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Rice Football 2022: Owls come up short across town vs UH

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Rice Football took Houston to the wire in the battle for the Bayou Bucket and came up just short, falling 34-27 in their nonconference finale.

Back-and-forth, back-and-forth. That was the cadence of a thrilling Bayou Bucket battle between Rice football and Houston on Saturday night. Heavy underdogs by the oddsmakers, the Owls looked every bit the Cougars’ equals until a pair of untimely fourth quarter turnovers doomed their upset bid. Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:

Withstand the first punch

Rice football has played Houston twice during head coach Mike Bloomgren’s tenure. In 2018 the Owls kept the game close, leading at halftime 24-17. That gave the team a fighting chance despite their limited roster. That wasn’t the case in 2021. Trailing 10-0, Rice turned the ball over. Houston quickly jumped ahead 17-0 and scored on their first two drives of the second half to put the game out of reach.

Their recent struggles were irrelevant on Saturday, Rice had to find a way to survive the first punch and turn this into a heavyweight fight. It wasn’t pretty, but they hung tough in the early goings. A bad bounce on the opening kickoff forced the Owls to start their first possession from their own two-yard line. Rice got two first downs before punting, salvaging important field position. Then got the Houston offense off the field after just four plays.

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

Houston would take the lead on their second offensive series, picking up a couple of first downs on their way to a 19-yard touchdown pass from Clayton Tune to Matthew Golden. Then the momentum changed.

Trailing 7-0 at the beginning of the second quarter, the Rice defense got pressure on Tune who threw into heavy traffic. The ball bounced around and fell into the hands of Myron Morrison. Four players later, Rice was in the endzone and the game was tied. Houston won the first quarter, but after 20 minutes, the game was tied. It wasn’t pretty, but it was gritty and proof this team was ready to grind one out.

Just add offense

Over the past several seasons, Rice football fans have seen some tremendous defensive performances. From the five-interception shutout against Marshall to allowing just 175 total yards to Louisiana last week, this defense has proven its worth time after time. More often than not, it’s been the offense that’s come up wanting.

Early returns from that side of the ball were encouraging. Saturday’s showing reaffirmed a new reality for the Owls’ offensive attack.

The underdogs averaged 6.0 yards per carry in the first half and were perfect in their pair of redzone appearances (extending their streak to 14 consecutive red zone trips with a score). Broussard’s short touchdown plunge might seem that impressive, but when you consider the regularity with which this team can get two yards on the ground when they need to, it’s an essential tool in the Owls’ arsenenal.

It starts and ends in the trenches

Trey Phillippi made the start at right guard for Rice football on Saturday night. His insertion into the lineup was notable for several different reasons. First, his addition to the starting lineup marked the fourth different starting offensive line combination in four games for Rice football in the midst of an offensive renaissance. More importantly, Phillippi had never played guard before in his life.

Philippi was a tackle in high school. He started his Rice career as a tackle and moved to tight end with injuries at that position early this season. His first snaps at guard in his football career happened during practice this week. His first game just concluded. As a whole, the offensive line held their own and gave Rice a chance.

Not to be outdone, the Rice defensive line had its moment. On third and one near the end of the third quarter, Houston was stonewalled at the line of scrimmage. Given the break between quarters to reconvene, the Cougars lined up to go for it again. They didn’t get it.

A Rice defensive front that was without De’Braylon Carroll for much of this game went toe-to-toe with Houston and looked every bit their equal. Houston will be playing in the Big 12 next season. Rice will be in a “Group of 5” Conference. The supposed talent gap didn’t feel that large in this game.

House Money

To say the result of Saturday’s showdown at TDECU Stadium did not matter would be entirely disingenuous. Beating a rival always matters, especially for a team that hasn’t hoisted the Bayou Bucket Trophy since 2010 with six consecutive losses in the matchup since.

No matter what the result would be, even with a loss, the Owls would have split their nonconference slate for the first time under head coach Mike Bloomgren. A win, however, had the potential to material shift the outlook of the Rice football program. That wasn’t in the cards this week.

Nevertheless, the product the Owls put on the field against the Cougars proved these two teams are more evenly matched than many may have suspected. Houston was projected to contend for an AAC title this season. Rice traded blows with them for four quarters. Are the Cougars scuttling well below expectations? It’s possible. But it seems much more likely the Owls are starting to rise up.

Rice exits this game four wins from a bowl berth. That’s an achievable target if they continue to play with this level of intensity and execution. It was a tough day across town, but the 2022 Rice Football season still has plenty more good to come.

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McMahon’s magic overcomes the odds

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Rice Football 2022 Game Preview: Houston

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Rice football takes on Houston in their final nonconference game of the season. How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

Rice football scored one of the marquee upsets of Week 3, knocking off a Louisiana squad that entered the week with the nation’s longest winning streak. The win pushed Rice to 2-1 on the season at roughly the same time when crosstown rival Houston was falling to 1-2. The Cougars were blasted by Kansas at home, their second straight defeat following a double-overtime loss to Texas Tech. Here’s everything you need to know about the matchup.

Kickoff time | 5:00 PM CT
Venue | TDECU Stadium – Houston, Tx
TV | ESPN+ (Viewing Guide)
Radio | Sports Map 94.1 (FM) / Stretch Internet (Online)

Audio / Visual Preview

We’ll preview Rice football vs Houston 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

Houston has won six consecutive games against Rice and dominated Rice 44-7 as recently as last season. The Cougars get this game at home and desperately need to win it to get back to .500 and avert a season in crisis. On the other side of town, Rice football is playing with house money. They’re fresh off a monumental win and playing great football.

The Cougars probably have the talent advantage, but the Owls have the momentum. This one could be interesting.

Series History

All Time | Houston leads, 32-11
Last Five | Houston leads, 5-0
Last Meeting | Home 2021, Houston won 44-7

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Rice Football Stat Notables

Passing | McMahon – 51/80 (63.8 percent), 642 yards, 7 TD, 6 INT
Rushing | Broussard – 51 carries, 145  yards (2.8 yards per carry), 4 TD / Montgomery – 15 carries, 132 yards (8.8 yards per carry), 0 TD
Receiving | McCaffrey – 19 receptions, 202 yards (10.6 yds/rec), 2 TD / Esdale – 12 receptions, 155 yards (12.9 yds/rec), 0 TD
Tackles | Morrison, M. Williams – 11 / Lockhart – 9
Pass Breakups | Morrison, Dunbar – 2 / Five others tied with one
Interceptions | Nyakwol, Chamberlain, Taylor – 1

Houston Notables

Passing | Tune – 64/102 (62.3 percent), 744 yards, 5 TD, 2 INT
Rushing | Campbell – 36 carries, 177 yards (4.9 yards per carry), 2 TD / Tune – 37 carries, 111 yards (3.0 ypc), 2 TD
Receiving | Dell – 18 receptions, 246 yards (13.4 yards per reception), 2 TD / Harry – 10 receptions, 151 yards (15.1 yds/rec), 1 TD
Tackles | Mutin – 24 / Owens – 22/ Parish – 18
Pass Breakups | Owens, Hogan – 4 / Green – 2
Interceptions | Owens, Green, Rogers, Ceaser – 1

Houston X-Factor | Get off the field

Through three weekends of college football, the Houston Cougars rank No. 118 in the nation in total defense. Rice ranks 40th. And the Owls have had to face the nation’s current No. 11 offense, USC. Houston hasn’t faced a single top 30 offense yet. That’s a lot of numbers meant to communicate one thing: Houston has been mediocre, at best, on the defensive side of the ball.

Although Rice football has taken to the air this season with more consistency than in previous years, running the football and controlling the clock remains a staple of the Owls’ offensive scheme. You can be sure the Rice coaching staff is aware of the potent Houston offense and will do their best to play keep away when possible.

Houston has to get off the field on defense. Whether by turnover or a third down stop, the Cougars have to show progress on this side of the football if they want the game to go as they’d hope.

Rice X-Factor | Don’t turn the ball over

Through three games, TJ McMahon is sports a woeful 7:6 touchdown to interception ratio. Three of those picks came in a lost outing against USC, but the other three came in what could have been a disastrous first half against Louisiana. McMahon was off target and made bad decisions, including his third pick-six of the season.

Nobody could have said it better than he did following the game. “We’re going to play a lot of teams later down the road where, you know, you make those little mistakes or if I have a first half again like that, we’re not going to be able to win those games,” McMahon admitted.

He’s probably right, too. Three picks against Houston is going to be tough to overcome. The Cougars’ offense has historically been much more proficient than the Ragin’ Cajuns and the road atmosphere will be much less forgiving. But Rice saw the upshot of a clean performance in the second half. This team was impressive. If they can channel that energy, they’ll be hard to beat.

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One Final Thing

Before the season, a 2-2 record in nonconference play was seen as the most reasonable “best case scenario” for Rice football this year. Beating McNeese State was a base level expectation. Finding a way to squeeze out one more win was the dream. Now sitting at 2-1, the Owls are playing with house money. And after winning this past game how they did, having larger expectations seems decidedly appropriate.

Rice hasn’t won the Bayou Bucket since 2010. They’ve only posted two wins in this rivalry since the 2004 season. Houston entered the year with AAC title expectations and even the subtle murmurings of dark horse college football playoff buzz. The latter is certainly out the window, but this is still a dangerous team that will be able to score points in bunches as long as Clayton Tune and Tank Dell are in the lineup.

And yet, Rice will have more than a puncher’s chance this coming weekend. Rice proved they can go toe to toe with a very good Group of 5 program, even when they throw three interceptions in the process. This should be a good game. Don’t be surprised if the Owls take the Cougars to deep water in the fourth quarter. Once they’re there, anything can happen.

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Rice Fight: Rice Football battles for big win over Louisiana

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On Saturday, Rice Football went toe-to-toe with Louisiana, outlasting the Ragin’ Cajuns and earning a signature win for head coach Mike Bloomgren and the Owls.

As Rice football quarterback TJ McMahon walked away from the podium on Saturday night following a monumental victory over Louisiana, he voiced one final exclamation, “Rice Fight!”

Over the years, I’ve been to many postgame press conferences. To the best of my memory, things have never ended that way.

To be fair, Rice football had never won a game quite like this one, snapping the nation’s longest winning streak in the process. As 12-point underdogs, Rice had won by exactly 12 points. And it probably could have been even more one-sided.

But as for McMahon’s exhortation, that was new. Part of the reason for that, unfortunately, has been the somber nature of many of those gatherings. Even in the Owls’ better games, things had gone the wrong way on the scoreboard more times than any of the blue-and-gray-clad faithful might have hoped. Postgame gatherings didn’t often end in celebration. And even the victories offered less fanfare.

Now entering Year 5 of head coach Mike Bloomgren’s tenure, there might be no more fitting words to describe what happened at Rice Stadium on Saturday night than “Rice fight”.

In his second career start, quarterback TJ McMahon tossed three interceptions, all of which came before halftime. The Owls squandered a redzone possession late in the first half and entered the break trailing by one. Then we saw Rice fight.

Rice football came out of halftime and scored the go-ahead touchdown. Then the defense, which had only given up one score to this point, blanked Louisiana in the third quarter. Leading 19-14 entering the fourth quarter, the Owls were on the verge of something special.

“We know we can stick around. We know we can play with anybody,” corner Jordan Dunbar said about an hour later following the postgame festivities. “We gotta finish.”

His words proved true. After Rice took a two-score lead at the beginning of the final quarter, Louisiana drove the length of the field and saw running back Chris Smith thunder into the endzone from 22-yards out. One defensive stop and the Ragin’ Cajuns would have the ball down by six, one touchdown away from ruining the Owls’ celebrations. The outcome of the game hung in the balance. Right fought.

McMahon and company responded with a 10-play, 70-yard touchdown drive that took 6:14 off the clock. Rice kicked the ball back to Louisiana leading by two scores with less than three minutes to play. The defense made one more stop, then it was over. Rice had fought and Rice had won.

More: Rice Football upsets Louisiana, snaps nation’s longest winning streak

“There’s been some great wins in this program since we’ve been around,” head coach Mike Bloomgren couldn’t help but reminisce afterward. “Whether it’s beating Marshall [on the road] in ‘20 or beating UAB at their place last year, the first time they’ve lost at home [since the program restarted]. We’ve done some cool things, but to do this in our third game of the 2022 season… it feels great.”

More succinctly, Bloomgren began his remarks this way: “That’s a big-time win for our program.”

It’s a big-time win for a myriad of reasons.

First, Rice has now won a game as a double-digit underdog in each of the last three seasons. Second, Rice is now 2-1 for the first time under Bloomgren and four games away from win number six and a trip to the program’s first bowl berth since 2014.

But most importantly, it’s because of the effort it took from the collective group of coaches, players, administrators and support staff to get Rice football to this place.

“I felt like we didn’t doubt we were going to win today and that’s why the locker room was really fun today,” Dunbar said. “That was my favorite win, personally.”

The Rice defense held Louisiana to 175 yards of total offense, that’s the Ragin’ Cajun’s worst offensive output since September 9, 2011 against Kent State, more than a decade ago. This was a program that had won nine or more games eight times in the last 12 seasons and been bowling 10 times over that span. They’d become accustomed to being the bully. Then Rice knocked them down a notch, or maybe wo.

“Obviously we would love to be 3-0,” Bloomgren said in his closing comments. “But for the steps this program has taken and for the quality of this win and what it means for our team. Just to be in that locker room and see them celebrate the way they did and know they earned it, and they earned it from the work they put in all week. It’s really cool. So yeah, I’ll take win number two right now.”

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Streak Snapped: Rice Football knocks off Louisiana at home

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The nation’s longest winning streak is no more. Rice football improves to 2-1 on the season as they knock off the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns at home.

When Rice football took the lead early in the first quarter against Louisiana, the crowd applauded. Jumping out in front of the Ragin’ Cajuns, who owned the nation’s longest winning streak — 15 games dating back to last season — was a big deal. The two sides would trade blows, but it became clear by the midpoint of the second half that this Rice team was more than capable of going toe-to-toe with UL. The question became, could they pull it out.

A true heavy weight fight took place between the hedges for four quarters. Then Ari Broussard burst through a goal line scrum with three minutes to go in the fourth quarter, delivering a knock out blow. Rice football had done it. The Owls had taken down the Ragin’ Cajuns and scored their biggest home victory of the Mike Bloomgren era. Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:

Defense and special teams set the tone

For the majority of head coach Mike Bloomgren’s tenure at South Main, the defense has been the leading edge of the program. While the offense has come on stronger of late, the Owls leaned up their bread and butter to get things started against Louisiana.

The Rice defense orchestrated a three and out on their first defensive possession before Sean Fresch reversed field and scampered 40-yards on a punt return, setting the Owls up inside the Louisiana 35. A penalty would kill that drive, putting the onus back on the defense.

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

On third down, George Nyakwol stepped in front of a Chandler Fields pass and returned it to the Rice 38. That was the first turnover of any kind the Louisiana offense had committed in the last seven games. It would set the Owls up in positive field position yet again, leading to a field goal and an early lead. The third series was a similar story. A few yards, no first downs and a punt.

Following the offense’s second turnover of the day, the defense held on fourth-and-one in the redzone, turning the Louisiana offense again without points yet again. The defensive line was absolutely dominant in this game, creating pressure and filling running lanes all night long. Even without De’Braylon Carroll, this front was as good as it’s ever been.

Rice limited Louisiana to 74 total yards in the first half. Exactly zero Louisiana drives went longer than 30 yards until the Ragin’ Cajun’s first possession of the fourth quarter. It was a masterpiece by a Rice defense that was frequently dealt rough hands and always was able to rise to the occasion.

McMahon falls back to earth, then bounces back

Everything came up roses for Rice quarterback TJ McMahon last week against McNeese State. He completed 20-of-29 passes for 274 yards and four touchdowns last week. He did not turn the ball over at all and added a rushing touchdown, too. That wasn’t the case against the Ragin’ Cajuns.

McMahon threw a pick-six in the first quarter, his third pick-six thrown this year. This pass wasn’t deflected like the prior two miscues, rather McMahon was attempting a screen pass to a wide receiver in the flat and had the route jumped with nobody behind them. It was an easy, walk-in score for Louisiana.

On the next drive, Louisiana got a free rusher on third down on what looked to be some sort of stunt. Rather than eat the ball, McMahon panicked and threw it straight ahead into the waiting arms of a linebacker over the middle. With a chance to extend their lead before halftime, McMahon tossed his third INT of the game, resulting in another Louisiana touchdown.

It wasn’t all his fault — the offensive line was more inconsistent than they’d been last week against McNeese — but McMahon certainly looked much more like a quarterback in his second career FBS start than the savvy passer who led the team up and down the field the week prior.

To his credit, the highs were as impressive as the lows were painful. McMahon engineered two lengthy scoring drives in the first half, putting the turnovers out of his mind as he accounted for more than 300 yards of total offense and three touchdowns. Simply put, he settled down and played incredible football.

McMahon used his legs to elude defenders and scramble for positive plays. He went through his progressions and found open men down the field. After an extremely suspect start, his ability to flush the past play and move forward was critical in the Owls’ success on Saturday. His two-point pass to Bradley Rozner exemplified his ability to extend plays and create big moments.

Luke McCaffrey breakout game

Through Rice football’s first two games, Luke McCaffrey led the team with nine receptions but it didn’t really feel like he’d made his mark as a go-to guy in this offense. This week during practice, I asked both McCaffrey and Bloomgren when that game was coming.

“I think it could happen this game. It could happen the game after. It could also happen every game,” Bloomgren told The Roost this week. Then No. 10 stepped onto the field and dominated.

McCaffrey was the focal point of the Rice offense and absolutely delivered upon expectations. His first receiving touchdown as a Rice Owl was a beautiful throw and catch to put the Owls ahead in the second quarter.

The quarterback-turned-receiver was targeted a team-high 14-times and hauled in 10 passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns. He had another score pulled off the board at the end of the first half when officials ruled he stepped out of bounds on the play. Otherwise, the stat line could have been even more impressive.

If McCaffrey can do this against this defense, he’s going to be a problem in Conference USA.

Owls soar

Rice football is 2-1. Outside of a walk-off win over Prairie View A&M in Bloomgren’s first game with the Owls, this is the only other occasion in which the program has been above .500. And their second win of the season snapped the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajun’s 15-game winning streak, the longest in the nation at the time.

Bloomgren has had a few “signature wins” to this point. The 20-0 shutout at Marshall was incredible. The upset of UAB on the road last season was remarkable as well. But both of those games happened on the road. And neither season resulted in the bowl berth this program has been searching for since Bloomgren and his staff arrived.

That’s what makes this victory different. In front of the Rice faithful, the team secured a marquee non-conference win and ensured at least a .500 record entering conference play in a few weeks. Rice needs to go 4-4 in Conference USA to reach the postseason. That feels doable, especially considering the quality of the team the Owls felled on Saturday night.

Next week it’s on to Houston — which lost to Kansas at home on Saturday. For now, celebrate and be happy. This will go down as one of the most significant wins the program has experienced in quite some time.

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All three phases

Rice football talks about winning all three phases every week: offense, defense and special teams. On Saturday against Louisiana, the interceptions — three very costly turnovers — were the only true negatives for the Owls across the board.

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Rice Football 2022: Louisiana Game Week Practice Report

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Rice football plays Louisiana this week, which comes to Houston riding a 15-game winning streak. Here’s what we learned from this week’s practices.

Saturday can’t get here soon enough. Rice football is eagerly awaiting another chance to get on the field after a thorough drubbing of McNeese State last weekend. This week’s opponent. Louisiana, promises to be a much tougher out.

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The Owls have been hard at work to make corrections from last weekend’s missteps and implement their game plan for the Ragin’ Cajuns. Along the way there have been some shakeups within a few position groups, injuries and a few learnings to pass along prior to Week 3.

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