Preview 2019: Previewing and looking ahead to the Rice Owls season with what you need to know.
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– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Schedule Analysis
– Rice Previews 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015
2018 Record: 2-11 overall, 1-7 in Conference USA
Head Coach: Mike Bloomgren, 2nd year, 2-11
5. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE RICE OFFENSE
– The offense was supposed to turn into a power rushing attack once Mike Bloomgren took over, but the Owls averaged a disastrous 318 yards and 19 points per game, failing to hit the 30-point mark against any FBS team. Seven starters are back, but that ground game has to work.
– The rushing offense only finished with 1,867 yards and averaged 3.8 yards per carry. Leading rusher Austin Walter is gone, and second-leading rusher Emmanuel Esukpa bolted for BYU. Juma Otoviano is back, and the hope is for Nahshan Ellerbe to be all back full after struggling last year to come back from an injury. The O line that loses two key starters on the right side will be okay, but the attack as a whole has to be more effective and consistent.
– The receivers are there to come up with a stronger passing attack. Do-it-all running back Austin Walter is out of the mix now, but the receiving trio of juniors Austin Trammell, Aaron Cephus and TE Jordan Myers is the team’s biggest strength. Now it’s up to the quarterbacks to be better and get this great group the ball, but …
– Five different quarterbacks attempted a pass last season. It’s sophomore Wiley Green who has the biggest upside to get the Owls moving, but he has to establish that in fall camp. He’s a 6-3 runner who struggled with his accuracy, but he had a 313-yard passing day against UTEP.
NEXT: What You Need To Know About the Defense, Top Players, Keys to the Season, What Will Happen
4. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE RICE DEFENSE
– The offense was bad, but the defense was worse, finishing dead last in the conference in scoring D – allowing 36 points per game – while getting ripped to shreds by anyone who could throw a forward pass. On the plus side, it was a young group with three underclassmen starting in the defensive backfield by the end of the season. The safeties will be okay – George Nyakwol is a keeper – but there’s a whole lot of room to get better.
– The D line could’ve turned the program around. Elijah Garcia is back at one tackle spot, but Zack Abrcrumbia bolted, and Roe Wilkins is off being an Arizona State Sun Devil. It’s a really, really thin defensive tackle situation, and for a D that needs more of a pass rush and more playmakers in the backfield, that might take a bit.
– There’s promise among the linebackers. The program went with underclassmen in key spots, and got nice seasons out of Blasze Alldredge and Treshawn Chamberlain – at least in terms of bulk tackle production. Anthony Ekpe is a pass rushing specialist on the outside, and the 231-pounder is almost it when it comes to the bulk.
NEXT: Top Players, Keys To the Season, What Will Happen
3. TOP RICE PLAYERS
Best Rice Offensive Player
WR Aaron Cephus, Jr.
There are a whole lot of issues with the Owls, but the receiving corps is one of the few positives with the 1-2 punch of Austin Trammell and the Cephus, the deep threat. The 6-4, 206-pound veteran caught 40 passes for 565 yards and five scores with 14 yards per grab. He’s one of the team’s few home run hitters, and now he has to get the ball more.
2. WR Austin Trammell, Jr.
3. QB Wiley Green, Soph.
4. OT Uzoma Osuji, Jr.
5. TE Jordan Myers, Jr.
Best Rice Defensive Player
S George Nyakwol, Jr.
Anthony Ekpe might be the team’s star pass rusher, and there are other promising veterans among the linebackers, but it’s the 6-0, 182-pound Nyakwol who’s doing a bit of everything everywhere. He led the team with 67 tackles with two picks and a sack and three tackles for loss. Fast, great around the ball carrier, and with the potential to do more when the ball is in the air, he’ll be the leader in the secondary.
2. LB Anthony Ekpe, Jr.
3. LB Blaze Alldredge, Jr.
4. LB Treshawn Chamberlain, Soph.
5. DT Elijah Garcia, Jr.
NEXT: Keys to the Season, Prediction & What Will Happen
2. KEYS TO THE SEASON
Biggest Key To The Rice Offense
Convert a third down chance. How bad was it? Army led the nation, converting over 57% of its third down tries. Akron converted a miserable 29% of the time, and Rice was a half-click below that, finishing dead last in college football converting 28.72%.
No, really, how bad was it? The Owl offense failed to hit 30% in any of its last five games, after earlier getting destroyed by UAB after converting just one of 17 chances.
Biggest Key To The Rice Defense
The defensive line has to come together in a really, really big hurry. This wasn’t exactly a rock last year when the line was part of a D that was dead last in Conference USA in sacks and tackles for loss, but at least it held up reasonably well at times against the run. Now it’s gutted after a few key departures, forcing the coaching staff to all but start over to find the right blend for the front three.
Key Player To A Successful Season
RB Juma Otoviano, Soph.
Or Nahshon Ellerbe, but everyone else is gone. The 5-10, 197-pound Otoviano showed off his upside late in the season when he finally got the ball and tore off 224 yards and two scores in the win over Old Dominion. Ellerbe led the way in 2017 with 409 yards and six touchdowns as he tried to return healthy after getting late in 2016. These two have to make the ground game do what it’s supposed to.
Key Game To The Rice Season
at UTSA, Oct. 19
Outside of a massive upside, the most reasonable shot at getting the first win of the season doesn’t come until Week 7. Last year, UTSA – who couldn’t score on a … go ahead and finish that joke yourself – ended up beating Rice 20-3.
This time around, the game is San Antonio, but the Owls get a week off to prepare. With only one other game the rest of the way – at UTEP to close things out – when the Owls probably won’t be a massive underdog, beating the Roadrunners is a moral imperative.
– Rice Schedule Breakdown & Analysis
2018 Rice Fun Stats
– Red Zone TDs: Opponents 41-of-54 – Rice 18-of-32
– Time of Possession: Rice 32:41 – Opponents 27:19
– Passing Yards Per Attempt: Opponents 9.29 – Rice 6.17
NEXT: What Will Happen
1. RICE WIN TOTAL PREDICTION: WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN
The Owls were hit hard by transfers and a few key graduates, but there’s a good young base to build around.
It might just take a year or so for the payoff to come.
The receiving corps is going to be a massive plus thanks to Aaron Cephus and Austin Trammell. and the young linebacking corps and all the underclassmen who took their lumps on defense now should be ready for primetime, but there’s a LOT of work to do.
The running game has to figure out a groove – that’s supposed to be head coach Mike Bloomgren’s forte after coming over from Stanford – and the quarterback play has to be a lot steadier.
More than anything else, Rice can’t get destroyed on the lines again. The defensive front is going to need a whole lot of seasoning, and the offensive line has to keep defenses out of the backfield once in a while.
Set The Regular Season Win Total At … 2
There’s going to be a win in the mix somewhere, but the Owls are almost certainly going to be the underdog in at least ten games – there’s no FCS team on the slate this year – and the two 50/50 games against UTSA and UTEP are on the road.
It’s not all doom and gloom, though. Bloomgren really is building up the program, and it really is going to take some time. Improving on the two wins from last year would be a nice start.
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– Schedule Analysis
