Rice Owls football

Last updated

Rice Owls football
AmericanFootball current event.svg 2024 Rice Owls football team
Rice Owls logo.svg
First season 1912; 112 years ago
Athletic directorTommy McCleland
Head coach Scott Abell
1st season, 0–0 (–)
Stadium Rice Stadium
(capacity: 47,000)
Year built1950
Field surface AstroTurf
Location Houston, Texas
NCAA division Division I FBS
Conference The American
Past conferences Southwest (1915–1996)
WAC (1996–2004)
C-USA (2005–2022)
All-time record492–652–32 (.432)
Bowl record7–7 (.500)
Conference titles8 (1934, 1937, 1946, 1949, 1953, 1957, 1994, 2013)
Division titles2 (2008, 2013)
Rivalries SMU (rivalry)
Houston (rivalry)
Texas (rivalry)
Consensus All-Americans6
ColorsBlue and gray [1]
   
Fight songRice Fight
Mascot Sammy the Owl
Marching band Marching Owl Band
Website RiceOwls.com

The Rice Owls football program represents Rice University in the sport of American football. The team competes at the NCAA Division I FBS level and compete in the American Athletic Conference. Rice Stadium, built in 1950, hosts the Owls' home football games. Rice has the second-smallest undergraduate enrollment of any FBS member, ahead of only Tulsa.

Contents

History

Rice fielded its first football team in 1912, not long after opening its doors. Three years later, it joined the Southwest Conference as a charter member.

For the better part of half a century, Rice was a regional and national powerhouse. However, by the early 1960s, Rice found it increasingly difficult to field competitive teams. For most of its tenure in the SWC, it was one of only four private schools in the conference, and by far the smallest in terms of undergraduate enrollment. However, by the latter part of longtime coach Jess Neely's tenure, Rice found itself competing against schools ten times or more its size, and often had more freshmen than Rice had total undergraduates. From 1964 to 1991, Rice had only one overall winning season, and only finished as high as third in SWC play once.

Fred Goldsmith took over as head coach in 1989, and led the Owls to a 6-5 overall record and a tie for second place in 1992, their best finish in 28 years. However, a 61–34 loss to in-city rival Houston kept them out of their first bowl game in 31 years. Goldsmith left for Duke in 1993 and was succeeded by former Clemson coach Ken Hatfield, who tallied only three winning seasons in 12 years. While the Owls were bowl-eligible in those three years, they didn't receive bowl bids due to their small alumni and fan base.

Todd Graham became head coach in 2006, and led the Owls to their first bowl game in 35 years, the 2006 New Orleans Bowl. He left after only one year and was succeeded by David Bailiff, who took the Owls to three bowl games in 11 years, including their first 10-win seasons in half a century.

1954 Cotton Bowl Classic

The Owls played in the eighteenth Cotton Bowl Classic against the Crimson Tide of Alabama. The game featured one of the most famous plays in college football history [2] when Rice's Dickey Moegle (later Maegle) burst free on a sweep play, and on his way down the sideline, was tackled by Tommy Lewis, who had come off the Alabama sideline without his helmet to tackle Moegle. Referee Cliff Shaw saw Lewis come off the bench and gave the Owls the 95-yard touchdown. Rice would win the game 28–6, with the only Crimson Tide score coming from Lewis. The yardage added to Moegle's 265 yards rushing, a Cotton Bowl Classic record that would stand until Tony Temple's effort in 2008. This would be the Owls' last bowl win until the 2008 Texas Bowl, a win which also secured the Owls their first 10-win season since 1949. [3]

Kennedy Speech

President Kennedy speaks at Rice Stadium on the American space program, 12 September 1962 JFK at Rice University.jpg
President Kennedy speaks at Rice Stadium on the American space program, 12 September 1962

Rice Stadium also hosted a "We choose to go to the Moon" speech by John F. Kennedy on September 12, 1962. In it, he used the Rice football team to challenge America to send a man to the Moon before 1970.

"But why, some say, the Moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas? We choose to go to the Moon. We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too." [4]

Conference affiliations

Head coaches

NameSeasonsOverallPct.Bowls
Philip Arbuckle 1912–1917,1919–192351–25–8.655
John E. Anderson 19181–5–1.214
John Heisman 1924–192714–18–3.443
Claude Rothgeb 19282–7.222
Jack Meagher 1929–193326–26.500
Jimmy Kitts 1934–193933–29–4.5301–0
Jess Neely 1940–1966144–124–10.5363–3
Bo Hagan 1967–197012–27–1.313
Bill Peterson 19713–7–1.318
Al Conover 1972–197514–28–2†.341
Homer Rice 1976–19774–18.182
Ray Alborn 1978–198313–53.197
Watson Brown 1984–19854–18.182
Jerry Berndt 1986–19886–27.182
Fred Goldsmith 1989–199323–31–1.427
Ken Hatfield 1994–200555–78–1.414
Todd Graham 20067–6.5380–1
David Bailiff 2007–201757–80.4163–1
Mike Bloomgren 2018–202422–46.3240-2

† 15–27–2 overall per NCAA due to 1975 forfeit win over Mississippi State. [5]

Championships

Conference championships

Rice has won eight conference championships, five outright and three shared.

YearConferenceCoachOverall recordConference record
1934 Southwest Conference Jimmy Kitts 9–1–15–1
1937 Southwest ConferenceJimmy Kitts6–3–24–1–1
1946†Southwest Conference Jess Neely 9–25–1
1949 Southwest ConferenceJess Neely10–16–0
1953†Southwest ConferenceJess Neely9–25–1
1957 Southwest ConferenceJess Neely7–45–1
1994†Southwest Conference Ken Hatfield 5–64–3
2013 Conference USA David Bailiff 10–47–1

† Co-championship

Division championships

Rice has won two division championships.

YearDivisionCoachOpponentCG result
2008†C-USA West David Bailiff N/A lost tiebreaker to Tulsa
2013 C-USA WestDavid Bailiff Marshall W 41–24

† Co-championship

Bowl games

Rice has participated in 14 bowl games, garnering a record of 7–7.

SeasonCoachBowlOpponentResult
1937 Jimmy Kitts Cotton Bowl Classic Colorado W 28–14
1946 Jess Neely Orange Bowl Tennessee W 8–0
1949 Jess Neely Cotton Bowl Classic North Carolina W 27–13
1953 Jess Neely Cotton Bowl Classic Alabama W 28–6
1957 Jess Neely Cotton Bowl Classic Navy L 7–20
1960 Jess Neely Sugar Bowl Ole Miss L 6–14
1961 Jess Neely Bluebonnet Bowl Kansas L 7–33
2006 Todd Graham New Orleans Bowl Troy L 17–41
2008 David Bailiff Texas Bowl Western Michigan W 38–14
2012 David Bailiff Armed Forces Bowl Air Force W 33–14
2013 David Bailiff Liberty Bowl Mississippi State L 7–44
2014 David Bailiff Hawaii Bowl Fresno State W 30–6
2022 Mike Bloomgren LendingTree Bowl Southern Miss L 24–38
2023 Mike Bloomgren First Responder Bowl Texas State L 21–45

Stadium

Rice Stadium as of April 2016 RiceStadiumHOME.JPG
Rice Stadium as of April 2016

Rice Stadium was built in 1950, and has been the home of Owls football ever since. It hosted the NFL Super Bowl in January 1974. It replaced the old Rice Field (now Rice Track/Soccer Stadium) to increase seating. Total seating capacity in the current stadium was reduced from 70,000 to 47,000 before the 2006 season. The endzone seating benches were removed and covered with tarps, and all of the wooden bleachers were replaced with new, metal seating benches in 2006, as well. The stadium is also undergoing further renovations.

Rivalries

SMU

Rice and SMU were members of the same conference from 1918 through 2012, and have played each other 90 times as of 2012 with SMU leading the series 48–41–1. The rivalry is because Rice and SMU were two of four private schools in the Southwest Conference (Baylor and TCU were the others). Rice and SMU were also the two smallest schools in the conference, were located in the two largest cities of any teams in the conference (Houston and Dallas, respectively), and have historically been considered the two best private universities in Texas.

SMU leads the series 48–41–1 as of 2017. [6]

Houston

Rice participates in a crosstown rivalry with Houston. UH and Rice play annually for the Bayou Bucket, a weathered bucket found by former Rice guard Fred Curry at an antique shop. Curry had it designed into a trophy for $310. The two universities are separated by five miles in Houston. Despite being in separate conferences, the two teams still play as non-conference foes as future schedules allow.

Houston leads the series 33–12 as of 2023. [7]

Texas

A game between Rice and Texas in 2006 College football - Rice Owls vs Texas Longhorns.jpg
A game between Rice and Texas in 2006

Rice and Texas have maintained a largely one-sided rivalry beginning in the early days of the Southwest Conference. Texas' 28 consecutive victories from 1966 to 1993 represents the sixth longest single-opponent winning streak in college football history. In 1994, in a nationally televised ESPN game, Rice scored a major upset win over Texas, but since then Texas has resumed series dominance. Despite the dissolution of the Southwest Conference, Texas and Rice still play on a "near annual" basis, allowing the Longhorns to keep a high profile in the state's largest city and the fourth largest city in the United States.

Texas leads the series 72–21–1 as of the conclusion of the 2017 season. [8]

College Football Hall of Fame

Eight former Rice players and coaches have been inducted in the College Football Hall of Fame. [9]

NamePositionCareerInductionNotes
John Heisman Coach1892–19271954Inducted for his career as a coach at Oberlin, Akron, Auburn, Clemson, Georgia Tech, Pennsylvania, Washington & Jefferson, Rice
Weldon Humble G 1941–1943, 19461961He was a consensus All- America choice. Like most athletes of his time, Weldon was required to suspend his career for military service during World War II.
James "Froggy" Williams End1946–19491965A consensus All-American and was also selected to the Cotton Bowl's All-Decade team for the 1950s
Jess Neely Coach1924–19661971Inducted for his career as a coach at Rhodes, Clemson, Rice
Bill Wallace HB 1932, 1934–19351978Wallace was Rice's initial first team All-America selection
Dick Maegle HB 1952–19541979He was consensus All-America and academic All-America in 1954
Buddy Dial End1956–19581993Team's co-captain, Most Valuable Player, and was consensus All-America
Tommy Kramer QB 1972–19762012Senior Bowl MVP and 1976 George Martin Award winner

All-Americans

As of 2017, the following 18 players have been named All-America [10] with 6 selection being consensus. [11]

NamePositionYear
Bill Wallace B1934
H.J. Nichols G1944
Weldon Humble †G1946
Froggy Williams †E1949
Joe Watson C1949
Bill Howton E1951
John Hudson T1953
Kosse Johnson B1953
Dicky Maegle †HB1954
King Hill QB1957
Buddy Dial †E1958
Malcolm Walker C1964
Tommy Kramer †QB1976
Steve Kidd P1985
Trevor Cobb HB1991,† 1992
Charles Torello OG1997
Jarett Dillard WR2006, 2008
Kyle Martens P2010

† Consensus selection

Other notable players

Future non-conference opponents

Announced schedules as of October 10, 2024. [12]

20252026202720282029203020312032203320342035
at Louisiana vs Western Michigan vs Fresno State vs UTRGV vs Northwestern vs San Jose State at Northwestern vs Boise State at Boise State
vs Prairie View A&M at Fresno State vs Lamar at UConn at LSU at San Jose State
vs Houston vs Houston Christian at Western Michigan
vs UConn

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rice Stadium (Rice University)</span> Stadium at Rice University in Houston

Rice Stadium is an American football stadium located on the Rice University campus in Houston, Texas. It has been the home of the Rice Owls football team since its completion in 1950, and hosted John F. Kennedy's "We choose to go to the Moon" speech in 1962 and Super Bowl VIII in early 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football</span> Football team in Delaware

The Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football team represents the University of Delaware (UD) in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) college football as a member of CAA Football, the technically separate football arm of UD's full-time home of the Coastal Athletic Association. The team is currently led by head coach Ryan Carty and plays on Tubby Raymond Field at 18,500-seat Delaware Stadium located in Newark, Delaware. The Fightin' Blue Hens have won six national titles in their 117-year history – 1946, 1963, 1971, 1972, 1979, and 2003. They returned to the FCS National Championship game in 2007 and 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ball State Cardinals football</span> College football program in Muncie, Indiana, U.S.

The Ball State Cardinals football team is a college football program representing Ball State University in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football. Ball State plays its home games at Scheumann Stadium on the campus of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. The Cardinals compete in the Mid-American Conference as a member of the West Division. Following the firing of Mike Neu on November 16, 2024, Colin Johnson is serving as interim head coach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Texas Longhorns football</span> Intercollegiate team representing The University of Texas at Austin in American football

The Texas Longhorns football program is the intercollegiate team representing the University of Texas at Austin in the sport of American football. The Longhorns compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Their home games are played at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baylor Bears football</span> American college football team

The Baylor Bears football team represents Baylor University in Division I FBS college football. They are a member of the Big 12 Conference. After 64 seasons at the off-campus Baylor Stadium, renamed Floyd Casey Stadium in 1988, the Bears opened the new on-campus McLane Stadium for the 2014 season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rice Owls</span> Athletics teams of Rice University

The Rice Owls are the sports teams representing Houston's Rice University in college sports. The name comes from the owls in Rice's crest. Rice participates in NCAA Division I athletics. A member of the American Athletic Conference, Rice sponsors teams in eight men's and eight women's NCAA-sanctioned sports. Rice was a member of the Southwest Conference until its breakup in 1996. Rice then joined the Western Athletic Conference and Conference USA, until joining the American Athletic Conference on July 1, 2023. The women's swimming team moved to The American in 2022 after CUSA dropped women's swimming & diving. Rice is the fifth-smallest school competing in NCAA Division I FBS football measured by undergraduate enrollment, just above the University of Tulsa's 2,756 and the three FBS United States service academies's approximate 4,500. Rice's rivals include the cross-town Houston Cougars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Houston Cougars football</span> Football team of the University of Houston

The Houston Cougars football program is an NCAA Division I FBS football team that represents the University of Houston. The team is commonly referred to as "Houston" or "UH." The UH football program is a member of the Big 12 Conference. Since the 2014 season, the Cougars have played their home games on campus at TDECU Stadium, which was built on the site formerly occupied by Robertson Stadium, where they played home games from 1941 to 1950 and from 1994 to 2012. Over the history of the program, the Cougars have won 11 conference championships and have had several players elected to the College Football Hall of Fame, including a Heisman Trophy winner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TCU Horned Frogs football</span> American football team of Texas Christian University

The TCU Horned Frogs football team represents Texas Christian University (TCU) in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). The Horned Frogs play their home games in Amon G. Carter Stadium, which is located on the TCU campus in Fort Worth. TCU began playing football in 1896 and has been a member of the Big 12 Conference since 2012.

The North Texas Mean Green football program is the intercollegiate team that represents the University of North Texas in the sport of American football. The Mean Green compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the American Athletic Conference. They are coached by Eric Morris, who was hired as the new head coach of the Mean Green on December 13, 2022. North Texas has produced 24 conference championship titles, with twelve postseason bowl appearances and four appearances in the former I-AA Playoffs. The Mean Green play their home games at the DATCU Stadium which has a seating capacity of 30,850.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SMU Mustangs football</span> SMU college football team

The SMU Mustangs football team is a college football team representing Southern Methodist University (SMU) in University Park in Dallas County, Texas. The Mustangs compete in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). SMU joined the ACC in July 2024 after eleven years as a member of the American Athletic Conference (AAC).

The 1964 Arkansas Razorbacks football team was an American football team that represented the University of Arkansas in the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1964 NCAA University Division football season. In their seventh year under head coach Frank Broyles, the Razorbacks compiled an undefeated 11–0 record, won the SWC championship, closed the regular season with five consecutive shutouts, outscored all opponents by a combined total of 231 to 64, and defeated Nebraska 10–7 in the Cotton Bowl.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Houston–Rice rivalry</span> American college football rivalry

The Houston–Rice rivalry is a crosstown college rivalry between the Houston Cougars of the University of Houston and Rice Owls of Rice University. The universities are located approximately five miles from one another. It is one of the few NCAA Division I crosstown rivalries, especially between institutions that field Division I Football Bowl Subdivision teams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern Illinois Salukis football</span> Football program representing Southern Illinois University Carbondale

The Southern Illinois Salukis football program represents Southern Illinois University Carbondale in college football. The Salukis are a member of the NCAA and compete at the Division I Football Championship Subdivision level. The Salukis are a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference and play in Saluki Stadium on the campus of Southern Illinois University Carbondale in Carbondale, Illinois, which has a seating capacity of 15,000.

The Sam Houston Bearkats football program is the intercollegiate American football team for Sam Houston State University located in the U.S. state of Texas. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) as a member of the Conference USA. Sam Houston's first football team was fielded in 1912. The team plays its home games at the 12,593-seat Bowers Stadium in Huntsville, Texas. On January 23, 2014, K. C. Keeler was named the 15th head coach in Sam Houston program history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 SMU Mustangs football team</span> American college football season

The 2011 SMU Mustangs football team represented Southern Methodist University in the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Mustangs were led by fourth year head coach June Jones and played their home games at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. They are a member of the West Division of Conference USA. They finished the season 8–5, 5–3 in C-USA to finish in third place in the West Division. They were invited to the BBVA Compass Bowl where they defeated Pittsburgh 28–6.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1994 South Carolina Gamecocks football team</span> American college football season

The 1994 South Carolina Gamecocks football team represented the University of South Carolina in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1994 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Gamecocks were led by first-year head coach Brad Scott and played their home games in Williams–Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina.

The 1953 Rice Owls football team represented Rice University as a member of the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1953 college football season. Led by 14th-year head coach Jess Neely, the Owls compiled an overall record of 9–2 with a mark of 5–1 in conference play, sharing the SWC title with Texas. Rice was ranked No. 6 in the final polls, which were conducted before bowl season. The Owls were invited to the 1954 Cotton Bowl Classic, played on New Year's Day, where they defeated Southeastern Conference (SEC) champion, Alabama. The team played home games at Rice Stadium in Houston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rice–Texas football rivalry</span> American college football rivalry

The Rice–Texas football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Rice Owls and Texas Longhorns. Texas leads the series 75–21–1 through the 2023 season. The teams were conference rivals for 81 seasons in the Southwest Conference from 1915 through 1995. The Longhorns have largely dominated the series, as Rice has won only twice since 1960. 17 of the 21 Rice wins came between 1930 and 1960, a span over which it enjoyed a slight edge over the Longhorns.

The 2023 First Responder Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 26, 2023, at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in University Park, Texas. The 14th annual First Responder Bowl featured the Texas State Bobcats of the Sun Belt Conference and the Rice Owls of the American Athletic Conference. The game began at approximately 4:30 p.m. CST and was aired on ESPN. It was one of the 2023–24 bowl games concluding the 2023 FBS football season. Sponsored by cleanup and restoration company Servpro, the game was officially known as the Servpro First Responder Bowl.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 Big 12 Conference football season</span> Sports season

The 2024 Big 12 Conference football season will be the 29th season of the Big 12 Conference football taking place during the 2024 NCAA Division I FBS football season.

References

  1. ↑ Rice Athletics Branding Guidelines, Rules, & Regulations (PDF). August 19, 2019. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  2. ↑ Dickey Moegle in the 1954 Cotton Bowl Classic. Article. Retrieved on December 29, 2008.
  3. ↑ "Rice rolls Western Michigan for first bowl win since '54". ESPN.com. Associated Press. December 30, 2008. Archived from the original on September 19, 2018. Retrieved December 31, 2008.
  4. ↑ "John F. Kennedy Moon Speech - Rice Stadium". Er.jsc.nasa.gov. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
  5. ↑ "Al Conover Coaching Record". College Football at Sports-Reference.com.
  6. ↑ "Winsipedia - Rice Owls vs. SMU Mustangs football series history". Winsipedia.
  7. ↑ "Winsipedia - Houston Cougars vs. Rice Owls football series history". Winsipedia.
  8. ↑ "Winsipedia - Rice Owls vs. Texas Longhorns football series history". Winsipedia.
  9. ↑ "Inductees - Football Players & Coaches - College Football Hall of Fame". www.cfbhall.com.
  10. ↑ "2017 Media Guide" (PDF). riceowls.com. Rice Athletics. p. 177. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
  11. ↑ "2017 FOOTBALL AWARD WINNERS" (PDF). ncaa.org. NCAA. p. 25. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
  12. ↑ "Rice Owls Football Future Schedules". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.