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Rice Football 2022: NFL Owls Week 6 Roundup

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Rice Football is well represented on 2022 NFL rosters. Here’s the latest from the NFL Owls in action in Week 6.

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 6 Result Week 7
Denver Broncos Calvin Anderson (OL) at Chargers (MNF) L, 19-16 (OT) vs Jets
Detroit Lions Jack Fox (P) — BYE —  — at Cowboys
Indianapolis Colts Kylen Granson (TE) vs Jags W, 34-27 at Titans
LA Chargers Bryce Callahan (DB)
Christian Covington (DL)		 vs Broncos (MNF) W, 19-16 (OT) vs Seahawks
Pittsburgh Steelers Chris Boswell (PK) vs Bucs W, 20-18 at Miami (SNF)
Seattle Seahawks Myles Adams (DL) vs Cardinals W, 19-9 at Chargers
Tampa Bay Bucs Nick Leverett (OL) at Steelers L, 20-18 at Panthers

Offense

Calvin Anderson – OT, Broncos

Anderson got the start at left tackle for the Broncos on Monday Night Football and split snaps with Cam Fleming. It was Anderson’s first start of the season.

Kylen Gransen – TE, Colts

Gransen tied a career-high with four catches in the Colts’ Week 6 win over the Jaguars. He tallied 38 yards and added one tackle in the game.

Nick Leverett – OT, Buccaneers

Leverett was active but did not play this week, a recurring pattern for the Bucs’ next-man-up on the offensive line.

Defense

Myles Adams – DL, Seahawks

Adams saw an uptick in production this week, posting a career-best three tackles in the Seahawks’ Week 6 win over the Cardinals.

Bryce Callahan – CB, Chargers

Callahan made three tackles in the Chargers’ Monday Night Football win over the Broncos, one of which was a tackle for a loss.

Christian Covington – DL, Chargers

After being active the week prior, Covington was inactive for the Chargers’ Monday Night Football game against the Broncos. He’s been back and forth between activations since being signed to the active roster earlier this season.

Special Teams

Jack Fox – P, Lions

Fox and the Lions were on bye this week.

Chris Boswell – K, Steelers

Boswell was perfect from the field against the Bucs on Sunday, connecting on two field goals (including a long of 55 yards) as well as a pair of extra points.

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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Rice Football 2022 Game Preview: LA Tech

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Rice football makes its final visit to Ruston, LA as a member of Conference USA to play Louisiana Tech. How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

Anxious to move past frustrating road losses, both Rice football and Louisiana Tech meet in search of a win in Week 8. The Rice Owls fell to the Owls of FAU in Boca Raton while Louisiana Tech dropped their game against North Texas in Denton. Here’s everything you need to know about the game.

Kickoff time | 2:00 PM CT
Venue | Joe Aillet Stadium – Ruston, LA
TV | ESPN+ (Viewing Guide)
Radio | Sports Map 94.1 (FM) / Stretch Internet (Online)

Audio / Visual Preview

We’ll preview Rice football vs Louisiana Tech on this week’s episode of the Blue and Gray Preview Show, streaming live on Wednesday at Noon on the Rice Athletics YouTube channel. Look for a recap of the game on the site afterward as well as on The Roost Podcast, which should be released early next week. 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

With the bye week behind both clubs and six games remaining, both programs feel like they could be nearing a tipping point in terms of where this season is headed. Rice is 3-3. Louisiana Tech is 2-4. A bowl berth is on the table for both clubs, with more pressure on Owls’ headman Mike Bloomgren to deliver in Year 5 to deliver a trip to the postseason.

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Series History

All Time | Louisiana Tech leads, 9-5
Last Five | Louisiana Tech leads, 4-1
Last Meeting | Home 2021, Rice won 35-31

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Rice Football Stat Notables

Passing | McMahon – 97/164 (59.2 percent), 1277 yards, 10 TD, 10 INT
Rushing | Broussard – 85 carries, 233 yards (2.7 yards per carry), 9 TD / Montgomery – 27 carries, 211 yards (7.8 yards per carry), 0 TD
Receiving | McCaffrey – 33 receptions, 384 yards (11.7 yds/rec), 3 TD / Rozner – 19 receptions, 447 yards (23.5 yds/rec), 4 TDs / Esdale – 19 receptions, 239 yards (12.6 yds/rec), 0 TD
Tackles | Morrison – 40 / Conti – 34 / Taylor – 25
Pass Breakups | Dunbar, Morrison – 3 / Taylor, Fresch, Narcisse – 2 
Interceptions | Taylor – 2 / Morrison, Nyakwol, Chamberlain – 1

LA Tech Notables

Passing | McNeil – 78/137 (56.9 percent), 1167 yards, 12 TD, 7 INT
Rushing | Crosby – 59 carries, 342 yards (5.5 yards per carry), 3 TD / Thornton – 24 carries, 113 yards (4.7 ypc), 1 TD
Receiving | Hebert – 20 receptions, 403 yards (20.2 yards per reception), 3 TD / Harris – 25 receptions, 376 yards (15.0 yds/rec), 3 TD
Tackles | Grubbs – 48 / Williamson – 37 / Cole, Davis – 29
Pass Breakups | Roberts – 5 /  Johnson – 4 / Cole – 2
Interceptions | Roberts – 2 / Four others tied with 1

LA Tech X-Factor | Cash in

Rice has had its struggles on offense this year, but the Owls’ defense has been extremely stout. Florida Atlantic barely scratched across 17 points last weekend, well below their season average. Points will be at a premium this coming weekend, necessitating the need to capitalize on every opportunity, which is something Louisiana Tech has struggled to do this season.

Louisiana Tech ranks ninth in Conference USA in red zone touchdown percentage, putting the ball in the box on just 50 percent of their red zone opportunities. That deficiency reared its head against North Texas last weekend, too. The Bulldogs settled for a field goal despite reaching the one-yard line. North Texas responded with a touchdown on the next possession and the game was never close again.

If Louisiana Tech gets close, they have to leave the redzone with touchdowns. Kicking field goals on limited chances is not a recipe for success.

Rice X-Factor | Run the ball

Louisiana Tech enters Week 8 allowing 263 rushing yards per game, the worst mark in Conference USA. The Bulldogs have been a sieve in that aspect of their defense, allowing a staggering 6.4 yards per carry.

Rice, conversely, has struggled immensely to run the football. Their limitations in that phase have heaped extra pressure on quarterback TJ McMahon and led to inconsistent drives and challenging offensive situations. If Rice can’t run the football on this defense, there are going to have to be some hard questions asked about the optics of this offense moving forward.

If Rice can run the ball, it’s hard to envision this offense not finding tremendous success. The solution to the Owls’ offensive woes isn’t solely that simple, but it would go a long way to getting back in rhythm on that side of the ball.

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One Final Thing

Through six games, two truths about Rice football seem abundantly clear. First, this team is the best team Mike Bloomgren has assembled at South Main. From the roster construction to their performances through the first half of the season, it’s hard to argue any of Bloomgren’s other squads even comes that close. Second, this team’s consistency needs to improve, drastically.

The Rice team that blew past Louisiana at home should have no trouble dispatching Louisiana Tech on the road. That said, the iteration of the Owls that was unable to score and unable to finish against Florida Atlantic isn’t going to win many additional conference games.

At this point, it seems the true version of Rice football is closer to the team that beat Louisiana than the one that lost to Florida Atlantic. How close the Owls can get to that team, or even better, will determine the fate of this upcoming matchup and the rest of the season. Needless to say, Saturday’s game against Louisiana Tech is extremely important.

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Conference USA Football 2022: Week 7 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 7.

Team Week 7 Result Up Next
Charlotte at UAB L, 34-20 vs FIU
FAU vs Rice W, 17-14 at UTEP
FIU vs UTSA L, 30-10 at Charlotte
LA Tech at North Texas L, 47-27 vs Rice
MTSU vs WKU L, 35-17 — OFF —
North Texas vs LA Tech W, 47-27 at UTSA
Rice at FAU L, 17-14 at LA Tech
UAB vs Charlotte W, 34-20 at WKU
UTEP — OFF —  — vs FAU
UTSA vs FIU W, 30-10 vs North Texas
WKU at MTSU W, 35-17 vs UAB

Notable Week 7 results – Standings

And then there were two

There are two unbeaten teams remaining in conference play: UTSA, which prognosticators tabbed as the favorite in the preseason, and North Texas, which has quietly climbed to 3-0. The Mean Green have yet to play the Roadrunners or fellow conference powers UAB or WKU, but they’ve won the games on their schedule, setting things up for an interesting second half in Denton.

Owl on Owl slugfest

Rice had a chance to remain in the unbeaten club, but allowed 17 unanswered points to FAU on the road, spoiling their return from a bye week. Credit to FAU, who didn’t turn the ball over and found a way to grind out a tough win.

Murky middle

Conference USA football always feels like a wide-open race and the 2022 season is no exception. Six teams sit with one game of .500 as the calendar moves into late October and that includes perennial favorite UAB, which survived a scare from Charlotte on Saturday. More answers will materialize in the weeks to come, but it’s safe to say that No. 3 through No. 8 is a mess right now.

Looking ahead – Key storylines

Digging out of the bottom

Sitting comfortably outside the top competitors in the conference, FIU and Charlotte meet in Week 8 in a meaningful game for both teams. The winner climbs out of the basement in the conference standings and interrupts a tough skid with more challenging opponents looming. Loser remains in search of their first conference win as the season starts to wind down.

Proving time

Both Western Kentucky and UAB have a conference loss already. And while two losses won’t eliminate either from a conference title game spot, it would make the road much more difficult. Winning this coming Saturday would be the easiest way to get back into the race and catch up with the frontrunners.

Postseason progress point

Meanwhile, in the middle of the pack, Rice travels to Louisiana Tech in a game that seems critical for both squad’s bowl aspirations. Rice enters with three wins. Louisiana Tech has two. The math to get to six gets more challenging without a win in this game, with several games remaining against some of Conference USA’s best looming for each team down the stretch.

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Rice Football falters late, falling to FAU on the road

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Rice Football started fast, but couldn’t hold on, squandering a fourth-quarter lead as they fell to the FAU Owls on the road on Saturday.

Rice football scored the first 14 points and looked to be on their way to their first road win of the season but it would not come to pass. FAU answered with 17 unanswered points, clamping down late to thwart the Owls’ late.

“I wish I could tell you that they made some great adjustments,” Rice football head coach Mike Bloomgren said in the aftermath. “They really kept doing what they were doing and our execution faltered and that’s the disappointing part.”

Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:

Explosive, but imperfect offense can’t do enough

Rice football is still searching for a seamless offensive game, but their current less-than-perfect somewhat boom-or-bust operation is getting the job done. The road Owls started the game going backward, losing 16 yards on their first drive of the game. On the very next sequence, McMahon hit Bradley Rozner for this career-long 78-yard touchdown reception.

McMahon and Rozner guided the team down the field for another score immediately afterward. Up 14-0, Rice had the ball again with the chance to deliver a third potentially soul-crushing score in the final minutes of the first quarter. Instead, McMahon threw two passes which probably each should have been intercepted by the FAU defense.

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

McMahon would miss open receivers on the subsequent drive too, which ended with a failed fourth-down conversion. FAU scored on their next possession, then the offense went three-and-out for the third time in six drives.

Tack on another deflected interception (how????) and McMahon’s third interception on the subsequent drive and it would end up dooming what seemed to be such a promising day in the first quarter. McMahon had rough day. So did the offensive line. The entire unit is going to have some rough conversations in the film room this week.

Rice football head coach Mike Bloomgren was brutally honest in his postgame remarks. “We have to do better,” he said. “14 points in a football game doesn’t win. It doesn’t win in college football. Not scoring in the second half doesn’t win, we know those things. We’ve got to get better.

In prior years, explosive plays were few and far between, resulting in stagnant offensive performances. Rice is hitting big plays this year, but it hasn’t figured out the consistency just yet. If they can iron out the warts, this offense has the potential to really take off.

Big play defense

It’s been the Rice defense that’s allowed this offense to learn on the job. They’ve been absolutely superb this season and that strong showing continued on Saturday. For the most part, they made the routine plays, allowing a few explosive plays to FAU but largely playing fundamentally sound football. It was third and fourth down where they flexed their muscles.

FAU was 6-of-17 on third down and 0-of-4 when facing third and nine or longer. When this defense gets the green light and is allowed to pin their ears back and go, bad things tend to happen for the other team.

Then there were the big plays. Not to be outdone by the fireworks of Rozner and McMahon, several Rice defenders delivered equally impactful moments of their own. Josh Pearcy shut down an FAU drive with a third down sack. George Nyakwol forced a fumble that resulted in a third-and-33 attempt for the home team. Myron Morrison slipped in front of a receiver on fourth down and knocked the ball to the turf.

No play was bigger, though, than Kirk Lockhart’s goal line hit at the end of the third quarter. FAU was inches away from the go-ahead touchdown when Lockhart knocked the ball out, forcing a fumble that went out of the endzone for a touchback. Pressed to the brink yet again, the defense stood tall.

The offense is much improved and it has been really, really fun to watch at times. Nevertheless, the defense remains the backbone of this team and they did everything they could on Saturday.

Linebacker reload, complete

Rice football fans were spoiled by the incredible tandem of Blaze Alldredge and Antonio Montero in the middle of the defense for the last few years. When they departed, Alldredge to Missouri and Montero to Villanova, it seemed like nearly a forgone conclusion the Owls would be taking a step back at that position.

Well, midway through the 2022 season, Chris Conti and Myron Morrison are making a case for quite the opposite. Conti posted five tackles against FAU. Morrison led the team with 15 tackles of his own. Those two entered the game leading Rice in tackles and they leave the game still No. 1 and No. 2 atop the leaderboard.

“I think both Myron and Chris are both playing great football, ” Bloomgren said. “The guys up front are doing their job too, which is making it a little bit easier for them to run and hit. But when they’re able to make those plays and get people on the ground, obviously that’s what gets us into those third and longs and allows our defense to go eat a little bit.”

The entire defense is playing well, but the linebacker core has earned a nod. Every team loses good players. Replacing them without missing a beat is what great teams do. The Owls are heading in that direction right now, particularly on defense.

Slipped away

After just six games, Rice football sits at 3-3. The Owls are one win shy of matching their win total from the entirety of the 2021 season. Entering the season, that seemed to be about par for the opening half of the season, but it doesn’t feel like met expectations as the team flies home empty-handed from Boca Raton.

The Owls had the chance to be one of just three remaining unbeaten teams in conference play, with matchups looming against Louisiana Tech, Charlotte and UTEP, all of which own sub-.500 records overall. Rice is still likely to be favored in at least one of those games, if not two. Things still look bright, but the luster isn’t quite nearly the same as it could have been with a fourth-quarter lead.

Simply put, at the midpoint of October, it might have been time to start having legitimate Conference USA Championship discussions about Rice football. They’re not out of the mix just yet and they own a win over UAB, but they’ve taken a step back after some stellar showings in the early weeks of the season.

Now it’s time to start talking about finding their first road win of the season. Once that happens, more aspirational conversations can recommence. Their next chance comes next weekend against Louisiana Tech.

“I wish we could go practice right now, to be hoenst with you,” Bloomgren said. “We’ve got a lot of good things going on this team. We’ve got a few things we got to figure out. But I want that opportunity to play that road game next week. I can’t wait to play that road game next Saturday.”

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Rice Football 2022: FAU Insider gives his take on the Owls

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Rice Football is set for a big game this weekend against the FAU Owls. Kevin Fielder of Owls247 fills us in on what to expect in this game.

247Sports writer Kevin Fielder was kind enough to stop by and answer a few questions about the upcoming matchup between Rice Football and FAU. The answers below should shed some light on the Owls’ upcoming opponent.

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