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Conference USA Football 2021: Week 11 C-USA 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 11.

Team Week 11 Result Week 12
Charlotte at LA Tech L, 42-32 vs Marshall
FAU at Old Dominion L, 30-16 at WKU
FIU at MTSU L, 50-10 vs North Texas
LA Tech vs Charlotte W, 42-32 vs Southern Miss
Marshall vs UAB L, 21-14 at Charlotte
MTSU vs FIU W, 50-10 vs Old Dominion
North Texas vs UTEP W, 20-17 at FIU
Old Dominion vs FAU W, 30-16 at MTSU
Rice vs WKU L, 42-21 at UTEP
Southern Miss at UTSA L, 27-17 at LA Tech
UAB at Marshall W, 21-14 at UTSA
UTEP at North Texas L, 20-17 vs Rice
UTSA vs Southern Miss W, 27-17 vs UAB
WKU at Rice W, 42-21 vs FAU

Notable Week 11 results – Standings

Southern Miss scare

Owners of a seven-game losing streak, Southern Miss decided to throw everything they had against UTSA on Saturday… everything except a quarterback. And it almost worked. Frank Gore Jr. operated out of the wildcat for much of the game, completing two-of-three passes and running for 123 yards. This game was deadlocked at 17-17 well into the fourth quarter before UTSA was able to escape.

Monarchs heating up

Old Dominion has quietly won three games in a row. Before that, the Monarchs had been blasted by Western Kentucky (not unlike several other C-USA foes) and dropped one-score games to Marshall and UTEP. It took some time for the off-year dust to fall off, but Old Dominion is playing their best football of the year at the right time.

Miners trending backward

It wasn’t that long ago that UTEP was being mentioned amongst the best records in Conference USA. The miners were tied for the lead in the West through seven weeks, but have now dropped three in a row. Already at six wins, a bowl trip is secure, but the dreams of finishing near the top of the West took a hit when they fell to North Texas this past week.

Looking ahead – Key storylines

For the West

Opinions were split regarding C-USA West entering the 2021 season and folks fell into one of two camps. Some sided with Bill Clark and the UAB Blazers, the West Division champs three years running. Others felt UTSA and Jeff Traylor could continue their meteoric rise. Those two programs meet next weekend. The winner takes the West.

Controlling their own destiny

If Western Kentucky wins out, they win the East. The road to get there will be challenging, though. Up next is FAU, a team reeling from an upset at the hands of Old Dominion this past weekend. If Bailey Zappe and Co. continue to put up the points they could face the UTSA/UAB winner in a few weeks.

Bowl Battle

A mid-November tilt between Middle Tennessee and Old Dominion just much more interesting. The Monarchs kept bowl hopes alive with their win over Florida Atlantic. They need to more wins to reach the six-win plateau. MTSU needs one. This game could prove pivotal to both programs’ holiday plans.

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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.

Digging deeper

Every week we’ll have a stat, storyline or key learning from the game reserved for our subscribers.

Secondary sinking

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

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Rice football knows what’s at stake this week against Western Kentucky. Here’s what Mike Bloomgren had to say about the matchup, 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 tough loss to Charlotte and laid out expectations and their prep work for their game against Western Kentucky next week. 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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Rice football has found stability at the quarterback position after injuries and lineup adjustments. With that settled and no major injury updates looming, the lineup is starting to normalize. First, the quotes:

Press Conference Quotes

“I think for three and two-thirds quarters, we played about as well as we needed to. We certainly left some opportunities out there like you always do. We played good enough to win and we weren’t able to capitalize down the stretch and that’s really disappointing.” – Mike Bloomgren on the Charlotte loss

“We know [Western Kentucky] have a dominant offense. They have a great quarterback and they have been playing as good a defense as they have all year. They’re creating turnovers. They’re really playing solid in all three phases. They’re really good on special teams. They get after it on special teams. So, it’s going to be an unbelievable challenge for us.” – Mike Bloomgren on the Western Kentucky game

“I really think the past few weeks, it’s just been getting the five dudes together, gelling more as these five guys. And then also, it’s just a testament to our coaching. We’ve talked about it before. We have probably five or six elite level offensive line coaches just in this building. We’re really a product of our training when it comes to our coaching. And every week that we’ve gotten better, I would say as part of it is every week, our coaches have worked harder. So I think that’s a big testament to some of our recent successes.” – Guard Cole Garcia on the growth of the offensive line

“They’re going to throw the ball a lot. So we got to get back there. And [defensive line] coach [Cedric] Calhoun always says ‘put it on us’. The d-line is going to always give 100 percent effort and try and get some pressure on the QB to help on our DBs.” – Defensive end Miles Adams on Western Kentucky

Depth Chart

There are no changes to the official Rice football depth chart this week.

Rice Football

Secondary is on notice

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Rice Football 2021: NFL Owls Week 9 Stats Update

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Rice Football is well represented on 2021 NFL rosters. Here’s the latest from the NFL Owls in action in Week 9.

There are former Rice football players scattered across the NFL. Stay tuned each week for their game results and notables from each player.

Team NFL Owl(s) Week 9 Result Week 10
LA Chargers Christian Covington (DL) at Philadelphia W, 27-24 vs Minnesota
Denver Calvin Anderson (OL)
Bryce Callahan (CB)		 at Dallas W, 30-16 vs Philadelphia
Pittsburgh Chris Boswell (PK) vs Chicago W, 29-27 vs Detroit
Detroit Jack Fox (P) — OFF —  — at Pittsburgh
Tampa Bay Nick Leverett (OL) — OFF —  — at Washington
Indianapolis Andrew Sendejo (Saf) vs NY Jets (Thr) W, 45-30 vs Jacksonville

Offense

Calvin Anderson – OT, Broncos

After working as a reserve for the early portion of the season, Calvin Anderson drew his first start this week, filling in for injured Garrett Bolles. It was the third start of his career and the most snaps he’s played in a singular game to date.

Nick Leverett – OT, Buccaneers

Leverett and the Buccaneers were on bye in Week 9. They resume play in Week 10 at the Washington Football Team.

Defense

Bryce Callahan – CB, Broncos

Callahan suffered a knee injury in Week 8 and was unable to return to the game, subsequently being placed on IR. He will miss at least three games.

Christian Covington – DL, Chargers

Covington had four tackles in the Chargers’ Week 9 win over the Eagles. He has recorded multiple tackles in every game he’s played so far this season.

Andrew Sendejo – S, Colts

Sendejo drew his fifth start of the year for the Colts in their Thursday Night Football win over the Jets, telling three tackles. He’s now reached three or more tackles in all but one start this season.

Special Teams

Jack Fox – P, Lions

Fox and the Lions were on bye in Week 9. They resume play in Week 10 at Pittsburgh.

Chris Boswell – K, Steelers

Boswell bounced back from an injury suffered on a fake field goal and suited up for the Steelers’ Monday Night Football game against the Bears. He missed one of three extra points on the night, but redeemed himself by making three field goals, two of which were from distances beyond fifty yards while the third was the game-winner in the final seconds.

He also recovered a fumble.

More Owls in the NFL

From practice squads to current free agents, there are other Owls on the cusp of returning to active rosters. Find more detail on current contractual agreements and former Rice football players waiting for their next opportunity here.

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The Roost Podcast | Ep 99 – Charlotte tops Rice football in OT

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Rice football dropped another overtime affair, this time falling on the road to Charlotte, squandering a 10-point fourth quarter lead.

On what was one of the more efficient offensive days Rice football has had in some time, questionable decision making a porous pass defense led to another painful overtime defeat. Rice watched a fourth quarter lead disappear, falling to 3-6 on the season. What’s next for this team and what should be made of the defeat in Charlotte? Carter and Matthew break down the good and the bad.

You can find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, give a listen to Episode 99.

Episode Notes

  • Housekeeping
    • Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on your platform of choice. Every little bit helps.
    • Check out the Blue and Gray Preview Show every Wednesday at Noon, hosted by Matthew and Rice radio broadcaster JP Heath on the Rice Athletics Youtube Channel
    • Please support us on Patreon. Be the first to get the inside scoop on what’s going on with Rice football and stick around for even further analysis. That includes updates from fall camp, practices and more.
      Become a Patron!
  • Rice football vs Charlotte Review 
    • Rice football kicking woes continue
    • Jake Constantine, Jake Bailey and Ari Broussard provide plenty of punch on offense
    • How often should this team be going for it on fourth down?
    • Is there a feasible solution for the secondary’s woes?
    • Can Rice recover from another gut punch in overtime?
    • What’s at stake next weekend against Western Kentucky?

Where can you find us?

Download and subscribe to The Roost Podcast on any of your favorite podcast providers. The show is available on iTunes, GooglePlay, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn and PodBean. Please consider leaving a review wherever you listen.

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