Owls get close to win, but then lightning strikes

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Rice trailed by just one point and had some momentum going into the locker room at halftime against UAB on Saturday night. The Owls were knocking on the door of earning their first win of the season.

And then lightning struck. Twice.

The Owls went scoreless in the second half while enduring two delays lasting a total of about 2½ hours because of lightning strikes in the area, falling well short of that elusive victory in a 35-20 loss to the Blazers at Legion Field.

Rice (0-6, 0-2 Conference USA) has lost 17 of its last 18 games dating to last season.

Rice got solid offensive performances from quarterback Wiley Green (15for-34 passing, 161 yards, two touchdowns), running back Ashton Walter (102 rushing yards, one score) and wide receiver Austin Trammell (five receptions, 113 yards). Defensively, the Owls had interceptions by George Nyakwol and Treshawn Chamberlain.

Rice, however, ran out of gas after pulling within 2120 with four minutes remaining in the first half.

Tyler Johnston III passed for 282 yards and three touchdowns, and Lucious Stanley ran for two scores to help UAB (4-1, 1-1) score 21 of the game’s final 27 points. Stanley finished with 19 carries for 88 yards, and Kendall Parham had three receptions for 109 yards and two touchdowns for the Blazers.

The Owls took a 7-0 lead on the second play from scrimmage when Walter scored on a 64-yard run.

Johnston threw touchdown passes of 46 yards to Parham and 36 yards to Austin Watkins in about a two-minute span to give the Blazers at 14-7 lead with 12:34 left in the first half.

Rice evened the score on Green’s 4-yard touchdown pass to Brad Rozner midway through the second quarter, but the tie was short-lived as Johnston connected with Parham for a 57-yard touchdown on the first play of the ensuing drive.

Green threw a 3-yard scoring pass to August Pitre III late in the second quarter, but UAB blocked Chris Barnes’ extra-point attempt and went into halftime with a 21-20 lead.

It would be well over an hour before the teams would return to the field as a result of the first lightning delay. Once the game restarted, the rain began coming down.

The game would be delayed once more in the fourth quarter.

Stanley scored on runs of 25 and 7 yards in the third quarter to cap the scoring.

UAB scored 14 unanswered points in the second half. The Blazers have won 15 consecutive games at home.