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Rice Football 2022: LA Tech Game Week Practice Report

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Rice football visits Louisiana Tech this weekend for their final time in Conference USA play. Here’s what we learned from practice this week.

Back in action after a Week 7 loss to FAU, Rice football enters the weekend as road favorites for only the second time under head coach Mike Bloomgren. They’ve got to get the offense going this weekend against Louisiana Tech and they’ve made some plans to do just that.

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This week’s roundup highlights what the team is doing to get the running game going, injury updates (both good and bad) as well as some individual highlights from the week.

For those checking in for the first time, or those returning, a quick programming note. Special features like this are reserved for our subscribers. Have questions? You can get those answered in our monthly Q&As and get access to all practice notes, recruiting updates and features like this one when you subscribe on Patreon today.

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Rice Football falters late, falling to FAU on the road

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Rice Football started fast, but couldn’t hold on, squandering a fourth-quarter lead as they fell to the FAU Owls on the road on Saturday.

Rice football scored the first 14 points and looked to be on their way to their first road win of the season but it would not come to pass. FAU answered with 17 unanswered points, clamping down late to thwart the Owls’ late.

“I wish I could tell you that they made some great adjustments,” Rice football head coach Mike Bloomgren said in the aftermath. “They really kept doing what they were doing and our execution faltered and that’s the disappointing part.”

Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:

Explosive, but imperfect offense can’t do enough

Rice football is still searching for a seamless offensive game, but their current less-than-perfect somewhat boom-or-bust operation is getting the job done. The road Owls started the game going backward, losing 16 yards on their first drive of the game. On the very next sequence, McMahon hit Bradley Rozner for this career-long 78-yard touchdown reception.

McMahon and Rozner guided the team down the field for another score immediately afterward. Up 14-0, Rice had the ball again with the chance to deliver a third potentially soul-crushing score in the final minutes of the first quarter. Instead, McMahon threw two passes which probably each should have been intercepted by the FAU defense.

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

McMahon would miss open receivers on the subsequent drive too, which ended with a failed fourth-down conversion. FAU scored on their next possession, then the offense went three-and-out for the third time in six drives.

Tack on another deflected interception (how????) and McMahon’s third interception on the subsequent drive and it would end up dooming what seemed to be such a promising day in the first quarter. McMahon had rough day. So did the offensive line. The entire unit is going to have some rough conversations in the film room this week.

Rice football head coach Mike Bloomgren was brutally honest in his postgame remarks. “We have to do better,” he said. “14 points in a football game doesn’t win. It doesn’t win in college football. Not scoring in the second half doesn’t win, we know those things. We’ve got to get better.

In prior years, explosive plays were few and far between, resulting in stagnant offensive performances. Rice is hitting big plays this year, but it hasn’t figured out the consistency just yet. If they can iron out the warts, this offense has the potential to really take off.

Big play defense

It’s been the Rice defense that’s allowed this offense to learn on the job. They’ve been absolutely superb this season and that strong showing continued on Saturday. For the most part, they made the routine plays, allowing a few explosive plays to FAU but largely playing fundamentally sound football. It was third and fourth down where they flexed their muscles.

FAU was 6-of-17 on third down and 0-of-4 when facing third and nine or longer. When this defense gets the green light and is allowed to pin their ears back and go, bad things tend to happen for the other team.

Then there were the big plays. Not to be outdone by the fireworks of Rozner and McMahon, several Rice defenders delivered equally impactful moments of their own. Josh Pearcy shut down an FAU drive with a third down sack. George Nyakwol forced a fumble that resulted in a third-and-33 attempt for the home team. Myron Morrison slipped in front of a receiver on fourth down and knocked the ball to the turf.

No play was bigger, though, than Kirk Lockhart’s goal line hit at the end of the third quarter. FAU was inches away from the go-ahead touchdown when Lockhart knocked the ball out, forcing a fumble that went out of the endzone for a touchback. Pressed to the brink yet again, the defense stood tall.

The offense is much improved and it has been really, really fun to watch at times. Nevertheless, the defense remains the backbone of this team and they did everything they could on Saturday.

Linebacker reload, complete

Rice football fans were spoiled by the incredible tandem of Blaze Alldredge and Antonio Montero in the middle of the defense for the last few years. When they departed, Alldredge to Missouri and Montero to Villanova, it seemed like nearly a forgone conclusion the Owls would be taking a step back at that position.

Well, midway through the 2022 season, Chris Conti and Myron Morrison are making a case for quite the opposite. Conti posted five tackles against FAU. Morrison led the team with 15 tackles of his own. Those two entered the game leading Rice in tackles and they leave the game still No. 1 and No. 2 atop the leaderboard.

“I think both Myron and Chris are both playing great football, ” Bloomgren said. “The guys up front are doing their job too, which is making it a little bit easier for them to run and hit. But when they’re able to make those plays and get people on the ground, obviously that’s what gets us into those third and longs and allows our defense to go eat a little bit.”

The entire defense is playing well, but the linebacker core has earned a nod. Every team loses good players. Replacing them without missing a beat is what great teams do. The Owls are heading in that direction right now, particularly on defense.

Slipped away

After just six games, Rice football sits at 3-3. The Owls are one win shy of matching their win total from the entirety of the 2021 season. Entering the season, that seemed to be about par for the opening half of the season, but it doesn’t feel like met expectations as the team flies home empty-handed from Boca Raton.

The Owls had the chance to be one of just three remaining unbeaten teams in conference play, with matchups looming against Louisiana Tech, Charlotte and UTEP, all of which own sub-.500 records overall. Rice is still likely to be favored in at least one of those games, if not two. Things still look bright, but the luster isn’t quite nearly the same as it could have been with a fourth-quarter lead.

Simply put, at the midpoint of October, it might have been time to start having legitimate Conference USA Championship discussions about Rice football. They’re not out of the mix just yet and they own a win over UAB, but they’ve taken a step back after some stellar showings in the early weeks of the season.

Now it’s time to start talking about finding their first road win of the season. Once that happens, more aspirational conversations can recommence. Their next chance comes next weekend against Louisiana Tech.

“I wish we could go practice right now, to be hoenst with you,” Bloomgren said. “We’ve got a lot of good things going on this team. We’ve got a few things we got to figure out. But I want that opportunity to play that road game next week. I can’t wait to play that road game next Saturday.”

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Rice Football 2022: FAU Game Week Practice Report

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Rice football travels to the Sunshine State this weekend to play FAU. Here’s what we learned from practice as the Owls prep for C-USA’s other Owls.

Rice football returns from their bye week in search of their first road win of the season. FAU, the only Conference USA squad Rice head coach Mike Bloomgren has yet to play, promises to be another good test for this rising team.

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This week’s roundup highlights changes on the team during the bye week, focusing on some up-and-coming players and a few healthy players set to make their 2022 debuts after injuries sidelined them earlier in the year. Plus, continuity on the offensive line… finally!

For those checking in for the first time, or those returning, a quick programming note. Special features like this are reserved for our subscribers. Have questions? You can get those answered in our monthly Q&As and get access to all practice notes, recruiting updates and features like this one when you subscribe on Patreon today.

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Rice Football 2022: Owls rally late, knock off UAB at home

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Rice Football took a few punches but weathered the storm, knocking off UAB at home in their conference opener by a final score of 28-24.

It wasn’t pretty for a full four quarters, but when the dust settled, Rice football was 3-2. For the second consecutive season, the Owls took down the Blazers, this time doing the deed at home. The Owls are 1-0 in conference play with plenty of momentum heading into the bye. Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:

Start strong…. check

As good as Rice football has been in recent weeks, their opening quarters have been rather disappointing. Entering this game UAB had outscored their opponents 42-0 in the first quarter until Rice marched down the field and let Ari Broussard punch one in on fourth-and-goal from the one.

The score was the first Rice opening quarter touchdown since the McNeese game and the first opening drive score of any kind since the opening game against USC. It capped off an 11-play, 75-yard drive including a pivotal third down conversion by TJ McMahon’s legs.

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

Not to be outdone by the offense, the Rice defense opened with an equal level of intensity. Gabriel Taylor read the eyes of UAB quarter Dylan Hopkins and jumped a route to the flats for his second interception of the season. Early on, everything was coming up Owls.

Things got bumpy, fast

Unfortunately, Rice football could not sustain that gusto for much longer. Broussard fumbled the ball on the three-yard line, handing UAB an extremely short field that led to an equalizing score. Then Broussard was flagged for a hold on special teams which negated a 56-yard punt and handed the Blazers 28 extra yards of free field position.

After leading 7-0, Rice allowed 17 straight points to the Blazers, not reversing the run until the second half. In the second quarter with UAB backed up in their own endzone, the Rice defense allowed UAB to connect on a 71-yard reception. The usually fundamentally sound Owls drew 10 penalties for 75 yards on the night, bailing on the Blazers on more than one occasion.

Over the past few seasons, Rice football has slowly risen their quality of play from one good quarter a game to two or even three solid quarters. There really hasn’t been a truly elite four-quarter showing from this team yet this season, although they’ve played well enough to win despite their inconsistencies in most of their games.

On Saturday, Rice was great in the first quarter and great in the third. The second was bad. The fourth was excellent. And in the end, that’s all that mattered.

What’s the answer for the offensive line?

Trey Phillippi posted a commendable performance in his first career start against Houston last week. For the most part, the offensive line was able to contend with the UH pressure, but the game-sealing fumble might not have happened had the Owls gotten just a little more protection from their five men up front.

It didn’t really feel like any individual was at fault. UAB was just better in the trenches and it put the entirety of the Owls’ offensive gameplan under duress from their second drive onward.

After the strong opening drive, Rice had trouble in the trenches. The Owls averaged 3.0 yards per carry but unlike in prior games, few booming pass plays were to assuage concerns of the running game was struggling. TJ McMahon was under duress all night long, and while he did make some big plays, he wasn’t able to carry the offense on his own.

With no answers as to when former starting guard Braedon Nutter will return, it’s looking like Rice is going to have figure it out with the guys that they have. Now, it’s entirely possible they’ve already faced the best defensive fronts they’ll play for the rest of their season. Less pressure and more continuity will help whoever Rice lines up on the offensive line. But regardless, there has to be some strides made up front.

Adapt, adapt adapt

One of the biggest criticisms of Rice football in the past few years has been its offensive philosophy. Run, run and throw on third down became an almost predictable cadence at times. Offensive coordinator Marques Tuiasosopo was brought in to address those concerns and collectively, both he, Bloomgren and the offensive staff has done a 180.

It was hard to see a light at the end of the tunnel for the Rice offense going into halftime. Then Rice got creative with the football. Luke McCaffrey got some carries on sweeps. They moved the chains on a unique pattern to him out of the backfield. They sprinkled in Cam Montgomery for a big play. With the game on the line, they dialed up a play action call on third and seven with McMahon wisely electing to keep it.

Faced with a stagnant attack, Rice had to do something … and they did. In fact, the Owls have made some impressive second half adjustments throughout all of their non-USC games so far this season. They’ve figured something out on offense. And if the defense continues to be effective (with some turnovers sprinkled in) this team’s ceiling remains very high.

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Until the clock says :00: New-look Rice Football trending upward

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Rice football ran out of time against Houston, but four quarters of the Owls vs Cougars proved this team has made significant strides.

With less than 10 seconds on the clock and the ball 60 yards from the endzone, Rice football quarterback TJ McMahon launched the ball as far as he could down the field. Tick, tick, tick. Wide receiver Bradley Rozner hauled the ball in. Tick, tick, tick. And hit the turf nine yards from the endzone. Tick, tick, tick. Then clock stopped.

Players rushed the field on both sides, but no whistle blew. Soon everyone began to look around in question. Was the game over? Not quite.

Unlike in the NFL, the clock stops with every first down at the collegiate level. McMahon’s 51-yard bomb gave the Owls one play from the nine-yard line, trailing by seven. Although he wouldn’t say so directly, head coach Mike Bloomgren intimated his intentions had the Owls scored, would have been to go for two and the win.

Instead, McMahon’s final-second pass fell to the turf incomplete. Game over.

More: Time runs out as Rice football falls to Houston

One year removed from being bludgeoned at home 44-7, Rice came one play and nine yards short of redemption. It’s a hard pill to swallow for a team that’s come this far.

“Because of how bad this game went last year. I don’t think any of us are going to feel great about a moral victory tonight,” Bloomgren said in the aftermath. “But there’s improvement, that’s pretty clear.”

At this point last season Rice had been blown out in the aforementioned game against Houston. They’d been shut out 58-0 at Texas. Sitting at 1-3, their only win came by 14 points against an FCS team that would go on to finish the season 3-8.

So to be 2-2 after two games with a win against Louisiana — which held the nation’s longest winning streak entering the game — is definitive, measurable and meaningful improvement. But it’s how that improvement has manifested itself that is most important.

Depth pays dividends

The 2021 Rice football squad was ravaged by injuries. The Owls have been slightly more fortunate this season, but still took the Cougars to the wire without: their opening day starting quarterback, multiple key wide receivers, multiple starting offensive linemen, their opening day starting edge rusher, their expected preseason No. 2 tight end and without a full complement of snaps from defensive tackle De’Braylon Carroll. Rice was short-handed against Houston. The level of play said differently.

“That’s why you recruit. That’s why you try and create as much depth as you can,” Bloomgren said. “The next men up are better. That’s one reason it keeps working. Right now the depth we’ve created is better depth and they’re guys I’m not holding my breath when they go in a game.”

“I would love to be healthy, but in Week 5 of a college football season, it is what it is. I’m glad we have guys that are capable and going in there and preparing the right way and then performing.”

More: Conference USA Week 4 Roundup

Absences that — while not spoken of as excuses — may have crippled this team in the past don’t seem to be that big of a speedbump. Trey Phillippi had never played guard in his life before taking his first practice snaps with the Owls’ starting unit on Wednesday. He started on Saturday night.

“Probably not ideal to have somebody start their first college football game at a position they’ve never played in their life against a team that’s nicknamed Sack Avenue, right?” Bloomgren asked rhetorically. Then he went on to praise Phillippi and fellow lineman Shea Baker and Clay Servin for making it work. Facing a difficult situation, the players found a way to push through.

Culture change

The depth is, unquestionably, better. But that doesn’t explain the attitude and the swagger this team has brought into their games this season.

“Usually last year’s team, we would have folded,” McMahon said, in a moment of true transparency.

He’s not wrong. There were several occasions last season where things snowballed on the Owls and games got away from them. They were shut out twice. They squandered a pair of overtime chances and came up empty. Halftime leads and even fourth quarter leads somewhat frequently went up in smoke.

Rice threw three interceptions in the first half against Louisiana. Then they fought back. Rice misplayed the opening kickoff against Houston, allowing it to roll out of bounds at the two-yard line. They saw the Houston offense score a go-ahead touchdown three times. They answered every score. Right up until they ran out of time.

Linebacker Chris Conti, who transferred from Rutgers during the offseason said it best. “I’ll be honest, I love the culture,” he relayed after the game. “Obviously, not the outcome we want today but we’ll get after it on Monday and hopefully get a conference win next Saturday.”

There’s still time

“Our guys obviously fought til the scoreboard said 0:00,” Bloomgren said. “We had the chance to win or to tie I guess at the last snap and that’s what we intended to do.”

Against Houston, the clock has hit triple zeroes. No matter how close the Owls came, the result was loss number two on the season. There are no moral victories. But… the clock hasn’t run out on what continues to look like a very promising season.

“We’re going to find a way to win these kinds of games,” Bloomgren declared.

And with eight weeks worth of football left to play, the Owls’ future continues to look as bright as ever.

“I think we’re pretty close, as far as where we want to be,” McMahon said in closing. “Obviously perfection is the goal… that starts with me.”

McMahon wasn’t perfect on Saturday, but he did throw for 334 yards, outpacing Houston quarterback Clayton Tune. Rice did a lot of things well on Saturday, registering more first downs, fewer penalties and more yards per completion. They just ran out of time.

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