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3 Things to know about Houston and the Bayou Bucket

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Rice football (1-0) hosts the Houston Cougars in Week 1. The two Houston rivals will battle for the Bayou Bucket and bragging rights for the next year.

The Bayou Bucket is the biggest rivalry game in the city of Houston. Although the Cougars have dominated the series, Mike Bloomgren and his staff at Rice have plans to take back their city one game at a time. Get an in-depth look at both sides of the football and the Cougars’ 2018 schedule here. Bloomgren and some key players talked about the significant of this rivalry and more during the Owls press conference on Tuesday.

1. Rice has a two-game winning streak against Houston at Rice Stadium

Rice and Houston first met on the football field in 1971. Houston won that game 23-21 and has controlled the series ever since. The Owls have never won more than two consecutive games whereas the Cougars currently posses a four-game winning streak and have won as many as six in a row.

But, Rice does have one streak going for them. The Owls have won each of the last two games of the series that were played at Rice Stadium (2008, 2010), outscoring the Cougars 90-73 in those two contests. Houston opened as 21-point favorites in the betting markets climbing to 25 points during game week.

2. Ed Oliver isn’t going to win the Heisman (probably)

To this day Michigan defensive back Charles Woodson is the only defensive player to win the Heisman Trophy. His victory came in 1975. A lot has changed in college football since then, including the emergence of spread offenses and an increase in scoring. The Heisman is now, for better or worse, a quarterback award. Ed Oliver, All-World defensive tackle for Houston, might do enough to earn an invite to New York for the presentation ceremony, but he’s not taking home the hardware.

Still, he’s going to be pretty darn good. Oliver leads all FBS players in career tackles for loss per game with 1.56. He tallied five sacks as a freshman in 2016 and 5.5 sacks last season. Offenses know he’s going to be coming for the quarterback up the middle, but they haven’t been able to prevent him from racking up 38.5 tackles for a loss in 24 games.

Oliver is going to make some highlight reel ready, show-stopping plays on Saturday. Rice needs to make sure he doesn’t sway the outcome of the game by himself.

3. Cougars plan to air it out

Rice struggled through the air against Prairie View last weekend. Tristen Wallace went off, catching five balls for 147 yards and a touchdown before halftime. But the Owls held him to zero receptions in the second half. Prairie View had -4 yards in the fourth quarter and that played a large role in Rice’s ability to claw back and ultimately reclaim the lead on a last-second field goal.

Which group of defensive backs show up on Saturday against Houston? Offensive coordinator Kendall Briles comes to Houston by way of FAU. A product of his father Art Briles’ coaching tree, Kendall has already made his mark on the college football world as a coordinator that likes to open up the offense and air it out.

FAU averaged 8.3 yard per attempt last season, tied for 22nd most in the nation. In his previous stop at Baylor the Bears ranked 49th, and fourth in the same metric in 2016 and 2015 respectively. The Rice corners struggled against the deep ball against Prairie View. Houston has several talented pass catchers on the edge. If adjustments aren’t made things could get dicey.

More: I sat down with the Scott & Holman podcast and talked more about the Owls’ 2018 season and how they stack up with the Cougars.

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Owls ready to battle Houston for Bayou Bucket, Press Conference Notes (8/28)

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Rice football started 1-0 and is looking forward to getting back on the field against the Houston Cougars in the battle for the Bayou Bucket.

Rice has won two straight at home against their crosstown rivals. They’ll be sizable underdogs in 2018, but have the advantage of having one game under their belts whereas Houston will be seeing their first action of the season. At quarterback, the Owls will start Shawn Stankavage, but Jackson Tyner is still expected to play. Bloomgren has yet to name a definitive starter for the rest of the season.

Looking back at Prairie View

“Gritty” was the word Mike Bloomgren used to describe the team’s victory over Prairie View last weekend, saying  he was “pleased with how we finished.” From the press conference following the Prairie View game to his comments today, Bloomgren stressed the importance of taking a significant jump forward on the field. He’s repeatedly said the best teams he’s been a part of make the biggest jump from game one to game to, and he knows his squad needs to show improvement prior to their game against Houston on Saturday.”

Before moving on to talk about Houston, Bloomgren recognized several players for their performance last week. Emmanuel Esupka, Roe Wilkins and Jack Fox were recognized as players of the game. Scout team players of the week were Kebreyun Page, Wiley Green, JaQuez Battley.

Planning for Houston

Bloomgren stated the obvious when he summed up Houston’s All-American defensive tackle Ed Oliver as “a very talented football player”. He and his staff are going to have their hands full devising a gameplan to limit Oliver’s ability to impact the game. “He has our attention,” Bloomgren said, “We’re going to know where he is and we’re going to try and put the best plan together to attack him.”

If the Owls are going to spring the upset they’re going to need to make big plays. Turnovers, both of which came at key moments in the second half, allowed Rice to get back in the game and ultimately defeat Prairie View. More big moments like that are going to be required this weekend.

“The turnover margin is the single most important stat that we can point to in wins and losses,” cited Bloomgren, who went on to extoll the importance of a turnover-free game by the offense and opportunistic play from his defense against Prairie View.

Importance of the Bayou Bucket and beating Houston

The Rice players aren’t backing down from the challenge the Cougars will pose this Saturday. “It’s always big to play tough competition,” declared running back Emmanuel Esupka, “It’s really exciting to see that type of talent on the other side of the ball.” More than just a jump in talent, the Houston game is a major rivalry game in the city of Houston.

#HTownTakeover, Houston’s marketing campaign, hasn’t gone unnoticed by Rice players. They know this weekend is important. “It’s huge. You might go to the gas station and see these guys,” said Esupka, “It’s a cross-town rivalry… we’re just trying to defend our home” Defensive lineman Roe Wilkins echoed him, “It’s something that we really want,” he acknowledged, “We got to defend our home.”

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This week in CUSA – Looking ahead at Week 1

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Rice football was the only Conference USA football team in action in Week 0. The Owls defeated Prairie View at home. What’s next for the CUSA squads in Week 1?

Your weekly check in for all things Conference USA is underway. CUSA went a perfect 1-0 in the opening weekend of college football as the Rice Owls bested Prairie View at home. It was a nailbiter with several notable takeaways for the Owls and their new head coach. Most importantly, their culture of Intellectual Brutality survived its first test.

Week 0 results

Rice 31 – Prairie View 28

Week 1 games

  • Savannah State at UAB (Thr)
  • Western Kentucky at Wisconsin (Fri)
  • FAU at Oklahoma
  • Houston at Rice
  • Marshall at Miami (OH)
  • Old Dominion at Liberty
  • Fordham at Charlotte
  • Louisiana Tech at South Alabama
  • Indiana at FIU
  • Jackson State at Southern Miss
  • SMU at North Texas
  • Northern Arizona at UTEP
  • Middle Tennesse at Vanderbilt
  • UTSA at Arizona State

Week 1 storylines to follow

FAU’s upset bid

Devin Singletary and FAU against the might Oklahoma Sooners will be a game watched well beyond the typical Conference USA spectrum of fans. Oklahoma starts MLB Draft pick and $5 Million man against Lane Kiffin and the upset-minded Owls. FAU enters as a hefty underdog (21.5 points) but there’s always a chance things could get weird.

UTEP’s quest for No. 1

UTEP went winless in 2017, falling to Rice in a battle of cellar dwellers. The Miners host Northern Arizona this weekend. If they can’t beat NAU, it could set up another tough season in El Paso. ESPN FPI currently has the odds dead even at 50-50.

FIU has the potential to surprise

Butch Davis led his FIU squad to eight wins last season and hosts an Indiana squad that won’t be very good this year. If Conference USA is going to get an upset over a Power 5 program in Week 1 the Panthers have the best chance to make that happen.

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Owls put Intellectual Brutality culture to the test

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Rice football edged out Prairie View A&M on a last-second field goal. The come-from-behind victory exemplifies the culture Mike Bloomgren has built so far.

When Mike Bloomgren looked up at the scoreboard midway through the third quarter of the Owls’ season opener against Prairie View he was greeted with an inauspicious sight. Rice was trailing the SWAC squad 28-19 and the clock was starting to run out. Bloomgren didn’t panic, instead, he pushed his team to focus and get back to the fundamentals of the Owls’ new offensive identity “Pound the rock, control the clock and play great defense.”

A fourth quarter deficit turned into the perfect test for the Owls’ identity, a test they passed with flying colors. “I’m really glad our culture showed through tonight and our guys fought forever. We found a way to win this game,” said Bloomgren in the post-game conference. “I believe in what we’re doing,” he added, “I believe in these guys and I knew they were going to keep fighting.”

And fight they did.

Rice turned things around quickly, outscoring Prairie View 12-0 in the final quarter and outgaining the Panthers 110 yards to minus four yards in that frame. That comeback hinged on one all-important fourth down conversion.

The stage was set. Fourth-and-1, the game hanging in the balance. Mike Bloomgren is on the headset, assessing the situation with offensive coordinator Jerry Mack. It’s a short conversation that ends like this: “I think we go for it. It’s who we are.”

“Who we are” and the theme of identity was the theme of the night. Almost to the man, every player that spoke with the media after the game made a comment to that effect. “Adversity struck,” admitted quarterback Shawn Stankavage, “we showed the culture we’ve built here.” That was echoed by running back Emmanuel Esupka, “When adversity hits, we can’t just panic,” he echoed, “we just got to keep doing what we do.”

Esupka took the ball through the heart of the defense and picked up two hard-fought yards and the first down. That’s what they drew up, and it’s become part of a positive mindset that has permeated the Rice locker room. “We just knew we were going to get it done,” Esupka admitted matter-of-factly. This time, they did. Fellow running back Austin Walters shared that sentiment. “At the end of the day, football is football.”

Rice still has a lot of football to be played. One win over Prairie View won’t alter the course of their season drastically, but the way they went about it helped solidify the kind of culture that Mike Bloomgren has been championing all offseason long. It’s that positivity and confidence that kept the Owls in this game at all. “I believe in what we’re doing,” said Bloomgren, “I believe in these guys and I know they were going to keep fighting.”

They fought until the final second, when kicker Jack Fox booted what had become a walk-off field goal to beat Prairie View A&M. The field goal capped off a night that had its fair share of bruises. but was also littered with “fun”, “confidence”, “trust” words that ultimately play a significant role in determining the culture of any institution.

Stankavage hit the on the head when asked about his fourth quarter comeback. “This is something you dream of as a kid, a fourth quarter comeback,” he recounted, “The offense gathered around me and I gathered around them and we went out there and made plays. We were all confident in each other.”

That confidence will be tested next weekend against Houston, but for now, it’s being woven into the DNA of the Rice Football program bit by bit. “That’s just how we do it,” Esupka closed. There’s a new era underway in Rice football, starting with the culture and bleeding onto the field.

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Rice Football: Bloomgren era opens with back-and-forth win over Prairie View

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Rice football took down Prairie View 31-28 in their season opener. It was closer than expected, but the Owls are happy to walk away from this one with the victory.

Things started off well, with Rice taking a 16-0 lead as the offense marched up and down the field. Then things went downhill, fast. Then they turned around. That’s how the Rice football season opener played out on Saturday night. There was a little bit of everything in this one, including a scare of historic proportions.

The last time a current SWAC team beat an FBS squad was 1985 when Grambling State beat Oregon State. Current SWAC members are now 2-99 against FBS teams in their history, the aforementioned win by Grambling State and Alkorn State’s upset over Central Michigan in 1978.

Fortunately for the Owls, Rice wasn’t added to that list. Prairie View came dangerously close, but Rice was ahead when the clock hit zero, and that’s what matters.

There will be plenty to digest coming from this game in the following days. Here are a few initial thoughts.

1. Houston, we don’t have a quarterback, we have two… sort of

Stankavage started strong out of the gate, going 3-of-4 through the air for 24 yards. He wasn’t asked to stretch the field, but he hit the open man and kept the offense moving with a couple big third down conversions with his legs.

After Jackson Tyner entered the game on the final play of the second quarter the offense spread out a bit more. The Owls ran a lot of plays out of the gun and the pistol with Tyner, letting him stretch the defense with his arm. Tyner didn’t have a great day throwing the ball, completing 5-of-9 passes for 44 yards. He did not play in the second half.

Coming into camp it didn’t seem like a platoon between a primary passing quarterback and a primary running quarterback was in the cards, but that’s more or less what we saw on Saturday. When the Owls had to manufacture a comeback in the second half they left Stankavage in but pounded the rock on the ground.

2. Get used to seeing tight ends and fullbacks

The first play of the game was a two-tight end set with a fullback. Emmanuel Esupka took the handoff straight up the middle for a first down. The Owls lined up in a host of different formations after that, but the bread and butter of this offense will always be based on a strong ground game.

11 of the Owls’ 14 plays were rushes. The trend continued as long as Stankavage was in the game. The first quarter was a clinic in how this offense is supposed to operate. Heavy on the ground with short, quick passes mixed in to keep the defense honest. That’s what we saw when the game was tied up in the fourth. Lots of blocks paving the way for several of the Owls talented backs.

Emmanuel Esupka led the charge, racking up 168 yards on 31 carries and one touchdown. Austin Walter had a big day out of the backfield as well, carrying the ball 11 times for 83 yards and two scores.

3. Defensive woes loom large

Everything seemed to be working out well for the Owls early on. The first three Prairie View drives ended with punts, but things started to break down when Prairie View started pushing the ball on the perimeter.

Former 4-star receiver Tristen Wallace, once enrolled at Oregon, absolutely had his way with Brandon Douglas-Dotson and the rest of the Owls corners. When all was said and done, Wallace turned five catches into 147 yards and one touchdown. That’s a rate of 29.4 yards per catch.

When the pass rush couldn’t reach the quarterback (three sacks, two quarterback hurries, one forced fumble) the Owls’ secondary struggled. The defensive scheme is predicated on corners that can win on the perimeter and that remains a work in progress for the Owls. Prairie View tallied 244 yards through the air.

4. Starting off on the right foot

Two decades ago Mike Bloomgren was a graduate assistant for Bobby Bowdon at Florida State. He’s held a variety of jobs all over the country as he climbed the latter, but he’d never been a head coach – not until Rice offered him the job last winter.

Fast-forward to the final weekend of August when the Rice Owls defeated the Prairie View A&M Panthers in front of an energetic crowd at Rice Stadium. Not only is Mike Bloomgren a head coach, he’s a winning head coach. The 2018 season is only one game old and there’s plenty more for Bloomgren to achieve before he calls his time at Rice a success, but you can’t start better than 1-0. Was it messy? Sure. But it was still a win.

1-0 isn’t as easy as it seems. Fred Goldsmith, who coached the Owls from 1989 to 1993, was the last head coach at Rice to win his first game. Since then, Ken Hatfield, Todd Graham and David Bailiff combined to go 0-3 in their inaugural games. That included a loss to Nicholls State in 2007 who failed to defeat any other FBS teams that season.

Yes, it came against Prairie View. Houston will be a much larger challenge next week. But the Owls equaled last season’s win total on Saturday night. That’s as good of a start as anyone could have asked for.

Next up

Rice plays Houston. The Cougars weren’t active in Week 0, so this will be their first taste of game action in 2018. Houston defeated Rice 38-3 last season.

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