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Rice Football: After-season Transfer Portal updates

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Rice football has lost a handful of players to the Transfer Portal this week. Who is heading out and how what impact will that have on the Owls?

If the Rice football season spans from August to November, December is Transfer Portal season. The Owls aren’t alone in this modern college football phenomenon. There have been more than 250 transfers in the past week across the country and more are certainly coming.

Why now? At first glance, the end of the regular season seems to be a natural breakpoint in the calendar, but it’s what coincides with that break that is the more likely impetus. College programs around the country hold what many call “exit interviews” where players and staff sit down and talk through the season with individual players and discuss the future. If that future doesn’t align with the desire or expectations of a particular student-athlete, some will choose to part ways.

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That sort of changeover is happening at Rice right now, just as it’s happening in football facilities around the nation. To this point, Rice football has largely benefited from this process. For every Blaze Alldredge that enters the portal, Rice has found a Bradley Rozner or Naeem Smith. Current NFL offensive lineman Nick Leverett was a transfer addition, too, as have been five Rice starting quarterbacks.

With that as a preamble, here is the latest list of Rice football players that have reportedly entered the Transfer Portal this week:

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Rice Football 2021 Game Preview: Louisiana Tech

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Rice football takes on Louisiana Tech in their 2021 season finale. How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

The last week of the regular season will feature a battle of 3-8 teams in Houston. Rice football rides a four game losing streak into their home finale, dropping their most recent game to UTEP in El Paso last weekend. Louisiana Tech lost to quarterbackless Southern Miss last time out, who the Owls beat earlier in the season. Here’s everything you need to know about the matchup.

Kickoff time | 12:00 PM CT
Venue | Rice Stadium – Houston, TX
TV | ESPN+
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. You can also catch the recap of last week’s game on The Roost Podcast, which should be released shortly. 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

Even with a win, Louisiana Tech could do no matter than tie their worst season under Skip Holtz. He went 4-8 in his debut season with the Bulldogs in 2013 and has reached a bowl game in every season since. Frankly, reaching four games below .500 isn’t noticeably better than finishing five games below that mark.

Rice football is playing to reach that same 4-8 finish, but with slightly different optics. Four wins would be the most under Mike Bloomgren to date. When combined with a couple of overtime losses and a rigorous non-conference slate, it could be enough to buy him so goodwill. Every win counts at this point.

Series History

All Time | Louisiana Tech leads Rice, 9-4
Last Five | Louisiana Tech leads Rice, 5-0
Last Meeting | Home 2019, Louisiana Tech won 23-20 (OT)

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Get access to practice reports, analysis and special features during the week when you subscribe to our All-American Tier on Patreon today. If you want updates on how Rice football plans to deploy its quarterbacks, position battles, standouts, injuries and more, this is your go-to source. A few sections of this preview are reserved for those subscribers. Don’t miss out! Join now!

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Rice Stat Notables

Passing | Constantine – 126/206 (61.2 percent), 1622 yards, 8 TD, 7 INT
Rushing | Broussard – 104 carries, 535 yards (5.1 yards per carry), 3 TD / Myers – 89 carries, 334 yards (3.8 yards per carry), 8 TD
Receiving | Bailey – 56 receptions, 714 yards (12.8 yds/rec), 2 TD / Patterson – 33 receptions, 490 yards (13.9 yds/rec), 4 TD
Tackles | Montero/Garcia – 60 / Smith – 57 / Pearcy – 53
Pass Breakups | Dunbar – 7, McCord/Smith – 5, Taylor/Fresch – 4
Interceptions | Smith – 3, Nyakwol/Lockhart/Taylor – 2

Louisiana Tech Stat Notables

Passing | Allen – 50/77 (64.9 percent), 620 yards passing, 2 TD, 4 INT
Rushing | Williams – 175 carries, 750 yards (4.3 yards per carry), 8 TD / Garner – 54 carries, 216 yards (4.0 ypc), 3 TD
Receiving | Harris – 65 receptions, 693 yards (10.7 yards per reception), 5 TD / Harris – 35 receptions, 485 yards (13.9 yds/rec), 3 TD
Tackles | Grubbs – 91 / Baldwin – 88 / Buchanan – 47
Pass Breakups | Woods – 5, Grubbs/Baldwin – 4
Interceptions | Williamson/Cole – 2, Four others tied with one apiece

Louisiana Tech X-Factor | One-dimensional Rice

The Louisiana Tech defense hasn’t been particularly strong on any singular front this season. The Bulldogs own the No. 12 passing defense in the conference and the No. 10 rushing defense. Since their C-USA slate has arrived they’ve been a bit better through the air and much worse on the ground, but they’re not going to get confused for an upper-tier unit anytime soon. But maybe they don’t have to be.

Rice hasn’t shown the ability to consistently put up 30 points this season. Their most productive outings have come on days when they’ve been able to run the ball effectively and mix in the passing game. Forcing this team to rely entirely on one or the other has led to struggles. Injuries could further complicate this equation for the Owls, making the task that much more simplistic for the Bulldogs.

Take away the pass or take away the run. Then force Rice to beat you with one hand behind their back for 60 minutes. It’s not something they’ve shown the ability to do this season, especially not with a one-dimensional offensive attack.

Rice X-Factor |  Stop the pass

The Rice secondary has been the problem point for this team and it hasn’t just been the high volume aerial attacks that have found success. After a slow first half, UTEP found tremendous success through the air against Rice, and they did so at all three levels. Conversely, when Rice has been able to hang tough and play tight enough coverage, the defense has been able to get off the field.

Rice held Charlotte to 57 yards rushing. Western Kentucky rushed 25 times for only 93 yards. UTEP tallied 122 on the ground, but roughly half of that came on one long breakaway run. This defense is going to limit the run, if nothing else at least to the degree that it doesn’t cost them the game. The focal point should be the passing game, and more specifically, finding any way at all to slow that down.

Pick ‘Em Contest (Subscribers only)

Make sure you submit your entry for The Roost’s weekly pick’em challenge. There will be swag and prizes for the top finishers at the end of the season. Choose an answer to each of the six questions below and comment on this post on the Patreon page to enter. It’s that easy.

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Injury Report (Subscribers only)

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One Final Thing

Following an up-and-down start to conference play, it’s been a rough month for Rice football fans. This team hasn’t lived up to the expectations they set for themselves, and they’re well aware of that. Conversations to unearth why they fell short and deciding what needs to change so that they can continue climbing will be had in the offseason — and that’s only a few days away. For now, the task at hand is Louisiana Tech.

Sending the seniors off on a high note, after all they’ve done to get the program to this point, should be the focus of this week. Thanking those who have worked tirelessly for years to turn a 1-win team into a squad capable of knocking off an undefeated, ranked Marshall squad on the road and follow that up with a win over conference heavyweight UAB a season later has to the focus.

Enjoy this football game. Then we’ll get to the offseason. And we’ll be tired of the offseason almost as soon as it arrived.

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Rice Football 2021 Game Preview: UTEP

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Rice football is looking to finish the regular season strong. Can they top UTEP on the road? How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

It’s been a rough couple of weeks for Rice football and it’s been a rough couple of weeks for the UTEP Miners. Both programs bring three-game losing streaks into their late-November showdown at the Sun Bowl on Saturday. Most recently Rice fell to WKU, officially ending any bowl game aspirations. UTEP fell to North Texas last time out. Here’s what you need to know for this matchup:

Kickoff time | 3:00 PM CT
Venue | Sun Bowl – El Paso, TX
TV | ESPN+
Radio | Sports Map 94.1 (FM) / Stretch Internet (Online)

Audio / Visual Preview

We’ll preview Rice football vs UTEP on this week’s episode of the Blue and Gray Preview Show, streaming live on Wednesday at Noon on the Rice Athletics YouTube channel. You can also catch the recap of last week’s game on The Roost Podcast, which should be released shortly. 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

Neither Rice football nor UTEP are contenders for C-USA West, nor are the postseason fates of either program on the line this coming Saturday. These two teams will play for pride, but more than that, they’ll play for perception.

Dana Dimel and Mike Bloomgren took over downtrodden programs and were given plenty of leeway to build them up from the ground floor. The Miners appear to be cresting, finally coming to the apex of that upswing. The last few weeks have been troubling, but a win against Rice might just solidify that the trajectory of the UTEP program remains pointed upward.

On the other sideline, Rice can still reach record win totals under Bloomgren this year, but achieving those goals starts with a win over UTEP. A loss would decidedly place Rice behind UTEP in the rebuilding race, and that’s not something many of the Owls’ faithful want to be forced to contemplate. 

Series History

All Time | Rice leads UTEP, 15-8
Last Five | Rice leads UTEP, 3-2
Last Meeting | Away 2019, Rice won 30-16

Get the Inside Scoop

Get access to practice reports, analysis and special features during the week when you subscribe to our All-American Tier on Patreon today. If you want updates on how Rice football plans to deploy its quarterbacks, position battles, standouts, injuries and more, this is your go-to source. A few sections of this preview are reserved for those subscribers. Don’t miss out! Join now!

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Rice Stat Notables

Passing | Constantine – 112/181 (61.9 percent), 1439 yards, 6 TD, 7 INT
Rushing | Broussard – 102 carries, 533 yards (5.2 yards per carry), 2 TD / Myers – 89 carries, 334 yards (3.8 yards per carry), 8 TD
Receiving | Bailey – 51 receptions, 656 yards (12.9 yds/rec), 2 TD / Patterson – 31 receptions, 430 yards (13.9 yds/rec), 3 TD
Tackles | Montero – 60 / Garcia – 55 / Smith – 52
Pass Breakups | Dunbar – 7, McCord – 5, Smith/Taylor – 4
Interceptions | Smith – 3, Nyakwol/Lockhart – 2

UTEP Stat Notables

Passing | Hardison – 142/263 (54.0 percent), 2396 yards passing, 14 TD, 10 INT
Rushing | Awatt – 131 carries, 672 yards (5.1 yards per carry), 5 TD / Hankins – 99 carries, 357 yards (3.6 ypc), 5 TD
Receiving | Cowing – 51 receptions, 1097 yards (21.5 yards per reception), 5 TD / Garrett – 40 receptions, 542 yards (13.6 yds/rec), 3 TD
Tackles | Hayward – 84 / Knight – 68 / Barnes – 46
Pass Breakups | Richardson/Amawhule – 7, Wilson – 5
Interceptions | Barnes – 2, Five tied with one apiece

UTEP X-Factor | Make the easy throws

As productive as the UTEP offense has been, it hasn’t been the most efficient, especially through the air. Quarterback Gavin Hardison ranks 12th among C-USA quarterbacks with a 50.9 completion percentage in conference play this season.

Completing more than a coin-flips worth of passes is an easy starting point, but given the cushion the Rice secondary has afforded other passing attacks so far this season, that has to start with the easy throws. If Hardison and UTEP are able to find success on the easier throws, early-down routes with space and wide windows, they’re going to find it easier to connect on the intermediate and deep routes later in the game.

If Hardison can unlock every level of the field and make the Rice defense have to guess, it’s going to be a long day in El Paso for the Owls.

Rice X-Factor |  Get to the quarterback

Fixing the leaky secondary doesn’t seem to be a viable solution at this point in the season. If that was something the Owls’ were capable of patching up on the fly, they probably would have found a way to keep their previous game against Western Kentucky somewhat more competitive. The Owls best chance of doing that against UTEP is getting to the source of the passing attack and stopping it there.

UTEP wide receivers Jacob Cowing and Justin Garrett each have big-play potential. If the ball gets to them, they can make the defense pay with a first down and more. They’re going to get yards. Rice just needs to make sure they’re not getting hit in stride with green grass in front of them. And that means getting to Gavin Hardison, something few have been able to do so far this season.

UTEP has allowed 13 sacks in 10 games, tied for third fewest in Conference USA. The Miners’ offensive line has been solid. Rice has found success against some of the conference’s sturdier front fives before. They’ll need to do it again this weekend.

Pick ‘Em Contest (Subscribers only)

Make sure you submit your entry for The Roost’s weekly pick’em challenge. There will be swag and prizes for the top finishers at the end of the season. Choose an answer to each of the six questions below and comment on this post on the Patreon page to enter. It’s that easy.

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Injury Report (Subscribers only)

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One Final Thing

With bowl hopes dashed, Bloomgren said this team would be “playing for each other” from this point onward. From a wins and losses perspective, the Owls do have some positive thresholds to reach on that front.

Ultimately, though, these last two games are an opportunity to prove they have what it takes and were a few bad bounces away from their goals. That might not satisfy all the critics and it might not prove to be enough the program maintains the same upward trajectory Bloomgren remained confident it does, but it’s all they can control going forward.

Beating UTEP, and doing so without an overtime period or controversy, is a must. Winning convincingly and accruing some “style points” is exactly what this team needs right now. Whether or not they can do that is on them.

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Rice Football 2021: WKU presser quotes, updates and depth chart

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Rice football knows what’s at stake this week against Western Kentucky. Here’s what Mike Bloomgren had to say about the matchup, updates and depth chart notes.

Head coach Mike Bloomgren and a pair of players met with the media for their customary weekly availability. They discussed the tough loss to Charlotte and laid out expectations and their prep work for their game against Western Kentucky next week. We’ll include updates from Bloomgren and those players, then dig further into the details of the Rice football depth chart and what the team looks like on the field headed into the weekend.

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Rice football has found stability at the quarterback position after injuries and lineup adjustments. With that settled and no major injury updates looming, the lineup is starting to normalize. First, the quotes:

Press Conference Quotes

“I think for three and two-thirds quarters, we played about as well as we needed to. We certainly left some opportunities out there like you always do. We played good enough to win and we weren’t able to capitalize down the stretch and that’s really disappointing.” – Mike Bloomgren on the Charlotte loss

“We know [Western Kentucky] have a dominant offense. They have a great quarterback and they have been playing as good a defense as they have all year. They’re creating turnovers. They’re really playing solid in all three phases. They’re really good on special teams. They get after it on special teams. So, it’s going to be an unbelievable challenge for us.” – Mike Bloomgren on the Western Kentucky game

“I really think the past few weeks, it’s just been getting the five dudes together, gelling more as these five guys. And then also, it’s just a testament to our coaching. We’ve talked about it before. We have probably five or six elite level offensive line coaches just in this building. We’re really a product of our training when it comes to our coaching. And every week that we’ve gotten better, I would say as part of it is every week, our coaches have worked harder. So I think that’s a big testament to some of our recent successes.” – Guard Cole Garcia on the growth of the offensive line

“They’re going to throw the ball a lot. So we got to get back there. And [defensive line] coach [Cedric] Calhoun always says ‘put it on us’. The d-line is going to always give 100 percent effort and try and get some pressure on the QB to help on our DBs.” – Defensive end Miles Adams on Western Kentucky

Depth Chart

There are no changes to the official Rice football depth chart this week.

Rice Football

Secondary is on notice

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Rice Football 2021 Game Preview: Western Kentucky

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If Rice Football wants to achieve their postseason aspirations, they’ll need to get past Western Kentucky. How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

For the second consecutive Saturday, Rice football lost an overtime game. This one was different though. Instead of trailing for the duration, Rice had a two-score lead and was unable to finish. Meanwhile, Western Kentucky was taking care of business against Middle Tennessee, their fourth win in a row. Can Rice right the slide? Will the Hilltoppers stumble? Here’s what you need to know:

Kickoff time | 1:00 PM CT
Venue | Rice Stadium – Houston, TX
TV | ESPN+
Radio | Sports Map 94.1 (FM) / Stretch Internet (Online)

Audio / Visual Preview

We’ll preview Rice football vs WKU on this week’s episode of the Blue and Gray Preview Show, streaming live on Wednesday at Noon on the Rice Athletics YouTube channel. You can also catch the recap of last week’s game on The Roost Podcast, which should be released shortly. 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

There’s a lot on the line for both teams at Rice Stadium on Saturday. The home team has reached do-or-die status when it comes to their bowl game aspirations. Sitting at 3-6 with three games to go, Rice has to be perfect down the stretch and that starts with Charlotte.

As linebacker Antonio Montero pointed out after the Charlotte loss, while the circumstances are far from ideal, “3-0, my sophomore year we did it,” he recalled. “It’s not impossible at all. Very, very possible, actually. There’s not a conference team that we can’t beat.”

On the other side of the field, Western Kentucky can clinch a bowl berth of their own and keep pace with Marshall for the top spot in the East Division standings.

Series History

All Time | WKU leads Rice, 2-0
Last Five | WKU leads Rice, 2-0
Last Meeting | Away 2016, WKU won 46-14

Get the Inside Scoop

Get access to practice reports, analysis and special features during the week when you subscribe to our All-American Tier on Patreon today. If you want updates on how Rice football plans to deploy its quarterbacks, position battles, standouts, injuries and more, this is your go-to source. A few sections of this preview are reserved for those subscribers. Don’t miss out! Join now!

Become a Patron!

Rice Stat Notables

Passing | Constantine – 84/131 (64.1 percent), 1059 yards, 5 TD, 3 INT
Rushing | Broussard – 87 carries, 473 yards (5.4 yards per carry), 2 TD / Myers – 89 carries, 334 yards (3.8 yards per carry), 8 TD
Receiving | Bailey – 46 receptions, 576 yards (12.5 yds/rec), 2 TD / Patterson – 24 receptions, 341 yards (14.2 yds/rec), 2 TD
Tackles | Montero – 60 / Garcia – 49 / Smith – 48
Pass Breakups | Dunbar – 6, McCord – 5, Smith – 4
Interceptions | Smith/Nyakwol – 2, Four others tied with one

Western Kentucky Stat Notables

Passing | Zappe – 308/441 (69.8 percent), 3688 yards passing, 37 TD, 6 INT
Rushing | Cofield – 64 carries, 321 yards (5.0 yards per carry), 4 TD / Whittington – 60 carries, 317 yards (5.3 ypc), 1 TD
Receiving | Sterns – 104 receptions, 1276 yards (12.3 yards per reception), 11 TD / Tinsley – 43 receptions, 680 yards (15.8 yds/rec), 6 TD
Tackles | Kincade – 62 / Malone – 62 / Ignont – 43
Interceptions | Cain/Bishop -2, Seven tied with one apiece
Pass Breakups | Ignont – 6, Edwards – 4, Four others tied with three apiece

WKU X-Factor | Keep your foot on the gas

Rice doesn’t want this to turn into a shootout. The Owls did win a 48-34 affair with Texas Southern earlier this season, but their ideal style of game is much lower-scoring. They want to maximize time of possession, grind out the clock and win on the margins. Falling behind early, as they did recently in losses to UTSA and North Texas, can be dangerous.

The Owls struggled in the kicking game too, missing three straight field goals between the end of the North Texas game and the start of the Charlotte contest. They then proceeded to go for it on fourth down in areas of the field where a long field goal might be an option.

If Rice struggles when they fall behind and the Owls have learned towards a “touchdown or bust” offensive philosophy, all Western Kentucky has to do is keep putting points on the board. Force Rice to play the style of game they don’t want to play and, more importantly, to execute at a high rate on their third and fourth down conversions in the redzone. That’s been a pain point for Rice in recent weeks.

Rice X-Factor | Force Bailey Zappe to make mistakes

Western Kentucky is far and away the most proficient offense in Conference USA. They’re going to score points and Bailey Zappe is going to attack down the field early and often. The Rice secondary had the chance to win the game against Charlotte but couldn’t limit the 49ers on their final fourth quarter drive nor could they stop the bleeding in overtime.

If the secondary can’t contain Zappe, they need to make him mortal. Rice forced 11 turnovers in 12 games in 2019, 0.92 per game. They had nine in five games in 2020, 1.80 per game. This season, they’ve forced 11 in nine games, 1.20 per game. They’ve finished better than +1 in the turnover margin once, that came against Southern Miss, a game they won at home.

Relying on turnovers and big plays to win games can’t be the entirety of the Owls’ game plan, but it’s going to have play some role in the outcome. Even an offense this good has its hiccups. Rice absolutely has to expose those and make it count when they do.

Pick ‘Em Contest (Subscribers only)

Make sure you submit your entry for The Roost’s weekly pick’em challenge. There will be swag and prizes for the top finishers at the end of the season. Choose an answer to each of the six questions below and comment on this post on the Patreon page to enter. It’s that easy.

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Injury Report (Subscribers only)

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One Final Thing

For better or worse, Rice football will know for sure whether or not their postseason hopes remain alive after this weekend. Western Kentucky is a good football team, and possibly if not probably the best team remaining on the Owls’ schedule. If they can upset the Hilltoppers, they’ll have a chance to run the table. They’ve beaten good teams before, and fairly recently at that, but they’re out of wiggle room.

“Some of the games we may be a favorite, some of the games we may be an underdog, but it doesn’t really matter,” Bloomgren said of this upcoming stretch. It’s going to come down to how we play and how we finish. But we’re good enough. We’re going to be good enough to win these games. Now when we get to that deep water that we talk about and work for, now we’ve got to finish.”

The UAB upset proved this team is good enough. Their ability to rally from behind against North Texas and force overtime proved they could fight back, even on a bad day. But when it’s come to execution, this team hasn’t been able to weather the storm. Now they’re on their last chance.

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