Owls hope to build on physical victory at UTEP as they face Oliver, Cougars
After traveling more than 9,000 miles for its first two games, Rice’s football team takes a much shorter trip just a few exits away when it plays the University of Houston on Saturday.
After a blowout loss in their opener against Stanford in Sydney, Australia, the Owls bounced back last week, beating UTEP 31-14 in El Paso. They’ll look to carry that momentum into Saturday’s game for the Bayou Bucket, the first time many Rice players will experience the rivalry after a three-year hiatus.
“We’ve got our hands full this week with the Bayou Bucket back,” Rice coach David Bailiff said. “I’m absolutely thrilled that the game is back. I think it’s great for both universities. I think it’s great for the city of Houston.”
Overcoming displacement from Hurricane Harvey, the Owls improved on both sides of the ball last week. Bailiff expects the team to be even more focused as players and coaches try to put the storm behind them.
“We played extremely well. We were a very physical football team,” Bailiff said.
He believes the disaster forced players to mature and compartmentalize what they were dealing with off the field. For those players, football brought a respite from the off-field work.
“We came out with a chip on our shoulder from the loss to Stanford,” Rice defensive lineman Graysen Schantz said. “We had a point to prove against (UTEP) and I think we’re going to come out the same against UH.”
“They’re solid,” Bailiff said of the Cougars, who beat Pac-12 foe Arizona last week. “That’s why they won.”
With the contest approaching, Bailiff is concerned about Houston defensive tackle Ed Oliver and a pair of transfers on offense. UH’s backfield features starting running back Duke Catalon, a Texas transfer, and quarterback Kyle Allen, its most notable transfer from Texas A&M.
The last time Rice played the University of Houston, captain Trey Martin was a true freshman sitting out his redshirt year. Martin sees the Houston game as an important challenge not only for Rice as a team, but for him as an individual.
“You want to go against the best competition, and he is one of the best defensive tackles in the country, so it’s going to be a good test for me and the team to go against a guy like him,” Martin said of Oliver. “He’s an explosive athlete; he doesn’t quit on plays; he’s relentless.” Bailiff concurs. “You see a (player) literally take over a football game with 11 tackles. Even when he’s not making tackles, he’s disruptive,” he said.
“We’ve got to do the same thing, bring that intensity and make sure we bring the Bayou Bucket back here,” Martin added.