2022 Rice Owls football team

2022 Rice Owls football
ConferenceConference USA
Record5–8 (3–5 C-USA)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorMarques Tuiasosopo (2nd season)
Offensive schemePro-style
Defensive coordinatorBrian Smith (5th season)
Base defenseMultiple 3–4
Home stadiumRice Stadium
Seasons
← 2021
2023 →
2022 Conference USA football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
UTSA y$   8 0     11 3  
North Texas y   6 2     7 7  
Western Kentucky   6 2     9 5  
Middle Tennessee   4 4     8 5  
UAB   4 4     7 6  
Florida Atlantic   4 4     5 7  
Rice   3 5     5 8  
UTEP   3 5     5 7  
FIU   2 6     4 8  
Charlotte   2 6     3 9  
Louisiana Tech   2 6     3 9  
Championship: UTSA 48, North Texas 27
  • $ – Conference champion
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2022 Rice Owls football team represented Rice University as a member of Conference USA (C-USA) during the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by head coach Mike Bloomgren, who was coaching his fifth season with the team. The Owls played their home games at the Rice Stadium in Houston, Texas.

In October 2021, Rice accepted the invitation to join the American Athletic Conference (AAC), scheduled to become a full-member on July 1, 2023.[1][2] The 2022 season was expected to be the program's last season as a member of Conference USA.

The Owls finished their regular season with a 5–7 record, and became bowl eligible due to having the highest APR among FBS teams with 5–7 records.[3][4][5]

Preseason[edit]

C-USA media day[edit]

The Conference USA media day was held on July 27 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. The Owls were predicted to finish tenth in the conference's preseason poll.[6]

Media poll
Predicted finish Team
1 UTSA
2 UAB
3 WKU
4 Florida Atlantic
5 North Texas
6 UTEP
7 Charlotte
8 Middle Tennessee
9 Louisiana Tech
10 Rice
11 FIU

Roster[edit]

2022 Rice Owls football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
RB 0 Dean Connors So
RB 1 Cameron Montgomery  Sr
WR 2 Bradley Rozner  Sr
QB 3 Jovoni Johnson  So
WR 4 Cedric Patterson III GS
QB 5 Wiley Green  Jr
WR 6 Isaiah Esdale GS
QB 7 T. J. McMahon Jr
RB 8 Juma Otoviano  Jr
WR 9 Sam Crawford GS
WR 10 Luke McCaffrey  So
WR 11 Tyson Thompson So
QB 12 A. J. Padgett Fr
QB 13 Christian Edgar Fr
TE 14 Nate Kamper  Fr
QB 15 Shawqi Itraish  Fr
WR 17 Kobie Campbell So
WR 19 Peyton Stevenson  Fr
WR 20 Uriah West GS
WR 22 Ryan Guillo Fr
RB 26 Christian Francisco  Fr
RB 30 Ari Broussard  Jr
FB 32 Jerry Johnson III  So
RB 35 Michael Amico Fr
FB 49 Micah Barnett Fr
OL 52 Braedon Nutter So
OL 53 Mike Leone  Fr
OL 54 Isaac Klarkowski  So
C 56 Stefan Gustafson Fr
OL 58 Shea Baker  Sr
OL 61 Trace Norfleet Fr
OL 62 Faae Pepe So
OL 63 Noah Robertson  So
OL 69 Payton Lovell  So
OL 70 Isaiah Gonzalez So
OL 71 Clay Servin  Jr
OL 72 Trey Phillippi  Fr
OL 74 Brad Baur Fr
OL 75 Miguel Cedeno Fr
OL 76 John Long  Fr
OL 77 John Hughes GS
OL 78 Ethan Onianwa  Fr
OL 79 Weston Kropp So
WR 80 Rawson MacNeill Fr
WR 81 Braylen Walker Fr
TE 82 Gavin Reinwald GS
TE 83 Alex Scherle Fr
WR 84 Bennett Mecom  So
TE 85 Boden Groen Fr
TE 86 Connor Welsh  Fr
TE 87 Jack Bradley Jr
TE 88 Jaggar Hebeisen  Fr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
S 0 Ajavon Litchfeld GS
CB 1 Sean Fresch So
CB 2 Tre'shon Devones  So
CB 4 Jordan Dunbar So
S 4 Marcus Williams  Fr
S 5 Chike Anigbogu  Jr
LB 6 D. J. Arkansas  Fr
DE 7 Trey Schuman  Sr
LB 8 Treshawn Chamberlain  Jr
S 9 Kirk Lockhart Jr
DE 10 Kenneth Orji  Sr
LB 11 Chris Conti Jr
OLB 12 Josh Pearcy  So
CB 13 Lamont Narcisse So
S 14 Joshua Williams  Fr
DL 16 Chibby Nwajuaku Fr
S 19 Ichmael Joseph Fr
S 20 George Nyakwol GS
OLB 21 Garrett Braden  Fr
CB 22 Jonathan Jean  Fr
CB 23 Jeremiah Williams Fr
CB 24 Miles McCord Sr
S 25 Daveon Hook Fr
DB 26 Gabe Taylor So
LB 27 Andrew Awe  So
OLB 28 Shepherd Bowling  Fr
DL 30 Elroyal Morris III  Fr
S 31 Tyson Flowers Fr
LB 33 Myron Morrison  So
LB 40 Kenny Seymour Jr.  Fr
S 41 Plae Wyatt So
LB 44 Geron Hargon  Fr
LB 44 Aidan Siano  So
DL 45 Demone Green Fr
DL 50 Izeya Floyd  So
DL 52 Jalen Hargrove  Fr
DL 55 De'Braylon Carroll  So
DL 75 Blake Boenisch  Fr
CB 89 Cemarion Chambliss Fr
DE 91 Ikenna Enechukwu  Jr
DL 92 Quent Titre GS
DL 95 Caleb James So
DL 97 Cal Varner III  Fr
DL 98 Van Heitmann So
DL 99 Davion Carter Fr
DL 99 Cole Latos  Fr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
K 15 Tim Horn  So
ATH 16 Quinton Jackson Fr
P 18 Conor Hunt Jr
K 28 Enoch Gota Fr
K, P 31 Christian Vansickle GS
K, P 38 Zach Adams  Fr
LS 46 Jacob Wilson GS
DS 47 Thomas Tholen II  So
DS 55 Landon Mitchell Fr
P 99 Charlie Mendes So
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

Roster
Last update: June 28, 2022

Schedule[edit]

Rice and Conference USA announced the 2022 football schedule on March 30, 2022.[7]

DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 35:00 p.m.at No. 14 USC*P12NL 14–6660,113
September 106:30 p.m.McNeese State*ESPN3W 52–1018,629
September 176:30 p.m.Louisiana*
  • Rice Stadium
  • Houston, TX
ESPN+W 33–2118,746
September 245:00 p.m.at Houston*
ESPN+L 27–3426,377
October 16:30 p.m.UAB
  • Rice Stadium
  • Houston, TX
ESPN+W 28–2421,926
October 155:00 p.m.at Florida AtlanticESPN+L 14–1721,465
October 222:00 p.m.at Louisiana TechESPN+W 42–41 OT18,300
October 291:00 p.m.Charlotte
  • Rice Stadium
  • Houston, TX
ESPN3L 23–5618,187
November 36:00 p.m.UTEP
  • Rice Stadium
  • Houston, TX
CBSSNW 37–3018,326
November 121:00 p.m.at Western KentuckyESPN+L 10–4510,127
November 1912:00 p.m.UTSA
  • Rice Stadium
  • Houston, TX
ESPN+L 7–4118,249
November 261:00 p.m.at North TexasESPN+L 17–2115,688
December 174:45 p.m.vs. Southern Miss*ESPNL 24–3820,512

Game summaries[edit]

At No.14 USC Trojans[edit]

Rice Owls (0-0) vs No. 14 USC Trojans (0-0)
Period 1 2 34Total
Owls 7 7 0014
No. 14 Trojans 7 24 28766

at Los Angeles Memorial ColiseumLos Angeles, CA

  • Date: September 3rd
  • Game time: 3:00 P.M PST
  • Game attendance: 60,113
  • Referee: Jim Wharrie
  • TV announcers (P12N): Ted Robinson (play by play), Yogi Roth (analyst)
Statistics Rice No. 14 USC
First downs 14 27
Plays–yards 62–280 58–538
Rushes–yards 34–146 28–208
Passing yards 134 330
Passing: comp–att–int 14–28–4 25–30–0
Time of possession 32:39 27:21
Team Category Player Statistics
Rice Passing Wiley Green 8/13, 69 yards, 1 INT
Rushing Cameron Montgomery 6 carries, 99 yards
Receiving Luke McCaffrey 5 receptions, 51 yards
No. 14 USC Passing Caleb Williams 19/22, 249yds, 2 TD
Rushing Austin Jones 4 carries, 48 yards, 2 TD
Receiving Jordan Addison 5 receptions, 54 yards, 2 TD
Scoring summary
Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score
Plays Yards TOP Rice No. 14 USC
1st 12:06 7 75 3:42 USC Jordan Addison (#3) 5-yard touchdown reception from Caleb Williams (#13), Denis Lynch (#46) kick good 0 7
1st 3:12 16 74 8:09 Rice Ari Broussard (#30) 1-yard touchdown run, Christian VanSickle (#31) kick good 7 7
2nd 15:00 9 84 3:56 USC Austin Jones (#6) 4-yard touchdown run, Denis Lynch (#46) kick good 7 14
2nd 11:45 4 70 1:54 USC Raleek Brown (#14) 14-yard touchdown run, Denis Lynch (#46) kick good 7 21
2nd 9:14 1 93 - USC Interception returned 93 yards for touchdown by Calen Bullock (#7), Denis Lynch (#46) kick good 7 28
2nd 2:20 10 75 6:30 Rice Ari Broussard (#30) 2-yard touchdown run, Christian VanSickle (#31) kick good 14 28
2nd 0:00 11 67 1:35 USC 25-yard field goal by Denis Lynch (#46) 14 31
3rd 14:22 1 40 - USC Interception returned 40 yards for touchdown by Shane Lee (#53), Denis Lynch (#46) kick good 14 38
3rd 13:06 1 31 - USC Interception returned 31 yards for touchdown by Ralen Goforth (#10), Denis Lynch (#46) kick good 14 45
3rd 9:12 4 34 2:12 USC Jordan Addison (#3) 3-yard touchdown reception from Caleb Williams (#13), Denis Lynch (#46) kick good 14 52
3rd 2:22 8 85 5:16 USC Austin Jones (#6) 28-yard touchdown run, Denis Lynch (#46) kick good 14 59
4th 7:05 5 72 3:13 USC Darwin Barlow (#22) 2-yard touchdown run, Denis Lynch (#46) kick good 14 66
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 14 66

Vs. McNeese State[edit]

McNeese State Cowboys (0–1) vs. Rice Owls (0–1)
Period 1 2 34Total
Cowboys 0 0 10010
Owls 10 21 14752

at Rice StadiumHouston, TX

  • Date: September 10th
  • Game time: 6:30 P.M CST
  • Game attendance: 18,629
  • Referee: Ed Ardito
  • TV: ESPN3
Statistics McNeese State Rice
First downs 14 26
Plays–yards 51–263 74–487
Rushes–yards 30–172 43–209
Passing yards 91 278
Passing: comp–att–int 8–21–2 21–31–0
Time of possession 21:48 38:12
Team Category Player Statistics
McNeese State Passing Know Kadum 5/12, 65 yards, 1 INT
Rushing Deonta McMahon 5 carries, 101 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Mason Pierce 3 receptions, 37 yards
Rice Passing TJ McMahon 20/29, 274 yards, 4 TD
Rushing Ari Broussard 17 carries, 71 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Bradley Rozner 3 receptions, 101 yards, 2 TD
Scoring summary
Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score
Plays Yards TOP McNeese State Rice
1st 7:23 4 -1 0:57 Rice 28-yard field goal by Christian VanSickle (#31) 0 3
1st 4:38 4 35 1:35 Rice Bradley Rozner (#2) 13-yard touchdown reception from TJ McMahon (#7), Christian VanSickle (#31) kick good 0 10
2nd 10:17 11 70 7:07 Rice TJ McMahon (#7) 9-yard touchdown run, Christian VanSickle (#31) kick good 0 17
2nd 6:59 1 91 - Rice Interception returned 91 yards for touchdown by Gabe Taylor (#26), Christian VanSickle (#31) kick good 0 24
2nd 3:26 5 20 2:05 Rice Ari Broussard (#30) 2-yard touchdown run, Christian VanSickle (#31) kick good 0 31
3rd 14:31 2 77 0:23 McNeese State Deonta McMahon (#20) 62-yard touchdown run, Garrison Smith (#37) kick good 7 31
3rd 14:20 1 75 0:11 Rice Bradley Rozner (#2) 75-yard touchdown reception from TJ McMahon (#7), Christian VanSickle (#31) kick good 7 38
3rd 9:35 6 80 2:57 Rice Jack Bradley (#87) 17-yard touchdown reception from TJ McMahon (#7), Christian VanSickle (#31) kick good 7 45
3rd 3:10 7 60 1:41 McNeese State 23-yard field goal by Garrison Smith (#37) 10 45
4th 13:14 11 75 4:56 Rice Juma Otoviano (#8) 15-yard touchdown reception from TJ McMahon (#7), Christian VanSickle (#31) kick good 10 52
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 10 52

Vs. Louisiana[edit]

Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns (2–0) vs. Rice Owls (1–1)
Period 1 2 34Total
Ragin' Cajuns 7 7 0721
Owls 3 10 61433

at Rice StadiumHouston, TX

  • Date: September 17th
  • Game time: 6:30 P.M CST
  • Game weather: 87 °F (31 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: SE 10 MPH
  • Game attendance: 18,746
  • Referee: Scott Hardin
  • TV announcers (ESPN+): David Saltzman (play-by-play), Chris Mycoskie (analyst)
Statistics Louisiana Rice
First downs 9 26
Plays–yards 43–175 80–449
Rushes–yards 15–61 44–146
Passing yards 114 303
Passing: comp–att–int 13–28–1 25–36–3
Time of possession 18:09 41:51
Team Category Player Statistics
Louisiana Passing Ben Wooldridge 6/14, 76 yards
Rushing Chris Smith 6 carries, 39 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Michael Jefferson 5 receptions, 53 yards
Rice Passing TJ McMahon 25/36, 303 yards, 3 TD, 3 INT
Rushing Ari Broussard 19 carries, 49 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Luke McCaffrey 10 receptions, 105 yards, 2 TD
Scoring summary
Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score
Plays Yards TOP Louisiana Rice
1st 7:17 7 33 2:42 Rice 23-yard field goal by Christian VanSickle (#31) 0 3
1st 2:47 1 54 - Louisiana Interception returned 54 yards for touchdown by Caleb Anderson (#11), Preston Stafford (#37) kick good 7 3
2nd 5:20 13 83 7:56 Rice Luke McCaffrey (#10) 8-yard touchdown reception from TJ McMahon (#7), Christian VanSickle (#31) kick good 7 10
2nd 1:24 3 17 1:28 Louisiana Terrence Williams (#23) 11-yard touchdown reception from Chandler Fields (#18), Preston Stafford (#37) kick good 14 10
2nd 0:01 9 60 1:19 Rice 31-yard field goal by Christian VanSickle (#31) 14 13
3rd 10:20 11 75 4:40 Rice Bradley Rozner (#2) 12-yard touchdown reception from TJ McMahon (#7), 2-point pass incomplete 14 19
4th 11:25 10 65 6:07 Rice Luke McCaffrey (#10) 6-yard touchdown reception from TJ McMahon (#7), 2-point pass good 14 27
4th 9:17 7 75 2:08 Louisiana Chris Smith (#13) 22-yard touchdown run, Preston Stafford (#37) kick good 21 27
4th 2:59 11 70 6:14 Rice Ari Broussard (#30) 2-yard touchdown run, 2-point pass incomplete 21 33
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 21 33

At Houston (Bayou Bucket Classic)[edit]

Rice at Houston
1 234Total
Owls 0 14103 27
Cougars 7 31410 34
  • Date: September 24, 2022
  • Location: TDECU Stadium (Houston, TX)
  • Game start: 5:02 p.m. CDT
  • Elapsed time: 3 hours and 28 minutes
  • Game attendance: 26,377
  • Game weather: 94 °F (34 °C) • Weather: Sunny
  • Referee: Rodney Burnette
  • TV announcers (ESPN+): Ted Emrich (play-by-play) and Taylor McHargue (analyst)
    
Pregame line Over/under
HOU –17.5 52
Statistics Rice Houston
First downs 22 19
Plays–yards 65–424 58–427
Rushes–yards 25–90 32–178
Passing yards 334 249
Passing: Comp–Att–Int 25–40–1 19–26–1
Time of possession 29:55 30:05
Team Category Player Statistics
Rice Passing T. J. McMahon 25/39, 334 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing Kobie Campbell 1 carry, 34 yards
Receiving Bradley Rozner 5 receptions, 123 yards
Houston Passing Clayton Tune 19/26, 249 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT
Rushing Ta'Zhawn Henry 17 carries, 112 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Tank Dell 7 receptions, 134 yards, 1 TD

UAB[edit]

1 2 3 4 Total
Blazers 7 10 7 0 24
Owls 7 0 14 7 28

At Florida Atlantic[edit]

1 2 3 4 Total
Rice Owls 14 0 0 0 14
FAU Owls 0 7 3 7 17

At Louisiana Tech[edit]

1 2 3 4OT Total
Owls 0 7 14 147 42
Bulldogs 10 0 17 86 41
Statistics RICE LT
First downs 24 19
Total yards 487 373
Rushing yards 279 144
Passing yards 208 229
Turnovers 3 1
Time of possession 33:22 26:38
Team Category Player Statistics
Rice Passing T. J. McMahon 16/27, 208 yards, 3 TD
Rushing Cameron Montgomery 14 rushes, 87 yards
Receiving Luke McCaffrey 10 receptions, 171 yards, 2 TD
Louisiana Tech Passing Matthew Downing 12/24, 159 yards, 2 TD, INT
Rushing Marquis Crosby 14 rushes, 87 yards
Receiving Tre Harris 8 receptions, 92 yards, 3 TD

Charlotte[edit]

Charlotte vs Rice
1 234Total
49ers 7 21217 56
Rice 14 306 23
  • Date: October 29
  • Location: Rice Stadium
    Houston, TX
  • Game start: 2:02 pm EDT
  • Elapsed time: 3:32
  • Game attendance: 18,187
  • Game weather: 61 °F (16 °C) • Weather: Sunny• Wind: W 10 MPH
  • Referee: Joe Lehring
  • TV announcers (ESPN3): David Saltzman, Chris Mycoskie
Team Category Player Statistics
Charlotte Passing Chris Reynolds 16–19, 254 yards, 5 TD
Rushing Shadrick Byrd 13 rushes, 83 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Elijah Spencer 5 receptions, 84 yards, 3 TD
Rice Passing T. J. McMahon 18–33, 218 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing T. J. McMahon 9 rushes, 45 yards
Receiving Bradley Rozner 5 receptions, 105 yards, 2 TD
Statistics CHAR Rice
First downs 25 20
Total yards 514 370
Rushing yards 239 152
Passing yards 275 218
Turnovers 0 1
Time of possession 31:57 28:03

UTEP[edit]

1 2 3 4 Total
Miners 7 10 3 10 30
Owls 10 10 7 10 37

At Western Kentucky[edit]

1 2 3 4 Total
Owls 0 7 3 0 10
Hilltoppers 7 17 7 14 45

UTSA[edit]

1 2 3 4 Total
Roadrunners 21 7 13 0 41
Owls 0 0 0 7 7

At North Texas[edit]

1 2 3 4 Total
Owls 0 14 0 3 17
Mean Green 7 7 0 7 21
Statistics RICE UNT
First downs 19 16
Total yards 415 362
Rushing yards 186 159
Passing yards 229 203
Turnovers 2 0
Time of possession 35:43 24:17
Team Category Player Statistics
Rice Passing AJ Padgett 13/22, 229 yards, TD, INT
Rushing Juma Otoviano 14 rushes, 94 yards
Receiving Braylen Walker 4 receptions, 77 yards, TD
North Texas Passing Austin Aune 16/29, 203 yards, 2 TD
Rushing Ikaika Ragsdale 17 rushes, 122 yards, TD
Receiving Ikaika Ragsdale 5 receptions, 59 yards, TD

Vs. Southern Miss (LendingTree Bowl)[edit]

1 2 3 4 Total
Owls 0 3 21 0 24
Golden Eagles 7 10 7 14 38

References[edit]

  1. ^ Joseph Duarte (October 21, 2021). "Rice's move to American Athletic Conference part of long-term vision". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  2. ^ Ralph D. Russo (October 21, 2021). "Rice ...joining American Athletic Conference". KPRC-TV. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  3. ^ "Old C-USA foes Rice, Southern Miss meet in Lending Tree Bowl". Yahoo! Sports. Field Level Media. December 12, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  4. ^ Palm, Jerry (December 3, 2022). "College Football Bowl Projections: Team Eligibility Tracker by Conference with 2022–23 Bowl Games Finalizing". CBS Sports. Retrieved December 16, 2022.
  5. ^ "NCAA Academic Progress Rate Football Rankings 1–130: Which 5–7 Teams Might Go Bowling?". College Football News. November 27, 2022. Retrieved December 16, 2022.
  6. ^ "C-USA Announces Media's Predicted Order of Finish for 2022". Conference USA. July 25, 2022. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  7. ^ Nick Bromberg (March 30, 2022). "Conference USA releases revised 2022 football schedule without teams leaving for Sun Belt". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  8. ^ "GAME NOTES: Charlotte at Rice". Charlotte49ers.com. October 26, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  9. ^ "Charlotte Explodes For Record-Breaking Win in Rossomando Debut". Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  10. ^ "Scoring Summary Report 2022 Charlotte Football, Charlotte vs Rice (Oct 29, 2022 at Houston TX)". October 29, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  11. ^ "Charlotte vs Rice– Game Summary". ESPN. October 29, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  12. ^ Bailey, Hunter (October 29, 2022). "Charlotte 49ers beat Rice Owls in C-USA college football". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  13. ^ "TPA: Charlotte 56 at Rice 23". Charlotte49ers.com. October 30, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.