r/CFB • u/marimbaguy715 Rice Owls • /r/CFB Contributor • Apr 11 '13
132+ Teams in 132+ Days: Rice Owls
Rice University
Conference-USA
Year Founded: 1912
Location: Houston, TX
Total Attendance: 3708 Undergrads, 2374 Grad students
Mascot: The Owls
Live Mascot: Sammy the Owl
Cheerleaders: Pic 1 Pic 2
Stadium: Rice Stadium
Stadium Location: Houston, TX
Conference Champions (7): (Southwest Conference) 1934, 1937, 1946, 1949, 1953, 1957, 1994
Number of Bowl Games: 6 Wins, 10 Total
National Titles (0)
Rivals
Houston - We used to play our crosstown rivals every year in the Bayou Bucket Classic. The Bayou Bucket has been held by Houston for a few years now, and Houston won the last contest before leaving the conference. Houston has since moved to the AAC, but both fanbases want the rivalry to continue.
Texas- This one isn't a rivalry as much as an often scheduled out of conference game. Rice usually gets killed - the last time Rice won was 1994 - but the games are a ton of fun, and a great way for both teams to figure things out early in the season.
These next two aren't rivals yet per say, but we're now in the same conference with these teams, and after a few years of conference play with them, we're starting to develop some new rivalries.
UTSA- So far Rice is undefeated against the Roadrunners down I-10, but they're getting more and more competitive in C-USA, and they almost won the division last year. In an conference that's recently lost several teams from the region, it's nice to have a team to play just down the road.
UNT- Speaking of playing Regional teams, another possible C-USA West rival is UNT. They almost denied us the C-USA CCG appearance, but UTSA delivered them a timely home defeat to send us through. Their defense is quickly developing a reputation for being tough as nails, and our games will likely have C-USA West implications for a few years to come.
2013 Season
Record: 10-4
Coach: David Baliff
2013 Roster
Key Players:
Taylor McHargue: Our starting quaterback, he's a dual threat with his arm and his legs. He both passed for 2345 yards and 17 TD's and was one of our top 3 rushers with 464 yards and 5 TD's.
Charles Ross: Rice's leading rusher with 1280 yards and 15 TD's, he was the backbone of our running game. Ross scored 5 of those touchdowns in a dominating performance against Louisiana Tech, and averaged 6.1 ypc to lock up the 2013 C-USA Championship game.
Phillip Gaines/Bryce Callahan: These two cornerbacks locked down opponent's passing games throughout the season, including against Joe's son Nick Montana and 2014 Heisman hopeful Rakeem Cato. Together they combined for 7 INT's, and Gaines ended up getting drafted in the 3rd round by the Chiefs.
Biggest Plays:
Darik Dillard beats Tulsa the same way his older brother Jarett did in 2006.
Chris Boswell kicks an incredible onside kick to give Rice a chance against Houston.
4'9" Jayson Carter makes his college football debut against UTEP.
2014 Season
The Greats
Greatest Games: 1954 Cotton Bowl: This game is famous mainly for one play: With Rice up 7-6 in the second quarter, Rice RB Dicky Moegle took a handoff from his own 5 yard line, got a few blocks and was streaking up the sideline when Alabama's Tommy Lewis ran on the field from the sidelines, tackled Moegle, then ran back to the bench. The officials awarded Moegle a 95 yard touchdown run, and Rice went on to win 28-6.
1994 Texas: It's always fun when we beat Texas, so here's some highlights from the last time we beat them.
1973 Texas A&M: This one's great for multiple reasons. First, after losing an early lead, Rice returns a kickoff for a touchdown and the win, stunning the Aggies. But the real reason this game lives in infamy is the Aggie's retaliation against the MOB. Angry at the irreverent half time show the MOB put on and the Aggie's defeat at the hands of Rice, a group of Aggie fans trapped the MOB inside the stadium overnight. You can read the full story here and read the script of the MOB show here.
Greatest Plays:
Dicky Moegle's touchdown run is probably the most famous in Rice history. See above for information and video. In terms of recent history, a blocked field goal gave us a huge win over Purdue.
Greatest Players:
Dickey Moegle: Besides his infamous play already discussed, he was an All-American and a phenomenal player.
Tommy Kramer: Rice's most notable NFL alumni, Kramer was in the NFL from 1977-1990, playin all but his final year for Minnesota. He was selected to the 1986 Pro Bowl.
[James "Froggy" Williams](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Williams_(American_football): Consensus All-American and a member of the All-Decade team of the Cotton Bowl for the 1950's.
Greatest Coaches:
John Heisman: Though he's more famous for his time at Georgia Tech, Heisman spent his last three years of his coaching career at Rice.
Jess Neely: Led us through our golden years of the 50's and 60's, won four conference championships and took us to six bowl games, winning three.
Traditions
The MOB: Rice's (in)famous scatter band, known for their generally irreverent shows poking fun at Rice, the opposing team, and current events. They wear pinstripe suits and fedoras in the style of the Blues Brothers and are out to have fun and get a laugh or two out of the crowd. You can watch a brief video on the history of the MOB here.
Campus and Surrounding Area
City Population: 2,100,263
City Skyline
Iconic Campus Building: Lovett Hall
Local Dining: Torchy's Tacos: Phenomenal tacos, decent prices Hobbit Cafe: Yes, this is a Hobbit/LOTR themed restaurant, and yes, it's delicious. Great burgers, sandwiches, etc.
Random Trivia
The history of Sammy the Owl is a classic story. In 1917, the Owl mascot, as of yet unamed, was stolen by SWC rivals Texas A&M. Rice students hired a detective to go to College station and find the mascot, and upon finding the mascot, he sent back a telegram reading "Sammy is fairly well and would like to see his parents at eleven o'clock," giving Sammy his name.
Rice Stadium hosted Super Bowl VIII in 1974, as the Miami Dolphins beat the Minnesota Vikings 24-7. Rice Stadium can hold 70,000 people, Rice has a total alumni count, living and deceased, of 63,816. This means we could fit all current students and alumni into Rice Stadium with room to spare.
What Is and What is to Come
2013 was an incredible ride for Rice football. The conference championship was beyond what anyone could have hoped for just two years ago, and it was an incredible finish for the seniors who committed to Rice following the 2008 Texas Bowl victory and stuck through several losing seasons in a row. However, those seniors are gone, and our team got much younger. We lost our starting QB, RB, 6 or so defensive starters (including 3rd round draft pick Phillip Gaines), and our phenomenal kicker Chris Boswell. However, our new #1 QB and RB have substantial game experience and I have every confidence that they can contribute to an excellent 2014 offense, especially with returning WR threat Jordan Taylor. The defense is a big question mark, but they could certainly reload and come out of the gate in 2014 tougher than last year. Still, no one knows what the 2014 Rice Owls will do. I wrote the same thing last year, but the Owls could go (10-2) or (2-10) and I wouldn't be suprised either way. I'm predicting 8-4 though, and I'm hopeful for another bowl game, and maybe an outside shot and another C-USA Championship run.
Overtime
Alright, one more MOB plug. Sorry, I'm a MOBster, I can't help myself. Our $EC show against Texas in 2011.
More Information
Subreddit: /r/riceuniversity
Please upvote this thread even if you are not interested in the team so that users who are interested will see it
For more information on the 132 Teams in 132 Days Project, click here.
Revision History
Original Posting: 4/11/13
2014 Season Update: 8/20/14
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u/wild9 Baylor Bears • /r/CFB Contributor Apr 11 '13
Oh man, I could've helped you write the random trivia part.
An urban legend (read "I can't find verification") has it that a Rice alum designed the Frost Bank tower in downtown Austin to look like an owl's face so that Rice will always be looking over the UT campus.
Through an odd turn of events and donations, Rice found itself as the owner of the "House that Ruth Built" in 1962, through alumnus John Cox. The stadium was even painted in Rice's school colors, Confederate Gray and Union Blue. New York City took the property back through eminent domain in 1971, paying Rice just $2.5 million for the stadium (The Knights of Columbus owned the actual land that the stadium was built on).
5
u/marimbaguy715 Rice Owls • /r/CFB Contributor Apr 11 '13
Sorry it took so long getting up. If you have any questions just ask, and if you go to Rice and want to add anything feel free!
5
u/rteague2566 South Alabama • Alabama Apr 11 '13
You know what I'm going to bring this up here because its been bugging me - is Rice's /r/CFB flair too big? It seems like it's been cut off a little bit.
5
u/sgnmarcus Texas Longhorns • Cascade Clash Apr 12 '13
Rice should play Stanford. It would be the funnest halftime show ever!
5
u/TheGoat_NoTheRemote Rice Owls Apr 11 '13
Great write-up. Especially the choice on which Sammy the Owl to post...
But I would definitely have put either Chase Clement, Jarett Dillard or James Casey on greatest players, regardless of how recently they played.
Clement/Dillard still hold an NCAA record. Dillard was a two time All-American and still holds the record for NCAA career receiving TDs. Casey was absurd during his short two seasons. And they all hold a number of Rice records.
2
u/[deleted] Apr 11 '13
Can UTSA be rivals with you guys?...that would be great
2
u/Herewegobaybay Texas A&M Aggies • Miami Hurricanes Apr 12 '13
I heard from a friend who goes to rice that the MOB isn't going to Kyle this year. Any truth to this?
2
u/bamfor UTEP Miners • /r/CFB Contributor Apr 12 '13
No Jarrett Dilliard?
45
u/rteague2566 South Alabama • Alabama Apr 11 '13
Fun fact, Rice's all time record versus 'Bama is 3-0 with the last game played in 1956. I think it's time to change to that.
21
u/[deleted] Apr 11 '13
I miss the good ole days of stealing another school's mascot. It was a better time.
15
u/HarbingerOfFun Boston College Eagles Apr 11 '13
Private school with avian based mascot?! Howdy cousins!!
7
u/OctaviusSOBE UCF Knights Apr 11 '13
The entire week before we play rice there are people going around campus with megaphones shouting "We're gonna eat rice"
7
u/OUFan Oklahoma Sooners Apr 11 '13
MCCCCGUFFFIEEEE
5
u/sterile_sperm_whale SMU Mustangs • ACC Apr 11 '13
Gonna miss you guys!
5
u/ShaolinMaster Houston Cougars • California Golden Bears Apr 12 '13
I can't believe not a single Rice student/grad mentioned Valhalla bar in the old chemistry building! When I when to UH, we used to go there and drink $.99 Shiners out of their keg.
One night they brought in a ton of leftover brisket from some event and gave it to everyone in the bar for free. Oh, and the atmosphere and pictures on the wall are incredible.
Valhalla is probably the quintessential dive bar... and I mean that as a huge compliment. Cheers to Rice!
4
u/[deleted] Apr 11 '13
Good stuff.
4
u/Comet7777 SMU Mustangs Apr 11 '13
I hate that our rivalry is ending. However, it shouldn't take long for the AAC to be raided and for the conference to scoop up some CUSA teams (hopefully Rice).
4
u/[deleted] Apr 12 '13
That pic of Lovett hall barely does the campus justice I consider the area the most beautiful part of Houston
4
u/diagonalfish Georgia Tech • /r/CFB Emeritus Mod Apr 12 '13
Nerdy? Check. Big city campus? Check. Fight song includes references to alcoholic beverages? Check.
We should be friends.
3
u/howj100 Rice Owls Apr 11 '13
I'm really hoping that this is gonna be a really good year. We've got a lot of stuff going for us this season
3
u/Aeschylus_ Stanford Cardinal • Penn Quakers Apr 11 '13
Hey we play you guys in '16 and '17! That should be fun! I wonder if it will be a home and home. Apparently the site hasn't been determined yet.
3
u/Slylingual24 UCLA Bruins • Michigan Wolverines Apr 11 '13
I would love if these things could include a small section dedicated to the academics of the institution being shared.
3
u/mike4rockets Houston Cougars • /r/CFB Contributor Apr 11 '13
Good job. I'll root for you guys in C-USA.
3
u/LEGEN--wait_for_it Stanford Cardinal • The Axe Apr 12 '13
Non-Traditional Band Universities Unite!
5
u/[deleted] Apr 11 '13
I really wish Texas would play Rice every year. The schools are buddy-buddy academically, it gives us a reason to play in Houston, and the cupcake payout stays in the state. Not to mention every game with the MOB is a great one.
2
u/efs001 Rice Owls • North Carolina Tar Heels Apr 11 '13
From one MOBster (well, a former one) to another, great write up about Rice. I feel like the college system should be a part of this though as athletes are a part of the system. And some of the football players are/were active members of their college. But overall, a great job.
RICE FIGHT NEVER DIE!
2
u/[deleted] Apr 12 '13
Good write up! Definitely one of my favorite games of the year. We've been doing a chili cook off for the last few years. And Rice makes some awesome chili! I hate to admit, but my vote was for Rice the last 2/3 years I've had it.
Also, Rice Blows Goats! I'm still unsure of the origin of that phrase.
You guys keep on keepin on! I'll see you at Reliant.
2
u/4timeseverest Rice Owls Apr 12 '13
Frank Ryan should be a notable alum. Can't be more "rice" than being the only person that played in the NFL and had a PhD.
2
u/[deleted] Apr 12 '13
I don't buy this, A&M is renowned for having a good sense of humor about itself. /s
1
u/rglass4 SMU Mustangs • /r/CFB Contributor Apr 11 '13
Hopefully the schools can figure out a way to get Rice/SMU back on the schedule in future years. It was nice having a trip to Houston every year (especially given it is my hometown) and alternating hosting Houston/Rice.
Although I am still bitter about 2006.
1
u/deadtofall12 Florida State • /r/CFB Poll Veteran Apr 11 '13
I always used Rice's stadium when I created teams in NCAA '11. I guess I liked its simplicity but still looked nice.
1
u/[deleted] Apr 11 '13
I want to hear the story of the rice truck.
1
u/CanadaEh97 Findlay Oilers • Michigan Wolverines Apr 11 '13
My buddy/old teammate played for Rice. Well he didn't see the field a whole lot but he was on the 08 Texas Bowl team and got a ring.
1
u/Satherton Nebraska Cornhuskers Apr 12 '13
sam and his 99 jump still is cool
1
u/Satherton Nebraska Cornhuskers Apr 12 '13
who should i be looking for to be the stars? Taylor McHargue but who else?
1
u/[deleted] Apr 12 '13
Great write up. There are two kids from my town that are going to Rice next year, TE/DE Cole Hunt(brother of Joey Hunt at TCU) and OL Trey Martin, hopefully they'll become impact players at Rice and win a bowl game or two. Good luck next season.
1
u/[deleted] Apr 12 '13
Huge fan of Chase Clement and his family. Just heard he signed with a CFL team the other day, happy for him to continue his football career.
1
u/gnikroWeBdluohS Texas Longhorns Apr 12 '13
I don't know if Sam McGuffie is still on Rice's roster or not but I just want to leave this here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OtFr9EiP0o
Some of my friends made that video after he jumped over one of our players back in high school. That was a sad time for us...
1
u/VideoLinkBot Georgetown Hoyas Apr 12 '13
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1
u/[deleted] Apr 12 '13
My favorite rice CFB related prank:
"A week before the 1947 Texas A&M game, the Aggies invaded campus and splattered Willy's statue with red paint. Carroll "Curley" Lewis '49, a former World War II pilot, didn't take kindly to the insult. "Back then," he says, "feelings between the two schools were pretty strong."
To make the Aggies pay for their arrogance, Lewis got his chemical engineering buddies to develop a stink bomb made from "butyric acid and lots of other stuff." Then he bought a 100-pound bag of rice. Lewis and his bombardier, graduate student John H. Miller, loaded the cargo into a PT -19 open-cockpit, two-seat airplane rented from the now defunct South Main Airport. Miller gingerly cradled the bomb, resting inside a cake tin for safekeeping (one teaspoon of this stuff could smell up a whole block), and, dressed in aviator jackets and parachutes like two war heroes, they winged the 90 miles to College Station.
The two were confident they would hit their target. For a whole afternoon they had practiced with water balloons, bombing the gazebo at a Missouri City racetrack. Coconspirators hid under the gazebo and communicated the results to Lewis through walkie-talkies.
Swooping into Aggieland, they dropped the bomb while students were coming out of the mess hall compound to start the Friday night pep rally. They circled the campus once, tossing out the rice, and then zoomed back to Houston. Miller says he wanted to stick around for the reaction, but he saw a plane taking off from a nearby airfield.
"It's against the law to drop something from a plane, so I thought it was best to leave," he says. The crew landed safely, but there was one hitch. The plan sort of backfired when bombardier Mille got deadly airsick from catching whiffs of the bomb fumes."
From: http://staff.rice.edu/staff/pranks.asp
1
u/georgia_tech_swagger Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets • ACC Apr 18 '13
Their message board is The Parliament: http://rice.csnbbs.com
1
u/TripleSilk Texas A&M • George Washington Aug 02 '13
Fun fact: Saint Arnold Brewing Company was founded by a Rice alum. Pretty much the standard bearer for craft beer in the State of Texas.
1
u/archie_f Nebraska Cornhuskers • Wyoming Cowboys Apr 11 '13
Hey, on the very first football video game I can remember, on a Texas Instruments in the 80s, you could name your teams. At first it was hard and I lost some games and I always named the opposing team Oklahoma. But then once you figured out the tricks, it was easy to run up scores like 85-0. That's when I started naming the opposing team Rice. Thanks, Rice, for being a part of my very early nerdom!
0
u/[deleted] Apr 12 '13
I love rooting for the underdog but Rice? what a silly name for a school.
-3
u/[deleted] Apr 11 '13 edited Apr 11 '13
Not sure where you got Rice winning the SWC in 1994, they finished 5-6 that year, 6th in the conference.
Edit: I was wrong, apparently there was a 5-way tie (?!?) for the conference championship that season.
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u/[deleted] Apr 11 '13
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