UConn scored first. Rice Football scored last with running back Quinton Jackson clinching a walk-off win in double overtime to lift the Owls over the Huskies.
A tale of two halves, plus a little extra, ended in a thrilling Rice football victory. The two teams combined to score 38 points in the first half, 10 in the second half and 17 in overtime. No points were more important than Quinton Jackson’s 23-yard run in the second and final overtime period, securing the Owls’ victory.
“Two weeks ago, we left San Antonio kind of battered and bruised. Our egos were beat up. Our bodies were beat up,” head coach Scott Abell said. “Today speaks so much volumes of our locker room, our players our staff. Incredibly proud of them. What a great win for our program here at home.”
Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:
Corner Room Concerns
The Rice football corner room was an open point of concern entering the bye week. The indefinite suspension of top corner Khary Crump days following the UTSA contest, which featured the Owls’ other starter Omari Porter being briefly sent to the bench for allowing a big play, signaled trouble at the position that had little proven depth behind them.
Then UConn hit an 80-yard touchdown pass on their first play from scrimmage.
Huskies’ receiver Skyler Bell beat Porter one-on-one, catching the ball in stride at full speed in the open field. From there, it was a race to the pylon against the rest of the Owls’ secondary, a race that Bell won.
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Linebacker Andrew Awe said it best during the Owls’ off week. The defense is schemed in such a way that players have to make the plays assigned to them. At some point, the players have to make the plays. To be completely fair to that unit, there were some good moments like Jerrick Harper’s red zone swat to deny UConn on a fade late in the second quarter.
The reality of the situation is sobering. After a coaching change and transfer portal attrition, there wasn’t much that could have been done. With Crump gone and no reinforcements coming, this room is going to be the focal point for opposing offenses the rest of the way.
Unforced Errors and Mental Mistakes
Given the heightened focus, Rice absolutely cannot allow the situation to worsen by committing unforced errors. UConn’s first quarter touchdown was explainable — a man got beaten. Their second quarter scores? Both came on walk-in receptions with no Rice defender in the area to offer any sort of challenge.
On the first bust, UConn back Cam Edwards was left wide open when Porter moved inside to cover the tight end, who was also being shadowed by Jack Kane. That left two men on the tight end and none on Edwards, who waltzed in for six. A minute later, Jerrick Harper passed his man off to the help behind him. Except there was no help and the receiver galloped free into the endzone for another gimme touchdown.
Getting out-talented is something that’s hard to scheme around. Both of those plays were execution busts, something that cannot happen if there’s already reason for concern given the personnel issues.
Additionally, Rice was flagged for having 12 men on the field coming out of a timeout. Later, they squandered a chance at points before halftime by attempting a deep shot play on third and long. That ball fell incomplete, leaving Rice outside of field goal range on fourth and medium.
None of those singular mistakes cost Rice the game, but in aggregate they made for quite a large mountain the Owls had to overcome. Fortunately, those issues were sparse in the second half. Defensive coordinator Jon Kay ratcheted up the pressure and made UConn quarterback Joe Fagnano uncomfortable and that proved to be the difference.
New Wrinkles and Fresh Legs
Given a bye week to regroup and reassess, the offensive design Rice football put on display this past Saturday was masterful. Jenkins was effective as a runner and a thrower, but it was his ability to make good reads and keep the offense on schedule that kept this train on the tracks.
Rice racked up 296 of offense in the first half alone, roughly 60 yards short of their season-best totals against an FBS when they tallied 353 yards in four quarters against Charlotte. They hit the high-points of what had worked for them to this point, mixing in traditional and option run schemes with short passes to keep the defense honest.
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With a productive base offense moving the ball, head coach Scott Abell was able to incorporate some new elements that caught UConn off guard. Some two-back sets produced productive runs. The offense lined Jackson out wide in a diamond formation for a couple of quick screens.
None was more impressive than Jackson’s long touchdown reception — which has to be specified because he also had a breakaway touchdown on the ground — late in the second quarter.
The base concept was one of the Owls’ staple triple-option plays, which they’ve run numerous times this season. Jenkins faked the ball to the back and took a step to his right, appearing to be setting up to continue to option on a roll out with slot Aaron Turner trailing him for the pitch. Instead, Jenkins took one step to get the defense to bite, reversed field, and tossed it long to Jackson, who had turned his fake into a wheel route. Jackson took it the rest of the way.
That run, and the overtime clincher, were part of a standout performance from Jackson, who finished the game with 248 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns.
“If he’s not conference player of the week or national recognized player of the week, people aren’t paying attention,” Abell said after the game.
Jackson tried to modestly deflect the praise to his teammates, crediting their efforts for the big day the offense had as a whole. In his eyes, the entire mentality of the unit had shifted.
“I think we’re out there having fun. I think the past few weeks, we weren’t’ having fun, we were thinking too much, trying not to make mistakes, playing scared,” he said. “I think this week we went out there and just let it loose. We didn’t have nothing to lose.”
Changing the Narrative
Oh how much difference can one week make. Heading into the bye this was a team in crisis, reeling from injuries and riding a three-game losing streak. Now the Owls are feisty again, winning for the second time this season as a double-digit underdog, this time against a team that beat a Power conference opponent seven days before they landed in Houston.
“We needed a win. I don’t hide from that,” Abell said. “I knew that we had this capability in us. It’s just win was it going to hit? And that’s a real good football team we beat.”
The win came in what was truly a complete overall team performance. The defense was tremendous in the second half and the end of overtime. Special teams contributed some important field position swings late. The offense made big plays when they needed to most, looking as consistent and confident as they had all season.
“I felt like truly for the first time you saw a lot of trust and confidence in some of the things that we were trying to get done. Some of the things that we’ve done a lot this year and we’ve just missed on a couple things,” Abell said. “Today, they trusted each other. They trusted the concepts and the game plan. They executed in phenomenally.”
Digging Deeper
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