly. He’s sideline-to-sideline, making plays. My concerns with recruiting Aidan were never if he was good enough, it was whether we would be able to hold onto him throughout the whole recruiting process. We were able to get him and his family to fall in love with this place and this team.

I’m so thankful that he’s here. I’m thankful to see his role grow pretty much every week of the season to the point where he’s now a starter for us. I’m really excited for him to be in that role all week in practice and get to see the results against what we know is going to be a physical offensive line from UTEP” – Mike Bloomgren on linebacker Aidan Siano

“That first start was everything I could have asked for. It was a lot of fun. I was definitely nervous going into the game but… it was a lot of fun. I definitely wish the game could have gone a little bit differently, but it was a blast and I’m just blessed to be in this role” on his first start Saturday vs WKU” – Linebacker Aidan Siano on his first career start against Western Kentucky

“This offense, just day in and day out, seeing the guys come in and go to work every week. It’s college football, every week you’re not going to have the greatest game of your life. But if you can come back and work every week and continue to perfect your craft and continue to go through the scheme and continue to just practice and work together and practice hard throughout the weeks of the season with the same guys over and over. I believe that you’re obviously going to have some progression. What we’ve done is pretty nice, and I look forward to keep going.” – Running back Cam Montgomery on the growth of the offense

Depth Chart

There were no changes on the official Rice football depth chart heading into the Western Kentucky game. That’s not the case this week. There are a few changes, impacting both sides of the ball.

Rice Football

Injuries

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Rice Football 2021 Game Preview: UTEP

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Rice football is looking to finish the regular season strong. Can they top UTEP on the road? How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

It’s been a rough couple of weeks for Rice football and it’s been a rough couple of weeks for the UTEP Miners. Both programs bring three-game losing streaks into their late-November showdown at the Sun Bowl on Saturday. Most recently Rice fell to WKU, officially ending any bowl game aspirations. UTEP fell to North Texas last time out. Here’s what you need to know for this matchup:

Kickoff time | 3:00 PM CT
Venue | Sun Bowl – El Paso, TX
TV | ESPN+
Radio | Sports Map 94.1 (FM) / Stretch Internet (Online)

Audio / Visual Preview

We’ll preview Rice football vs UTEP on this week’s episode of the Blue and Gray Preview Show, streaming live on Wednesday at Noon on the Rice Athletics YouTube channel. You can also catch the recap of last week’s game on The Roost Podcast, which should be released shortly. 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

Neither Rice football nor UTEP are contenders for C-USA West, nor are the postseason fates of either program on the line this coming Saturday. These two teams will play for pride, but more than that, they’ll play for perception.

Dana Dimel and Mike Bloomgren took over downtrodden programs and were given plenty of leeway to build them up from the ground floor. The Miners appear to be cresting, finally coming to the apex of that upswing. The last few weeks have been troubling, but a win against Rice might just solidify that the trajectory of the UTEP program remains pointed upward.

On the other sideline, Rice can still reach record win totals under Bloomgren this year, but achieving those goals starts with a win over UTEP. A loss would decidedly place Rice behind UTEP in the rebuilding race, and that’s not something many of the Owls’ faithful want to be forced to contemplate. 

Series History

All Time | Rice leads UTEP, 15-8
Last Five | Rice leads UTEP, 3-2
Last Meeting | Away 2019, Rice won 30-16

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Rice Stat Notables

Passing | Constantine – 112/181 (61.9 percent), 1439 yards, 6 TD, 7 INT
Rushing | Broussard – 102 carries, 533 yards (5.2 yards per carry), 2 TD / Myers – 89 carries, 334 yards (3.8 yards per carry), 8 TD
Receiving | Bailey – 51 receptions, 656 yards (12.9 yds/rec), 2 TD / Patterson – 31 receptions, 430 yards (13.9 yds/rec), 3 TD
Tackles | Montero – 60 / Garcia – 55 / Smith – 52
Pass Breakups | Dunbar – 7, McCord – 5, Smith/Taylor – 4
Interceptions | Smith – 3, Nyakwol/Lockhart – 2

UTEP Stat Notables

Passing | Hardison – 142/263 (54.0 percent), 2396 yards passing, 14 TD, 10 INT
Rushing | Awatt – 131 carries, 672 yards (5.1 yards per carry), 5 TD / Hankins – 99 carries, 357 yards (3.6 ypc), 5 TD
Receiving | Cowing – 51 receptions, 1097 yards (21.5 yards per reception), 5 TD / Garrett – 40 receptions, 542 yards (13.6 yds/rec), 3 TD
Tackles | Hayward – 84 / Knight – 68 / Barnes – 46
Pass Breakups | Richardson/Amawhule – 7, Wilson – 5
Interceptions | Barnes – 2, Five tied with one apiece

UTEP X-Factor | Make the easy throws

As productive as the UTEP offense has been, it hasn’t been the most efficient, especially through the air. Quarterback Gavin Hardison ranks 12th among C-USA quarterbacks with a 50.9 completion percentage in conference play this season.

Completing more than a coin-flips worth of passes is an easy starting point, but given the cushion the Rice secondary has afforded other passing attacks so far this season, that has to start with the easy throws. If Hardison and UTEP are able to find success on the easier throws, early-down routes with space and wide windows, they’re going to find it easier to connect on the intermediate and deep routes later in the game.

If Hardison can unlock every level of the field and make the Rice defense have to guess, it’s going to be a long day in El Paso for the Owls.

Rice X-Factor |  Get to the quarterback

Fixing the leaky secondary doesn’t seem to be a viable solution at this point in the season. If that was something the Owls’ were capable of patching up on the fly, they probably would have found a way to keep their previous game against Western Kentucky somewhat more competitive. The Owls best chance of doing that against UTEP is getting to the source of the passing attack and stopping it there.

UTEP wide receivers Jacob Cowing and Justin Garrett each have big-play potential. If the ball gets to them, they can make the defense pay with a first down and more. They’re going to get yards. Rice just needs to make sure they’re not getting hit in stride with green grass in front of them. And that means getting to Gavin Hardison, something few have been able to do so far this season.

UTEP has allowed 13 sacks in 10 games, tied for third fewest in Conference USA. The Miners’ offensive line has been solid. Rice has found success against some of the conference’s sturdier front fives before. They’ll need to do it again this weekend.

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One Final Thing

With bowl hopes dashed, Bloomgren said this team would be “playing for each other” from this point onward. From a wins and losses perspective, the Owls do have some positive thresholds to reach on that front.

Ultimately, though, these last two games are an opportunity to prove they have what it takes and were a few bad bounces away from their goals. That might not satisfy all the critics and it might not prove to be enough the program maintains the same upward trajectory Bloomgren remained confident it does, but it’s all they can control going forward.

Beating UTEP, and doing so without an overtime period or controversy, is a must. Winning convincingly and accruing some “style points” is exactly what this team needs right now. Whether or not they can do that is on them.

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Rice Football: Bowl hopes dashed as WKU overwhelms Owls

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An important game got away from Rice Football quickly as Western Kentucky poured on the points to officially eliminate Rice from bowl eligibility.

Just about any Rice football fan would have happily accepted a one-score game against Western Kentucky after the first quarter. That’s exactly where the Owls found themselves in this one, even possessing the ball at midfield as the clock started to run on the second period. Then the bottom seemingly fell out.

Mistakes, turnovers and errant passes saw a close game turn into a blowout with remarkable speed. By the time the clock hit zeroes and both teams headed back to their locker rooms for halftime, the deficit had reached 28 points, with the Hilltoppers blanking the home team. The second half seemed like a formality at that point, with Western Kentucky coasting to the win. Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:

Making (and losing) their own luck

At the risk of oversimplifying what has been a very sporadic season, the first 12 minutes of the Owls’ game against Western Kentucky felt like a decent synopsis. Western Kentucky moved down the field almost effortlessly, gliding into the redzone for what looked might be the opening score.

Then a bad snap and questionable decision by Bailey Zappe opened the door for Naeem Smith to step in front of a low pass and for a turnover. Given an opportunity to take the lead, the Rice offense marched down the field into the redzone on a long drive that burned more than six minutes off the clock.

The August Pitre fumbled what would have been a first down reception inside the five-yard line and WKU took over. The Hilltoppers drove 97-yards for their first touchdown on the subsequent possession.

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

Rice made a big play. They had a golden opportunity to tilt the game into their favor and executed extremely well for a meaningful duration. Then, when it looked like Rice football might have set themselves up for success, disaster struck.

From “oh no!” to “yes!” to “oh no!” all in the span of three relatively short drives. A potential 7-0 Rice lead flipped to a 7-0 Rice deficit in a matter of minutes. And Rice made good plays on both sides of the ball to get them close. To start the second quarter the Rice defense forced a three-and-out. Not long after Rice punter Charlie Mendes misfired for a net of 14 yards. One step forward, another step back.

Unforced errors are stacking up

The special teams woes have been just as surprising as the defensive regression. Every week there’s an unflattering moment (or two, or three) to write home about for a unit that was among the most efficient in the country in the early years of Bloomgren’s tenure. The Rice special teams unit ranked 124th out of 130 teams in terms of efficiency entering the WKU contest.

Against the Hilltoppers, the Owls kicked the aforementioned 14-yard punt. They delivered a low snap on another punt attempt that resulted in a hurried, 32-yard punt. The first punt of the third quarter netted just 25 yards.

Rice also had a punt returned muffed, but were fortunate to recover that one with the return man quickly falling on the loose ball.

Add in four fumbles (one lost), four interceptions and eight penalties for 80 yards and you get a recipe for losing football games. Even when your defense is able to force four turnovers to help lighten the load.

Imperfect offensive evolution

Although it might have been missed in the series of close games Rice has played in recent weeks and the blowout at the hands of Western Kentucky, the Rice offense has taken a meaningful step forward. Against Charlotte, Rice recorded the highest yardage total (468 yards) they’d managed against an FBS opponent under Bloomgren. The play was sloppy against WKU, but the Owls did move the ball.

During this recent stretch, Rice had mixed running and passing and has proven effective on both fronts. Ari Broussard has been a revelation on the ground, but for every long, bruising run he delivers, the offense has also spread out in a five-wide formation and trusted quarterback Jake Constantine to find the open man.

It’s entirely possible Rice has run more plays with empty backfields in the past three weeks than they ran in the previous three seasons combined.

With no Bradley Rozner or Jordan Myers (a late scratch) on the field, Rice got down the field. Costly turnovers and errant throws from Constantine were the limiting factors for Rice against WKU, but the scheme itself was productive.

Broussard ran for 60 yards on 15 carries. Constantine passed for 380 yards and one touchdown. This offense has an identity — they finished with 504 total yards against Western Kentucky — but they’re not playing clean. And they’re running out of time.

Officially missed the mark

Reaching the postseason was the unquestioned expectation for Rice football this year. They will not get there. The Owls’ seventh loss of the season on Saturday ensured they will be staying home for the holidays once more. On that front, this season is a disappointment.

Bloomgren will undoubtedly have to answer for the shortcomings, and he has largely owned the missteps to this point. His team did not reach the expectations they set out to achieve and he, the coaching staff, and these players were noticeably frustrated by the overtime losses and missed opportunities along the way, as they should be.

Now what? Rice football has two games remaining on its 2021 slate: at UTEP and home vs Louisiana Tech. Should the Owls win both games, they’d finish with a 5-7 record and a .417 winning percentage, still the highest any Rice team has reached since 2014. Even winning one of the final pair would represent the most victories in a single season since the 2015 squad went 5-7. To that end, there is something to play for.

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Secondary sinking

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