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Which offense shows up against Hawaii?

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Rice football has produced two very different offensive attacks in their first two games of the Mike Bloomgren era. What will the offense look like against Hawaii?

The first two games of the 2018 season have featured two similar, yet at times quite unique, offensive gameplans. After beginning the year with a run heavy scheme the Owls took to the air in a passing duel with Houston. Which of those two styles does the team employ against Hawaii? Could it be a little of both?

Game 1 – Run the ball

The ethos of the Mike Bloomgren era was communicated loud and clear during the Owls’ season-opening victory over Prairie View A&M. Rice ran the ball 50 times, averaging 6.2 yards per carry while attempting just 24 passes at a rate of 3.6 yards per attempt.

Emmanuel Esupka had a career day, rolling to 173 yards on 32 carries – both career highs. Austin Walter (11 carries, 83 yards and two touchdowns) and Aston Walter (who had a huge 26-yard third down conversion) played important roles in the ground game as well.

There was a lot of tight ends, fullbacks and power runs with a handful of obvious passing formations sprinkled in for good measure. By and large, this seemed to be a clear indication of what the Rice offense was going to look like going forward. Then the Houston game happened.

Game 2 – Air it out

The Houston game brought what looked like an entirely different offense to Rice Stadium. The time of possession battle still heavily favored the Owls, but that was more of a byproduct of the quickness of the Houston offense than how rapidly the Owls moved the ball.

Methodically and intentionally, Rice marched up and down the field, this time by way of the arms of Shawn Stankavage and Jackson Tyner. After failing to break 100 yards together against Prairie View, the Rice quarterbacks tallied 292 yards through the air and three touchdown passes against Houston. All three touchdowns marked the first career touchdown reception for a Rice pass-catcher: Jordan Myers, Jaeger Bull and Brendan Harmon.

Game 3  – ???

After running the ball 50 times against Prairie View and throwing the ball 41 times against Houston the outlook for the Hawaii game is somewhat uncertain. That favors the Owls to some extent; Hawaii will have two very different offenses to prepare for.

Coach Bloomgren’s desire to “pound the rock” is still melding with the passing game experience of offensive coordinator Jerry Mack. Whether or not the Owls will turn that into a homogenous offense this season remains to be seen, the same is true of Saturday’s tilt with Hawaii. Rice still carried the ball 43 times against Houston, so the real question is how often will the Rice quarterbacks be asked to throw it around the yard?

The Rainbow Warriors have been equally porous against the run and the pass this season, ranking 109th and 108th in the nation in each respective category. The deciding factor might favor a gameplan to aid the Owls’ own defensive struggles against the pass.

Houston quarterback D’Eriq King hit several long bombs against Rice and Hawaii quarterback Chase McDonald currently leads the nation through the air. Keeping him off the field with a strong running game and efficient clock management should be a focus on Saturday. But then again, Bloomgren’s kept everyone guessing so far.

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Hawaii presser notes and quotes

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Rice football staff and players share their comments prior to the team’s longest road trip of the 2018 season to play Hawaii.

Mike Bloomgren kicked things off with some positive comments on the team’s performance against Houston last Saturday. Following the Prairie View game he mentioned several times the team needed to make a big jump if they were going to be able to go toe-to-toe with Houston.

Bloomgren thought the team responded well. “I think you saw [the jump] all over the field,” he said, “Our passing offense really came to play. We had some big plays down the field.” He went on to add that he thinks the team is “going the right direction” and they “have to keep making incremental progress.”

As for the Hawaii game, the team will arrive in time for some unique experiences, including a tour of Pearl Harbor prior to locking in to game mode on Friday afternoon. Bloomgren stressed that this trip would be both a cultural and education experience as well as a business trip.

Preparation for this game has gone all the way to what snacks the players will get on the plane and how to keep the team hydrated over the long flight.

Joining Bloomgren at the podium were Graysen Schantz and Austin Trammell. Schantz first called attention to the improvements the team needs to see in the pass rush. “We got to get after the quarterback,” he said before declared “It starts with us.”

Trammell’s comments were brief, but the resounding theme of his message can be summed up in one statement: “I want to win.” Trammell add that he doesn’t care how that happens, whether its ball thrown in his direction or a commitment to the ground game. That’s yet another sign that this team is fully bought in to the culture Mike Bloomgren has been working to instill.

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This week in CUSA – Looking ahead at Week 2

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Rice football fell to Houston in the Bayou Bucket. How did the rest of the conference fare and what’s next for the Conference USA football in Week 2?

Team Last Week Result This Week
FAU Oklahoma L, 63-14 vs Air Force
Rice Houston L, 45-27 at Hawaii
Marshall Miami (OH) W, 35-28 vs E Kentucy
ODU Liberty L, 52-10 vs FIU
Charlotte Fordham W, 34-10 vs App State
Louisiana Tech South Alabama W, 30-26 vs Southern
FIU Indiana L, 38-28 at ODU
Southern Miss Jacksonville St W, 55- 7 vs ULM
North Texas SMU W, 46-23 vs Incarnate Word
UTEP Northern Arizona L, 30-10 at UNLV
Middle Tennessee Vanderbilt L, 35- 7 vs Tenn-Martin
UTSA Arizona St L, 49- 7 vs Baylor
UAB Savannah St W, 52-0 at Coastal Carolina

Notable Week 1 results

Rice — Bayou Buckets stays with the Houston Cougars

Rice football fell to Houston in a wild shootout at South Main. The Owls were able to hang around in large part because of a strong performance by their wide receivers and quarterback Shawn Stankavage.

FAU — No upset in Norman

FAU was a trendy upset pick entering the week but this one was all Oklahoma from the start. Star running back Devin Singletary was held to 69 yards and one touchdown on 18 carries as the Sooners cruised to an easy victory behind a strong performance from Kyler Murray.

UTEP – Miners’ rebuild already behind schedule

UTEP odds to win their season opener sat at relatively a coin flip entering their game against Northern Arizona. After going winless last season, this was their chance to rediscover the win column. Not only did it not happen, UTEP was never really close. It could be another long season in El Paso.

Week 2 storylines

First CUSA matchup on deck

FIU hosts Old Dominion in the first Conference USA conference game of the season. Both programs started the season with a loss, but FIU’s close loss to Indiana looks much more favorable to the beatdown the Monarchs suffered at the hands of newly minted FBS squad, Liberty. FIU is currently a 2-point home favorite.

Power Play

UTSA made a bold scheduling decision. The Roadrunners are the only CUSA team to play back to back Power 5 teams to open to the season. UTSA was blown out by Arizona State last weekend, making their odds against Baylor less than favorable. But you can’t win the game if you don’t play it? Right UCF?

Can North Texas stay fine?

North Texas quarterback Mason Fine continues to receiver murmurs of praise from the national football media. The Mean Green’s gunslinger is coming off a 444-yard, three touchdown game and could be in for a bigger game on Saturday against Incarnate Word.

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Owls receiving corps continues to impress

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Rice football took to the air as they battled the Houston Cougars for control of the Bayou Bucket. Along the way a pair of key pass catchers emerged.

The Rice receiving corps find themselves lost in the shuffle of a rivalry game loss. The Owls weren’t expected to upset their cross-town rivals, but they gave the Houston Cougars a run for their money. And they did it through the air.

After racking up 300 yards rushing in Week 0 the Owls followed it up with a nearly-300 yard passing performance in Week 1. Led by 204 yards on the arm of quarterback Shawn Stankavage, Rice strung together three receiving touchdowns — something they haven’t done in more than a year.

Stankavage was the instigator of all three scores through the air, but he was aided heavily by the big play ability of Aaron Cephus and Brendan Harmon. After combing for two catches and 18 yards in the Owls opener, the duo was responsible for 106 yards and a touchdown against Houston. The best might still be yet to come.

“We’re not seeing the ceiling for Aaron Cephus,” proclaimed head coach Mike Bloomgren immediately following the game, “We’re seeing a good Aaron Cephus that’s going to be even better.” That tough love, be better mentality has permeated the Rice locker room.

When asked about how he felt he did against the physical coverage the Cougars threw at him, Cephus was brutally honest: “I’m expected to make the play,” he said, “Regardless of where the hands are at and what the defense is doing.”

“What the defense is doing” on Saturday meant attempting to mug Cephus in a phone booth. The Houston defensive backs had to scratch and claw all afternoon, more than once being flagged for pass interference, as they attempt to slow down the Owls’ big bodied receivers. On one such occasion, Cephus was dragged down in the endzone, nearly managing to hang on to the ball with one hand.

We’re not seeing the ceiling for Aaron Cephus. We’re seeing a good Aaron Cephus that’s going to be even better.Mike Bloomgren

Joining Cephus as a redzone threat was freshman receiver Brendan Harmon, who hauled in a jump ball seconds before the halftime whistle to put Rice ahead at the break. At 6-foot-5 and 6-foot-4 respectively, Harmon and Cephus leave the defense with few options in the redzone. The physicality they each showed on Saturday bodes well for Rice’s prospects of moving the ball through the air in the future.

Quarterback Shawn Stankavage, noticeably frustrated with the loss, couldn’t help but smile when asked about the weapons he had in the receiving corps. “Both of those guys are playmakers,” Stankavage said, adding that his job was simply to “give them a chance.”

Harmon and Cephus will see their production continue to climb over the course of the season. Both players are too talented to go much longer than a drive or two without touching the football. If they progress well, Rice football could have a couple of gamebreakers on their hands. That will go a long way to giving their quarterbacks a sense of peace.

For now, both players are still weapons in an offense that is slowly learning how to get them the ball. They’re the quarterbacks best friend and Stankavage summarized their playmaking ability rather succinctly, “It’s fantastic.” And it’s only going to get better.

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Owls show promise in loss to Houston Cougars

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Coming into the game as massive underdogs, Rice football gave the Houston Cougars a tough test giving fans reasons for optimism despite the loss.

Rice entered their Week 1 tilt against Houston with a feeling of anticipation. This team didn’t care that they were being cast as the underdog and had lost to Houston last year 38-3. In front of the home crowd at Rice Stadium, the Owls held a two-game winning streak. They gave Houston all they could handle on Saturday.

The Owls came out firing and punched the unsuspecting Cougars in the mouth early. Houston was not ready for an aerial attack, but that’s what they got from head coach Mike Bloomgren and his staff. Rice took a 24-17 lead into halftime, stretching the lead to 10 points in the third quarter. Rice couldn’t keep up the pace, falling to Houston by a final score of 45-27.

A few of the biggest takeaways from the 2018 edition of the Bayou Bucket:

1. Rice made the jump

During his postgame press conference following the team’s Week 0 win over Prairie View Coach Bloomgren was emphatic about the leap his team needed to take during the week. He said the best teams he’s ever been a part of make the biggest jump from game one to game two. The quality of competition was significantly higher this weekend, but the Owls’ own progress was evident.

On defense, the Rice defensive line looked strong through the first half, limiting Houston to 94 yards rushing, 51 of which came on a reverse. Early on Houston couldn’t get into a rhythm on the ground against a front seven that swarmed to the football. The Owls’ fourth down stop in the second quarter kept the momentum on the Owls’ side and set up a Jack Fox field goal.

Last week Bloomgren specifically put running back Emmanuel Esupka on notice, saying his 173-yard performance against Prairie View was good, but he could do better. Esupka responded with 81 yards on 17 carries against Houston including a career-long 52-yard run to set up the Owls first touchdown of the day. It was tough sledding, but he still managed a respectable 4.8 yards per carry.

Even with Ed Oliver in the middle, Esupka pounded away, fighting through a lot of contact in the trenches. On the whole, the Rice rushing attack did enough to keep the defense honest, opening up passing lanes for Shawn Stankavage who made the defense pay.

2. Rice has a starting quarterback

Rice hasn’t thrown three touchdown passes in a single game since Nov. 19, 2016. Sam Glaesmann, now at wide receiver, led the Owls in touchdown passes last year, completing three over the course of six appearances. Stankavage, after throwing for 43 yards and no touchdowns in the season opener, threw three touchdowns in the first half against Houston.

With the exception of one errant pass that was picked off, Stankavage was accurate for the bulk of the game. He completed 20-of-31 passes for 204 yards and three touchdowns. It was one of the better quarterback performances Rice has seen in quite some time.

As promised, Jackson Tyner did get some game action. He completed one of his two passes for nine yards before Fox blasted his long punt. When the chips were on the table, Bloomgren went back to Stankavage, trusting the graduate transfer from Vanderbilt with the ball in the redzone after Houston’s muffed punt.

The value of having two capable passers became apparent midway through the third quarter. Stankavage exited the game with an injury, forcing Tyner to take over mid-drive. He connected with Austin Walter on a beautiful over the shoulder 36-yard reception on third down to move the chains and keep the offense humming.

It’s pretty clear, assuming he’s healthy, this will be Stankavage’s job to lose. Still, having Tyner on the roster could be huge for this team moving forward. Tyner ended his day with 4-of-8 passing for 88 yards.

3. The secondary needs improvement

Here are the Houston scoring drives by the number of plays, length and time of possession:

  • 7-plays, 36 yards (1:41)
  • 7-plays, 75 yards (2:13)
  • 5-plays, 75 yards (1:19)
  • 3-plays, 75 yards (0:56)
  • 3-plays, 70 yards (0:48)
  • 5-plays, 68 yards (1:48)
  • 5-plays, 71 yards (2:29)

Quarterback D’Eriq King had a field day with the Rice secondary, moving the ball down the field with relative ease. The corners had a rough outing, and the safeties weren’t much better. The speed of the Houston offense is hard to prepare for in practice, and that showed on Saturday.

The Rice defense allowed 320 yards through the air and three passing touchdowns. They had a few nice plays, particularly on passes across the middle, but the homerun ability of guys like Marquez Stevenson and Courtney Lark proved too much for the secondary to handle. This is the second week that the secondary has looked beatable. The Owls have 11 more games on the schedule some of which include high-profile passing attacks.

4. Trust the process

As Joel Embiid says, trust the process. Rice football is two games into the Mike Bloomgren era. Even if all things do go according to plan it’s going to take some time. Coach Bloomgren inherited a roster that needs more talent and is coming off a 1-win season. It’s important to remember the magnitude of the task at hand.

Bloomgren comes to South Main with a pedigree of physicality and toughness, two characteristics that a team doesn’t acquire overnight, over the summer, or over the course of 12 (or 13 in this case) individual games. Rice football isn’t that far removed from a 10-win season and a bowl appearance. You can win at Rice, but the Owls are going to have to be deliberate with the steps they take if they want to become a consistent player in both Conference USA and the national stage.

On Saturday the Owls hung with a team that has more talent than they do. They ran into the jowls of a Houston defensive line that includes a future top-five NFL draft selection and gave the Cougars a scare. The rebuild is on schedule. Regardless of the outcome of this one game. Rice football proved they’re moving in the right direction.

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