Rice football is back from the bye week and hopes to finish the season strong with a win over UAB. How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

Both Rice football and their upcoming opponent, the UAB Blazers, most recently squared off with UAB and met similar results. Rice fell 27-20 in a Friday night affair before entering being off this past weekend. UAB also saw defeat, but by a much wider 53-18 margin. Here’s everything you need to know about the matchup between Rice and UAB.

Kickoff time | 1:00 PM CT
Venue | Protective Stadium – Birmingham, AL
TV | ESPN+ (Viewing Guide)
Radio | Varsity Radio App (Online)

Audio / Visual Preview

We’ll preview Rice football vs UAB on this week’s episode of the Blue and Gray Preview Show, kicking off live on Wednesday 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.

Sizing up the contenders

In years past, this has been a game pitting a conference heavyweight (UAB) against an upstart underdog hunting for bowl eligibility (Rice). Neither descriptor really applies this season. The Owls have an outside shot at a bowl berth should the five-win APR eligibility clause be necessary, but both of these teams haven’t reached their own expectations this year.

For the Blazers, their head coach still has his job. Whether or not Trent Dilfer remains employed beyond Saturday remains to be seen, but winning games tends to be more beneficial when one is trying to be retained than losing them.

Series History

All Time | UAB leads, 6-5
Last Five | UAB leads, 3-2
Last Meeting | Home 2022, Rice won 28-24

Get the Inside Scoop

Get access to practice reports, analysis and special features during the week when you subscribe to our Starting Lineup Tier on Patreon today. If you want updates on how Rice football plans to attack this week’s opponent, position battles, standouts, injuries and more, this is your go-to source. Don’t miss out! Join now!

Rice Football Stat Notables

Passing | Warner – 217/348 (61.5 percent), 2058 yards, 13 TD, 10 INT /  Devillier 2038 (52.6 percent), 137 yards, 0 TD, 0 INT
Rushing | Connors – 126 carries, 678 yards (5.4 yards per carry), 8 TD / Jackson- 40 carries, 217 yards (5.4 yards per carry), 0 TD
Receiving | Sykes – 55 receptions, 645 yards (11.7 yds/rec), 5 TD / Campbell – 26 receptions, 295 yards (11.3 yds/rec), 1 TD / Connors – 55 receptions, 351 yards (6.4 yds/rec), 1 TD
Tackles | Taylor – 50, Morris – 49, Fresch- 42
Pass Breakups | Fresch – 9, Ahoia – 6, Taylor -5
Interceptions | Taylor/Flowers – 2, Fresch/Williams/Mutombo – 1

UAB Stat Notables

Passing | Kitna – 152/253 (60.1 percent), 1755 yards, 12 TD, 10 INT
Rushing | Beebe – 131 carries, 641 yards (4.9 yards per carry), 4 TD / Jacobs – 41 carries, 162 yards (4.0 yards per carry), 7 TD
Receiving | Thomas – 56 receptions, 610 yards (10.9 yds/rec), 8 TD / Shanks – 51 receptions, 581 yards (11.4 yds/rec), 5 TD / Beebe- 26 receptions, 199 yards (7.7 yds/rec), 0 TD
Tackles | Moore – 82, Roussaw – 63, Bryant – 58
Pass Breakups | Dempsey – 8, Hill – 5, Maddox – 4
Interceptions | Five tied with one

UAB X-Factor | Cut down on the penalties

UAB is the second most-penalized team in the AAC. The Blazers inability to play clean football games has cost them on multiple occasions and they’ve had to overcome nine or more infractions in each of their wins on the season. Just because UAB has made that uphill climb before doesn’t make it any easier to replicate.

The Blazers had a chance to upset Arkansas earlier this season but had 10 penalties for a combined 109 yards. Five penalties for 65 yards aided in their come-from-ahead loss at UConn two weeks ago. This is a team that can’t stay out of their own way, at times. If they want to win a conference game against someone not named Tulsa, they need to clean up their act.

Rice X-Factor | Run the dang ball

When Rice football choses to run the ball, they’ve done so effectively. The Owls average 4.8 yards per carry on the season, a mark that puts them right in the middle of the pack in the conference and is more than a yard better than they averaged all of last season. They’ve done this with a ever-rotating offensive line.

It’s not quite that simple, though. Rice ranks dead last in the nation in rushing attempts. For whatever reason, Rice hasn’t pounded the rock this year. And it’s not because they’re not capable of doing so.

UAB ranks dead last in the AAC in rush defense, allowing more yards per game on the ground than anyone else in the league. Conversely, they’re neck-and-neck with the Owls for the best pass defense in the conference. Sometimes the formula isn’t complicated. When you’re good at something and your opponent isn’t, expose that discrepancy. This week in particular, Rice must run the ball.

Injury Report (Subscribers only)

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One Final Thing

The transitive property does not apply to college football. But…

Rice and UAB have five common opponents this season: Army, Navy, Tulane, UConn and Memphis. Rice is 1-4 in those games. UAB is 0-5. The Owls’ average margin of defeat is 7.4 points, generally playing all of their opponents closely except for a one-sided loss to Army.

UAB’s average margin of defeat in those games is 48-18. Roll the ball out against just about anyone and the Blazers typically lose by four touchdowns.

Again, the transitive property does not apply to college football. But…

Even the most pessimistic view of the 2024 Rice Football season casts the Owls as a challenged team that can’t get everything functioning as it was meant to be. At their best, they can beat Navy and push conference frontrunners (Tulane, Memphis) to the brink in the fourth quarter. UAB’s best… probably still ended in a multi-score defeat.

Vegas has Rice as about a touchdown favorite on the road this week, only the third time they’ve been favored in a game this season. They lost the previous two (SHSU, Charlotte). What does that have to do with Saturday’s game? Absolutely nothing.

Rice football is probably a better program than UAB right now, even under an interim head coach. It sure would be nice to make that reality plain an obvious on the field this weekend.

Recent Posts

• Rice Football 2025: UAB Game Week Practice Notes
• The Roost Podcast | No Treats in Rice Football Halloween loss to Memphis
• Rice Basketball Routs College of Biblical Studies in Opener
• Rice Football 2025: UAB presser quotes and depth chart

Can interim head coach Pete Alamar keep the good times rolling as Rice football hits the road to take on Memphis? How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

Rice football notched an unexpected prime-time win over Navy last Saturday, persevering through an expected afternoon kickoff that became an evening affair. In the meantime, Memphis was outgunned by UTSA, losing a shootout in the Alamo Dome. What will happen when the Tigers and Owls square off on Friday night?  Here’s everything you need to know about the matchup between Rice and Memphis.

Kickoff time | 8:00 PM CT
Venue | Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium – Memphis, TN
TV | ESPN2 (Viewing Guide)
Radio | Varsity Radio App (Online)

Audio / Visual Preview

We’ll preview Rice football vs Memphis on this week’s episode of the Blue and Gray Preview Show, kicking off live on Wednesday 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.

Sizing up the contenders

Rice football had no choice but to focus on the game at hand following the dismissal of Mike Bloomgren. But with a win under their belts and some much-needed momentum, dreams of a bowl berth can be seen if you squint just a little bit. If Rice can get past Memphis, those fledgling hopes will be given real oxygen. 

For Memphis, they’ve still got a shot at a spot in the conference championship game, but it will necessitate a perfect finish to the regular season. A misstep this week against Rice or next week against UAB would doom a season with sky-high expectations before they ever reach their regular season finale against Tulane. 

Series History

All Time | Tied, 2-2
Last Five | Tied, 2-2
Last Meeting | Away 2012, Memphis won 14-10

Get the Inside Scoop

Get access to practice reports, analysis and special features during the week when you subscribe to our Starting Lineup Tier on Patreon today. If you want updates on how Rice football plans to attack this week’s opponent, position battles, standouts, injuries and more, this is your go-to source. Don’t miss out! Join now!

Become a Patron!

Rice Football Stat Notables

Passing | Warner – 188/303 (62.0 percent), 1573 yards, 10 TD, 9 INT /  Devillier 20/38 (52.6 percent), 137 yards, 0 TD, 0 INT
Rushing | Connors – 112 carries, 623 yards (5.6 yards per carry), 8 TD / Jackson – 34 carries, 147 yards (4.3 yards per carry)
Receiving | Sykes – 49 receptions, 569 yards (11.6 yds/rec), 4 TD / Campbell – 22 receptions, 261 yards (11.9 yds/rec), 1 TD / Connors – 49 receptions, 329 yards (6.7 yds/rec), 1 TD
Tackles | Morris – 46, Taylor – 42, Fresch – 40
Pass Breakups | Fresch – 7, Ahoia – 6, Taylor – 5
Interceptions | Taylor/Flowers – 2, Williams/Mutombo – 1

Memphis Stat Notables

Passing | Henigan – 232/357 (65.0 percent), 2532 yards, 16 TD, 5 INT
Rushing | Anderson – 148 carries, 833 yards (5.6 yards per carry), 14 TD / Thomas – 41 carries, 267 yards (6.5 yards per carry), 6 TD
Receiving | Taylor – 46 receptions, 658 yards (14.3 yds/rec), 2 TD / Blankumsee – 34 receptions, 477 yards (14.0 yds/rec), 5 TD / Anderson – 39 receptions, 227 yards (5.8 yds/rec), 2 TD
Tackles | Martin – 73, Rubin – 55, Hudson – 47
Pass Breakups | Ross – 6, Rubin/Watts/Bell – 5
Interceptions | Ross – 2, Five others tied with one

Memphis X-Factor | Protect the football

Memphis has shown this season they can trade points with the best of them. The Tigers typically find a way to score when they get the football and they do so at a very high rate, but it’s what happens when the ball doesn’t go in the box that’s caused them issues.

Twice this season Memphis has failed to win the turnover margin: against Navy and against UTSA. They lost both games. In their other seven contests, Memphis is a combined +12 in turnovers and managed to win even their tighter contests simply by giving themselves a chance late to keep adding points.

A Memphis turnover means a drive with no points. With a defense that’s been as leaky as the Tigers have been this season, that’s simply not going to work. 

Rice X-Factor | Strike first

Whether it was the energy of an interim head coach or the sheer adrenaline of the moment, a different version of Rice football took the field against Navy this past weekend. The Owls staked themselves to a 17-0 lead before Navy had a chance to return fire. Scoring more points than the other team is always the goal in this game, but for the Owls, getting the first shot appears to be more paramount than could have been previously imagined.

The Owls have been forced to play from behind all of their other games against FBS opponents this year. They found a way to get it done against UTSA, but barring another miraculous drive, that can’t be Plan A this coming weekend. When Rice demonstrated last week that when they are able to set the tone and play from the front they’re an entirely different kind of football team.

Memphis can score in a hurry and it might very well take more than a couple of touchdowns to upset the Tigers on their own turf. Rice needs to keep pace and to do that effectively, they absolutely have to set the tone with an early touchdown (or two).

Injury Report (Subscribers only)

Sorry! This part of content is hidden behind this box because it requires a higher contribution level ($10) at Patreon. Why not take this chance to increase your contribution?

Become a Patron!

One Final Thing

For a moment, I thought about casting this game as one in which Rice football will be playing with proverbial house money. Nobody expects them to pull off another stunner and there won’t be any shame as they drop a road contest to the team picked to win the league in the preseason. 

However, what keeps coming back to me is a comment made by a subscriber following Saturday’s momentum victory over Navy. This was the team we expected to see in August. 

That version of Rice football never fully materialized for a litany of receivers we can unpack at the end of the season. But even without their head coach in place, those same players make up this team and they’ve shown the world what they’re capable of when things come together the right way.

Instead, this is a game full of opportunity. Who knows maybe a program that can knock off Navy and Memphis with an interim head coach has good enough bones to make a prospective head coach more intrigued than he otherwise might be? Maybe Rice football is a coach away from hitting its stride with a roster that’s bought in, regardless of the tumult around them.

It’s one game in a season that so far has largely been remembered for what hasn’t happened. But who’s to say they don’t have another stunner up their sleeves? It sure would make for a fun story. 

Recent Posts

• Rice Football 2025: UAB Game Week Practice Notes
• The Roost Podcast | No Treats in Rice Football Halloween loss to Memphis
• Rice Basketball Routs College of Biblical Studies in Opener
• Rice Football 2025: UAB presser quotes and depth chart