Complete with broadcast information and kickoff times, the 2021 Rice Football schedule has been released. Here are a few quick notes.

The opponents and the dates for the 2021 Rice football schedule had already been finalized. Now we know when the games are happening and (roughly) how to watch the Owls this fall. First, the schedule:

2021 Rice Football Schedule

Sat 9/4                  @ Arkansas                        ESPN+/SEC+                       1:00 p.m. CT

Sat 9/11                Houston                               CBSSN                                   5:30 p.m. CT

Sat 9/18                @ Texas                               LHN                                       7:00 p.m. CT

Sat 9/25                Texas Southern                 ESPN Networks                 5:30 p.m. CT

Sat 10/2                Southern Miss                   ESPN Networks                 5:30 p.m. CT

Sat 10/16             @ UTSA                                ESPN Networks                 5:00 p.m. CT

Sat 10/23             @ UAB                                  ESPN Networks                 TBD

Sat 10/30             North Texas                        ESPN Networks                 1:00 p.m. CT

Sat 11/6                @ Charlotte                        ESPN Networks                 2:30 p.m. CT

Sat 11/13             WKU                                      ESPN Networks                 1:00 p.m. CT

Sat 11/20             @ UTEP                                 ESPN Networks                 3:00 p.m. CT

Sat 11/27             LA Tech                                 ESPN Networks                 12:00 p.m. CT

Where to watch

The “ESPN Networks” designation more than like means the game will be streamed on ESPN3 or ESPN+, you can sign up for the latter here. That means one streaming subscription will more than likely account for the vast majority of the games Rice football plays this coming season. After years of pivoting back and forth between Facebook, Stadium, NFL Network and others, it’ll be nice to have it all in one place.

A tale of two halves

For whatever reason, the early portion of the schedule is heavily weighted toward evening kickoffs. In fact, only the season opener at Arkansas kicks before 5:30 p.m. CT. Contrast that with the second half of the schedule, which has one game that begins at 3:00 p.m. or later. For those looking to brave the Texas heat, that’s actually the optimal combination.

Built-in flexibility

The move toward ESPN platforms does come with some wiggle room. Each of those game listed as “ESPN Networks” will officially have a 12 day window to accommodate changes to the linear television lineup. In laymen’s terms, that means all of those games can be moved throughout ESPN’s platform of networks however they see fit. That could mean altered kick times and perhaps, if the Owls fair well enough, an extra game on television, too.

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