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Rice Football Film Room 2020: Marshall Review

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Rice Football shocked Marshall last Saturday, shutting out the Herd in their own house. We take a look at how it happened in this week’s film room.

HOW ‘BOUT THEM OWLS, Y’ALL? I hope you’re all still riding as high as I am after a potential program-defining win for this team and coaching staff. With apologies to my hometown Blazers, I’m devoting this week’s Rice Football Film Room to the Marshall win; for more on UAB, go check Matt and Taylor McHargue on Inside the Hedges tonight or tune into The Roost Podcast on Thursday.

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With Saturday’s win fueled by—surprise!—a dominant performance by the defense, we’ll focus on that side of the ball.

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Rice Football 2020 Game Preview: UAB

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Rice Football is soaring after a landmark victory over Marshall. Can they finish strong and beat UAB? How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

Down their starting quarterback, starting running back, top wide receiver and a few starters on defense, Rice football walked into Huntington, WV last weekend and bludgeoned No. 15 Marshall in their own building. The resounding 20-0 win has Rice riding high entering their last scheduled game of an up-and-down 2020 season.

UAB just wants to play a football game. They’ve been idle since Halloween, following four cancelations.  Their last time out they lost a nailbiter to Louisiana Tech in double overtime.

Broadcast Info

Kickoff time | 12:00 PM CT
Venue | Rice Stadium – Houston, TX
TV | ESPN3 (Streaming)
Radio | Sports Map 94.1 (FM) / Stretch Internet (Online)

Audio Preview

We’ll preview Rice football vs UAB on Episode 66 of The Roost Podcast which will be released on Thursday. 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.)

Visual Preview

Make sure you check out Inside the Hedges, a weekly show with myself and former Rice football quarterback Taylor McHargue. Watch it live on Wednesday nights here or watch it at your leisure on the Rice Athletics Youtube page.

Join the Conversation

What are your keys to victory this week? What pitfalls must the Owls avoid? Did you like that third down call? Share your thoughts on the matchup on the forum and make sure you tune in Saturday for our live game blog keeping track of every score and key moment.

Sizing up the contenders

This game has a lot riding on it for both parties. Fresh off their upset over Marshall, Rice football can clinch a winning record (3-2) with a win in what is likely to be their regular season finale. Going from 3-9 to 3-2 in the midst of a pandemic with a signature win would be definitive evidence the program is on the rise.

For UAB, the win would put them even with Rice at three wins, but more importantly, give them claim to the Conference USA West Division Title. As far as the tiebreakers stand right now, a 3-1 UAB would get in over a 5-2 UTSA based on winning percentage. With a loss, the Blazers fall to 2-2 and would finish behind Rice in the conference standings.

Series History

All Time | UAB leads 5-3
Last Five | UAB leads 3-2
Last Meeting | Away 2020, UAB won 35-20

Rice Stat Notables

Passing | Collins – 53/86 (61.6 percent), 802 yards passing, 10 TD, 1 INT
Rushing | Otoviano – 45 carries, 195 yards (4.3 yards per carry) | Griffin – 58 carries, 215 yards (3.7 yards per carry)
Receiving | Trammell – 16 receptions, 335 yards (20.9 yards per reception), 6 TD | Myers – 15 receptions, 147 yards (9.8 yards per reception)
Tackles | Alldredge – 42, Montero – 23, Garcia – 23
Pass Breakups/Interceptions | Calderon – 2 PBU / Six players tied with 1 INT

UAB Stat Notables

Passing | Lucero – 79/146 (54.1 percent), 969 yards passing, 7 TD, 8 INT
Rushing | Brown – 156 carries, 740 yards (4.7 yards per carry), 10 TD
Receiving | Watkins – 34 receptions, 468 yards (13.8 yards per reception), 3 TD | Mitchell – 26 receptions, 360 yards (13.8 yards per reception), 2 TD
Tackles | Moll – 47, Wilder – 42, Boler – 33
Pass Breakups/Interceptions | Marshall, Miller – 3 PBU / Six tied with one interception

UAB X-Factor | Take care of the football

Notwithstanding any rust they might have accrued over month long wait, holding onto the football will be paramount for the Blazers this Saturday. UAB is minus-three in turnover margin this year, but they’re carelessness with the football was significantly worse over the second half of their games compared to their start.

UAB committed four turnovers in their first three games, forcing six of their own for a plus-two margin. In their last four games, which includes all three of their C-USA contests, the Blazers have committed 11 turnovers while forcing just six of their own. They’re 2-2 over that stretch.

Rice just showcased what happens when opposing teams hand them extra mistakes and the Owls probably left points on the board against Marshall. UAB can’t afford to be sloppy.

Rice X-Factor | Win on third downs

For all the Owls did right in their upset of Marshall, they didn’t fair well on third down Rice converted 5-of-13 attempts, with their first successful conversion not occurring until the final two minutes of the first half. A fourth down conversion and a defensive touchdown helped them put enough points on the board, but the Owls’ base their success on being able to stay on the field and control the clock.

In 2019, Rice was 3-2 when converting at least 42% of their third down attempts. They’re 1-0 this year, representing their win over Southern Miss in which they converted 9-of-15 third downs (60 percent).

The offense has the potential to be significantly better, no matter what skill players take the field, if they can manage to extend drives. Converting on a few more third downs will ensure that happens.

Injury Report (Subscribers only).

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Need More?

The Roost’s 2020 Rice Football Season Preview has four pages dedicated to every opponent the Owls face. There are depth charts, important new arrivals and depth chart breakdowns for every team in Conference USA. Better yet, it’s not just speculation, each profile was created with insight from local experts who cover those teams day in and day out. Pick up your copy today and get four pages and more than 1,000 words on every foe.

Pick ‘Em Contest

If you haven’t yet, make sure you submit your entry for The Roost’s weekly pick’em challenge. Choose an answer to each of the six questions below and submit them on the forum thread to enter.

  1. How many turnovers will the Rice defense force?
    One or fewer / Two or more
  2. How many yards will the longest Rice scoring drive be?
    Over 59.5 / Under 59.5 
  3. Will there be a fourth down conversion by either team?
    Yes / No
  4. Which team completes more passes?
    Rice / UAB (or tie)
  5. Which teams score in the first quarter?
    Only Rice / Only UAB / Both teams score
  6. Who wins?
    Rice / UAB
  7. Bonus (3 pts)
    How many points does Rice score? (Must be exact)

One Final Thing

To some extent, it feels like Rice is playing with house money in this game. As long as they show up and put forth a respectable performance against the defending C-USA West Champions, the Owls will have done enough this season to prove they’re heading in the right direction.

But, if they do win, the ripple effect would be massive. A win against UAB would secure a 3-2 record, including wins over the two teams considered to be the best in the conference entering the year. They’d be one bad loss (North Texas) or one weird bounce (Middle Tennessee) away from outright clinching the West division, a 4-1 record would have been enough.

Way back when this was expected to be a normal 12-game season, going to a bowl game was the expectation. Coming one win away from playing in the conference championship game would have been widely considered a step beyond that. That’s what’s on the table for Rice against UAB.

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Shutout and Shutdown: Rice football stuns undefeated Marshall

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On a chilly Saturday morning, Rice Football stunned the college football world, knocking off an undefeated, ranked Marshall squad on the road.

For the first time since 1995, Rice football pitched a shutout. On that day 25 years ago, Rice blanked UNLV 38-0. Fast-forward to 2020 where the Owls have now held No. 15 Marshall off the scoreboard in the biggest win of the Mike Bloomgren era. Marshall had never been shut out at Joan C. Edwards Stadium. Now they have.

The last time Rice shutout a ranked opponent? October 22, 1960, when they beat No. 16 Texas, 7-0.

In some ways, the 2020 Owls’ 20-0 win over a ranked Marshall team came out of nowhere. But for those watching the program quietly add talent and take the right steps, it served as validation for three years of hard work. There will be plenty more to unpack from this win in the days to come, for now, a few immediate reactions from the Owls’ big win.

Playing against the odds

Rice had lost its last 32 games against ranked opponents entering their game against Marshall. If that wasn’t enough to qualify as adversity, the absences of quarterback Mike Collins, wide receiver Austin Trammell and linebacker Antonio Montero upped the challenge by a significant margin.

Depending on where you looked, Rice was somewhere between a 21 and a 25 point underdog on Saturday. They weren’t expected to keep it close, let alone contend. Surprise.

When the deck is stacked against you to that degree, you need two things: execution and luck. Rice got both on Saturday. They kept Marshall quarterback Grant Wells off balance from the start, forcing five interceptions.

On the luck front, they were extremely fortunate to receive the latest flag I’ve ever seen throw on a fake punt attempt. Charlie Mendes caught the snap and threw a deep shot down the left sideline. The ball fell to the turf, primarily because the Marshall defender was mugging the would-be Rice receiver. Initially, no flag was thrown, but after a brief conference, the officials changed their minds. Rice got three points off the reversal, extending their lead to two scores, 10-0.

A questionable fumble call against Jake Bailey in the second half and a missed field goal were two of the unluckier moments for the Owls, but for the most part, Rice took advantage of their opportunities and left themselves enough breathing room to overcome those obstacles.

Dominant defense sets the tone

Despite the odds, Rice was not intimidated. They did just about everything right to engineer the upset.

The Owls held on fourth down on Marshall’s opening possession. The forced turnover on downs marked the 13th consecutive game in which Rice had kept their opponent scoreless on their opening drive. Check.

They extended the defensive success by controlling the clock on offense and shutting out Marshall in the first quarter. Rice has yet to allow a point in the first quarter this season. Check.

You could tell the physicality and the effort was different. The defense featured a few creative blitz combinations, but for the most part, it was a strong game from the Rice defensive line against a vaunted Marshall offensive line.

Bloomgren said Marshall’s biggest strength was their ability to line up and “whip the dude in front of them”. Rice just didn’t let that happen. Quite the opposite, in fact. In every phase of the game, Rice football whipped Marshall.

If the play-to-play grind wasn’t enough, safety Naeem Smith delivered the knockout blow in his first action of the season, putting Rice ahead 20-0 on this pick-six.

Rice had six interceptions in 12 games last season. Blaze Alldredge, Josh Pearcy, Andrew Bird, Treshawn Chamberlain and Smith each had a pick on Saturday against a quarterback that had only thrown four in seven games this season.

Special, special teams

Rice muffed three punts in their first three games and suffered the infamous quadruple-doink against Middle Tennessee. That phase of the game had thwarted the Owls’ chances this season. Against Marshall, they were crucial to the Owls’ success.

Collin Riccitelli converted two of three field goals. Mendes’ execution of the fake punt pass set Rice up for a score. Mendes pinned Marshall deep on one of his few punts of the day. Then, with Marshall backed up in their own endzone, Bailey returned a punt to the Marshall to the Marshall 27 to set up another score.

The coverage units were lights out. When they did punt, Mendes was masterful. Apart from a missed field goal, this unit played some of their best football of the entire season.

Signature win

Months ago when we thought Rice football would be playing a full 12 game season, a bowl game was set as the expectation for this team. If the Owls could achieve that it would be proof the team was making progress and heading in the right direction.

When that schedule was scrapped, the means of evaluating progress became much more challenging. For one, we didn’t know how many games Rice would play this year. We didn’t know who those games would be against. And we didn’t know which players Rice would have. Losing Brad Rozner to an injury before the Owls first game compounded things even more.

But this win—knocking off a ranked opponent on the road without your starting quarterback and best wide receiver—proves “the process” as Bloomgren likes to call it, is working. Rice just beat the best team in Conference USA. They’ve proved they can do it. Now they need to show that effort and poise consistently.

Digging deeper (Subscribers only)

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

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Rice Football 2020: Marshall Presser Quotes and practice notes

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Rice football has a big game ahead of them this weekend against a nationally ranked Marshall squad. Here are the latest notes and press conference quotes.

Rice football got close to kickoff against UTEP, but the game was nixed before kickoff, the third game Rice has forgone because of COVID-19 problems at another institution. The Owls hope to return to the field this weekend to take on a ranked Marshall team. Rice hasn’t beaten a ranked opponent in their last 30 tries, so a win against the Herd would be a monumental achievement.

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To that end, head coach Mike Bloomgren and a few players spoke about the challenge ahead of them. We’ve selected a few quotes from the Owls’ midweek press conference. Then we’ve got a few more updates on what’s in store for the Owls in the coming days and weeks plus a look at some changes on the Rice depth chart.

Press Conference Quotes

“With the number of cancelations we’ve had, last weekend felt like a loss, and I can’t have them feeling that way because this is not something we were in control of. They do everything we ask. We were ready to play.” – Mike Bloomgren on UTEP cancelation

“Here’s the deal with their defense. They’re going to line up one of two ways. They’re not trying to baffle you with people swinging in on vines. They aren’t gonna dazzle you with dance. They’re going to line up across from you and they are going to play physical football.” – Mike Bloomgren on the Marshall defense

“There’s two ways to respond. You can either let what happened to you define the rest of your season, or you can come back and you can play one of the best teams — the best team in the conference — and you can surprise everyone. And that’s what we’re looking to do.” – TE Jaeger Bull on the UTEP cancelation and Marshall game

“They really don’t do a whole lot of eye candy stuff. They’re gonna line up in pretty basic packages every play and you’re not always going to know exactly what they’re running but they’re going to try to run it down your throat. And like [Bloomgren] said, if we don’t stop the run it’s going to be a long day for us.” – DE Trey Schuman on Marshall 

Depth Chart Notes

Here’s an updated depth chart from Rice football heading into the Marshall game and some comments on a few notable additions and omissions as well as some injury notes:

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Rice Football Film Room 2020: Marshall Preview

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Following a third cancelation, Rice football returns to the field to face a stout Marshall squad. How big is the task at hand? We discuss in this week’s film room.

Well, at this point I’m running out of pithy things to say about postponements and cancellations. This stinks! Three very winnable games gone from Rice’s schedule, all in the division, and a rescheduled one this Saturday in Huntington against a juggernaut of a Marshall team.

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I won’t sugarcoat this for y’all. Marshall is very, very, very good. Both of ESPN’s analytical power ranking systems (FPI and Bill Connelly’s SP+) have them as one of the top 25 teams in all of FBS. They’re led on both sides of the ball by ferocious lines: an OL with every spot manned by a senior and a defensive front that’s put up 41 tackles for loss and 22 sacks in seven games. Rice is going to have to play damn near perfect to pull this one off.

Redshirt freshman quarterback Grant Wells has been stellar for the Herd so far, but the heart and soul of their offense is junior running back Brenden Knox. He’s not the most explosive back (5.0 YPC, and his longest run this year is the 45-yarder we’ll see below), but he’s tough, agile, and has great vision.

Knox can make you pay

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