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Conference USA Football Media Days: 4 Takeaways from Frisco

July 19, 2019 By Matthew Bartlett

Each of the 14 Conference USA Football teams got their turn at the mic in Frisco, Texas this week. Here are a few of the more pressing takeaways.

1. Conference USA football is wide open

Marshall and North Texas were each picked to win their division by somewhat comfortable margins, but six of the conference’s 14 teams received at least one first-place vote. There are some favorites, sure, but the conference feels particularly wide on the cusp of the 2019 season.

Louisiana Tech head coach Skip Holtz summed it up with an interesting analogy. “This conference is a lot like Nascar,” he said, “Everybody has the same size engine it’s just who does the best job of driving it that week.”

More or less every coach followed in lockstep. Holtz added there were “no weeks off.” North Texas head man Seth Littrell echoed those sentiments. Despite being penciled in as the frontrunner, Littrell knows as well as anyone there are no sure things. “A lot of things can change from July to  November,” he admitted, “There’s a lot of great coaches. A lot of great players. Any given week you better prepare the right way in order to have success… Then you gotta see what way does the ball bounce.”

2. The Transfer Portal is still taboo

Coaches across the conference sounded off on the introduction of the Transfer Portal. Perhaps unsurprisingly, none gave it a particularly positive endorsement. UTEP head coach Dana Dimel didn’t mince words. “It’s become too accessible,” he declared, “Once you’re worked your tail off to get a kid now he’s gotta take the ups and downs of what college careers are all about. You can’t just pull the ripcord.” Marshall’s Doc Holiday’s criticism was succinct: “I don’t like it.”

The schools are clear victims of the players’ accessibility to the transfer market. It makes sense for coaches to want to do everything they can in their power to keep their players on campus, but there’s another angle to this coin.

CUSA Football Preview
Buy Now | 2019 Conference USA Football Preview

Once a player puts his or her name into the Transfer Portal they waive the right to their current scholarship. If the player tests the waters and decides to return the university has no obligation to reserve a spot for them. That sticky middle ground has left many in a tough spot.

“I think the coaches as a whole weren’t in favor of it,” Southern Miss coach Jay Hopson said. “Just because most of us [coaches] are former student-athletes. What’s happened now is there are hundreds of kids who had a scholarship and now they don’t.”

There’s clearly some more work to be done to iron out the kinks of this process.

3. The coaching carousel never really stops

Stability on the coaching front is rare for any league and Conference USA is no exception. Western Kentucky (Tyson Helton) and Charlotte (Will Healy) are breaking in new coaches this season. On the other end of the spectrum, North Texas (Seth Littrell) and UAB (Bill Clark) are trying to hold on to theirs.

Littrell and Clark each had their names tied to prominent jobs in the offseason. They each stayed put, with Littrell inking a lucrative contract extension. 2020 might be a different story. Clark went as far as to address some of the rumors. “I have dreams and aspirations. I want to coach at the highest level. Those are things that I’ve worked for, but it’s still what about we do today.”

4. Nobody is sleeping on Rice

There was a fair amount of buzz about the Owls around the room in Frisco this week. It’s no secret Rice runs an unconventional offense compared to their conference foes. The complexity of the scheme was limited in year one, but should continue to progress into 2019. Opposing coaches are well aware of the challenge the Owls will pose when they get things up and running.

Seth Littrell praised the intricacies of the Owls attack, saying that Rice does “a lot of different things, not only just using a fullback, but their tight ends. Then you get to their shifts, trades and motions. You gotta be extremely disciplined on defense in order stop that system.” Frank Wilson called Rice a team that’s going to “punch you in the mouth.”

It’s clear Rice is gaining recognition amongst their peers. Next, they’ll need to put all the pieces together and prove it on the football field this fall.

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Filed Under: Football, Archive, Featured Tagged With: Conference USA, Conference USA football

Conference USA Football Media Days: Live Blog

July 16, 2019 By Matthew Bartlett

Conference USA Media Days are underway in Frisco, Texas. Stay tuned here for all the latest news and updates on Rice football and CUSA.

Rice Football Season Preview
Buy Now | 2019 Rice Preview

Monday

The coaches selections for the 2019 Conference USA Football All-Conference Team were released. In addition to 30 first-team selections, three players were recognized above the rest:

  • Offensive Player of the Year – North Texas QB Mason Fine
  • Defensive Player of the Year – FIU LB Sage Lewis
  • Special Teams Player of the Year – Charlotte kicker Jonathan Cruz

Tuesday

CUSA Football Preview
Buy Now | 2019 CUSA Preview

The 2019 Conference USA Football Media Poll was released.

EAST DIVISION
1. Marshall (14)
2. FIU (9)
3. Florida Atlantic (3)
4. Middle Tennessee
5. WKU
6. Old Dominion
7. Charlotte

WEST DIVISION
1. North Texas (20)
2. Southern Miss (4)
3. Louisiana Tech
4. UAB (2)
5. UTSA
6. Rice
7. UTEP

Wednesday

Live stream available on ESPN3

Teams will bounce around from station to station today, spending time on the live stream and various media outlets from around the country including CBS Sports, NFL Network and Stadium.

12:05 pm – Rice is scheduled to be on the live stream from 2:15 to 2:30. They’re the second team on deck for today, starting with North Texas at 2:00 pm.

1:25 pm – Louisiana Tech head coach Skip Holtz on Rice – “It’s definitely going to be a change of pace for everyone with the offense Rice is running in this league… I know what that program is capable of. I have great respect for that program.”

2:42 pm – UTSA head coach Frank Wilson on Rice – “It’s always challenging any time you face someone with that physicality and they take on that persona that they’re going to punch you in the mouth.”

2:45 pm – Rice Football DT Myles Adams – “I feel like we’ve been rebuilding for some time now and it’s time to showcase what we’ve built.”

Louisana Tech Head Coach Skip Holtz on ultra-alumni Terry Bradshaw's comment that Texas QB Sam Ehlinger 'ain't that good:' "I don't think Texas needs another soundbite to get fired up for a game." The Bulldogs open the season 8/31 vs. the Horns in Austin. #conferenceusamediadays pic.twitter.com/qVsPJRBd4O

— Football Writers Association of America (@TheFWAA) July 17, 2019

3:34 pm – North Texas head coach Seth Littrell – You’ve gotta be extremely disciplined on defense in order to stop [Rice’s] system… this is a diverse league… You’re going to see about everything. That’s what makes it fun though, you want to coach against these great guys and these systems. To be honest with you, you probably see more hybrid things in this league than you see in any league I’ve been in.”

Don’t Forget! Grab your copy of the 2019 Rice Football Preview or 2019 Conference USA Football Preview today. Support local CUSA coverage and get the best insight on all 14 conference teams from local reporters and writers who know it best.
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Filed Under: Football, Featured Tagged With: Conference USA, Conference USA football

Rice Football: Don’t panic over Owls Preseason All-CUSA snubs

July 16, 2019 By Matthew Bartlett

Rice football didn’t land anyone on the Preseason Conference USA All-Conference team, but the Owls have plenty of young talent waiting in the wings.

The 2019 Conference USA Preseason Football All-Conference team was announced Monday. 12 of the conference’s 14 teams were represented. The two omissions? Old Dominion and Rice. On the surface, the lack of honorees was disconcerting, but it’s worth taking a breather and assessing where the Rice Football program is right now before getting too worried about preseason lists.

All-Conference teams, particularly those selected by the coaches, rely almost entirely on proven production. The vast majority of the time, that production has been seen first hand in conference games. End of season honorees have the benefit of a full slate of games to prove their abilities. That list could, and should, be more favorable for the Owls.

More: Athlon Sports and Phil Steele give Owls preseason honors

Rice doesn’t have many players who have been in Conference USA for long enough to warrant consideration. Of the upperclassmen projected to start for Rice this season, three have played enough snaps to earn a preseason look: wide receiver Austin Trammell, wide receiver Aaron Cephus and safety George Nyakwol.

The rest of the upperclassmen starters (find our complete three-deep depth chart projections in our 2019 Rice Football Season Preview) haven’t done enough at Rice to get themselves on the list. Players like Blaze Alldredge, Prudy Calderon, Treshawn Chamberlain and Juma Otoviano have the talent, but none have started a full season of college football yet. Few grad transfer earn recognition in lists like these.

Seniority and preseason lists go hand and hand. Of the 30 players honored, only Charlotte kicker  Jonathan Cruz is an underclassman. He made 17 of 22 field goal attempts last season.

Rice has some extremely talented players. They’re just young players. The youth movement in South Main is in its transitional stages. By the time the season is over, those freshmen and sophomores will have plenty of playing time under their belts. Let’s reassess the quality of the depth chart then.

Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

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Filed Under: Featured, Football Tagged With: Conference USA, Conference USA football, Rice Football

Rice Baseball: Owls no-hit in season-ending loss to Southern Miss

May 25, 2019 By Matthew Bartlett

Rice baseball saw their season end in no-hit fashion, tallying one base runner in their knock out loss to Southern Miss in the Conference USA Baseball Tournament.

In their final game of the 2019 season, Rice was no-hit by Southern Miss, falling in Biloxi 6-0. Matt Bragga’s crew knew making it to the Conference USA Baseball Tournament Championship Game from the loser’s bracket was going to be difficult. Bouncing back from an early loss requires depth, toughness and more luck than many teams and coaches would like to admit. To their credit, the Owls fought.

Rice knocked out Louisiana Tech and then took down Marshall, setting up a Saturday morning rematch with Southern Miss. Rice would need two wins over Southern Miss to keep their season alive, but it soon became apparent Rice would first need to focus on getting two hits.

Southern Miss starting pitcher Gabe Shepard was phenomenal. He missed bats and kept Rice off balance with a dynamic fastball. He mowed down the first 15 Rice batters who came to the plate before Justin Collins drew a leadoff walk in the sixth. Shepard held the no-hitter through seven and a third innings before being relieved by Cody Carroll who closed out the eighth. Hunter Stanley shut things down in the ninth, securing the no-no bid.

Shepard struck out 12 and walked one, affording Rice batters little opportunity to generate any scoring opportunities. As Shepard rolled through the order time and time again, the Southern Miss offense gradually pulled away.

The Rice bullpen held tough for a while but was unable to withstand a cavalcade of Southern Miss extra-base hits. The Golden Eagles hit three home runs, all solo shots. They’d add three more scores scattered across the duration of the contest. A 6-0 lead after seven proved overwhelming as Southern Miss breezed through the final two innings to clinch a spot in the conference championship game as Rice saw their season come to a close.

Final Record | 26-33

That’s all folks. There will be plenty to unpack from the Rice baseball 2019 season in the coming days. Rice was projected to finish top four in the conference in the preseason and that’s exactly where they ended.

This was a hot-and-cold baseball team which had some incredible highs and felt the lowest of lows. The Owls will bring back a lot of bullets in 2020 and the future remains bright. 2019 didn’t end how this team would have liked, but coach Matt Bragga’s work is only beginning.

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Filed Under: Archive, Baseball Tagged With: Conference USA, Rice baseball

Rice Baseball: Bullpen holds as Owls top LaTech at CUSA Tournament

May 23, 2019 By Matthew Bartlett

Rice baseball shook off their bullpen struggles, topping Louisiana Tech 4-3 in a Conference USA Tournament elimination game.

As the old saying goes, lightning doesn’t strike twice. For Rice, the lightning came in the form of a walk-off loss to Marshall a week ago on Thursday. Then it happened again. And again. And yet another time, with the final strike coming off the bat of Southern Miss slugger Matt Wallner on Wednesday.

Rice had led all four of those games by two or more runs entering the eighth inning. Each time the bullpen coughed up the advantage and the bats failed to rise to the occasion.

More: CUSA Tournament Bracket, news and notes

The story started in a similar way against Louisiana Tech in Thursday’s Conference USA Baseball Tournament elimination game. Rice got things going with a two-run double off the bat of Cade Edwards in the first, giving starting pitcher Evan Kravetz some breathing room early on.

Next, both sides swapped single runs, Louisana Tech in the third and Rice in the fifth, to bring the score to 3-1 in favor of the Owls. Then coach Matt Bragga made a bold decision. Rather than turn to the same pitchers who had failed to deliver over the past week, he put the ball in the hand of Jackson Parthasarathy.

Rice’s typical Sunday starter wasn’t as sharp as usual out of the bullpen. Following Kravetz’s five-inning, one-run performance, Parthasarathy struggled through a 1.2 inning showing. He allowed two runs before Dalton Wood came to relieve him.

After watching countless relievers fail to shut the door, Wood delivered. The freshman reliever worked two and a third perfect innings, allowing no hits, striking out one and clinching the Owls first win in a week’s time.

Apparently lightning does strike twice, but its encores are limited to four dismissive blasts. For the first time in a week, Rice took the lead and held on. Now they’ll look to do it again on Friday.

Up Next | Winner of Marshall vs Southern Miss, 3:00 PM, Friday

Rice will meet their demons face to face on Friday where they’ll face the winner of the Marshall and Southern Miss game scheduled to take place later Thursday afternoon. Rice is 0-3 against Marshall this season and 2-2 against Southern Miss.

Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

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Filed Under: Baseball, Archive, Featured Tagged With: Conference USA, Rice baseball

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