Rice (7-5) vs. Troy (7-5)
Dec. 22, 8 p.m. ESPN2
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New Orleans Bowl Player
Profile: Rice WR Jarett Dillard, team bowl history and more
In a million years did you ever think you'd have any interest in a
battle of Troy vs. Rice?
If this game was played on a normal college football Saturday, you'd
blow it off without a second thought, but that's the beauty of bowl
games. If you're a fan who enjoys all aspect of the game's
landscape, this is your chance to kick back on a Friday night and
watch one of the best stories in college football gets its shot on
the national stage against a champion of a conference that's trying
to prove it's more than just a doormat for for the rest of D-I.
|
|
National
Rankings |
|
Troy |
Rice |
|
Total Offense |
|
85th 315.25 ypg |
58th 345.17 ypg |
|
Total Defense |
|
71st 344.42 ypg |
113th 417.67 ypg |
|
Scoring Offense |
|
81st 21.25 ppg |
37th 27.75 ppg |
|
Scoring Defense |
|
60th 22.67 ppg |
110th 32.58 ppg |
|
Run Offense |
|
70th 126.92 ypg |
55th 138.67 ypg |
|
Run Defense |
|
60th 137.08 ypg |
114th 191.17 ypg |
|
Pass Offense |
|
71st 188.33 ypg |
51st 206.5 ypg |
|
Pass Defense |
|
70 207.33 ypg |
91st 226.5 ypg |
|
Turnover Margin |
|
107th -0.83 |
7
1.00 |
|
Troy
Alabama St W 38-0
at Florida St L 24-17
at Ga
Tech L 35-20
at Nebraska L 56-0
at UAB L 21-3
UL Monroe W 24-19
North Texas W 14-6
UL Laf W 42-28
at Fla Atlan W 24-17
Arkansas St L 33-26
at MTSU W 21-20
at FIU W 26-13 |
Rice
Houston L 31-30
at UCLA L 26-16
Texas L 52-7
at Florida St L 55-7
at Army W 48-14
at Tulane L 38-24
UAB W 34-33
at UCF W 40-29
at UTEP W 37-31
at Tulsa W 41-38 2OT
E Carolina W 18-17
SMU W 31-27 |
|
Position
Ratings
relative to each
other |
|
T |
5
highest
1 lowest |
R |
|
3.5 |
Quarterbacks |
3 |
|
3.5 |
RBs |
4 |
|
4 |
Receivers |
4 |
|
3 |
O
Line |
2.5 |
|
3 |
D
Line |
2.5 |
|
3 |
Linebackers |
3 |
|
3 |
Secondary |
3 |
|
3.5 |
Spec
Teams |
3.5 |
|
3.5 |
Coaching |
4.5 |
|
Wake Forest was
the best rags-to-riches story of the year, but Rice was a close
second as first-year head coach Todd Graham took the apparent
unwinnable program and cranked out a seven-win season with a
thrilling six-game winning streak to close things out. This isn't
the option running, no defense Rice you're used to; this is the
balanced attack, no defense Rice that wins games by coming through
with every big play and not making mistakes.
Troy is a stunning guest to the party beating Middle Tennessee, who
appeared to be a lock for a trip to New Orleans, 21-20 in a
last-minute shocker. After beating a winless FIU team 26-13, the
Trojans claimed their first Sun Belt title and second bowl game in
three years. An eight-win season would mark the highest total in the
brief six-year history of the team's D-I existence.
Few teams have played closer games throughout the season than these
two with Troy playing six games decided by eight points or fewer and
Rice winning their final four games of the year by a grand total of
14 points. Neither team is likely to blowout the other, and there's
no question the effort will be there for a full sixty minutes from
both sides. Just watch how many other bowls will have at least one
team that mentally doesn't show up.
Beyond everything else, Rice is just a fun team to watch with a
defense you and ten friends could run on and several exciting
offensive playmakers.
Fine, so you're not sold that this is a game you have to cancel date
night at Applebee's for. After all, this might be the most obscure
matchup of teams outside of the New Mexico Bowl where San Jose State
is playing New Mexico, but while neither program will be battling
for the BCS in yours or anyone's lifetime, they have the potential
to play a whale of a game.
Players to watch: Alright All-America voters, how many of
you actually watched Rice WR Jarett Dillard play this season
after September and how many of you just went off the numbers and
the nice story? Be honest. Dillard really is worthy of the
post-season consideration finishing the year with a whopping 20
touchdowns scoring at least one in every game and cranking out three
against Army, UAB, Tulsa and SMU. One of the few players on the team
that could've gone almost anywhere, Dillard has been the biggest
beneficiary of the new coaching staff's offense. He can do it all
with great short range route running ability to home-run deep threat
speed.
While Dillard has been unstoppable through the air, senior RB
Quinton Smith has been a steadying force on the ground with
1,092 yards and ten rushing touchdowns. Durability was an issue
throughout his career, but he stayed healthy and became the focal
point of the offense, even more so than Dillard, used both for his
excellent pass-catching hands as well as his slashing running.
For Troy, the game hinges on the play of QB Omar Haugabook.
While he's been a big upgrade from past Trojan quarterbacks, he's
been maddeningly inconsistent throwing the ball all season long. He
bombed away over the last three weeks of the Sun Belt season before
throwing for a mere 53 yards on FIU. Even when the passing game
isn't going, he has the legs to keep the chains moving with 111
yards last week against the Golden Panthers. The more efficient he
is, the better chance Troy has of pulling this off.
Troy will win if... the ground game gets going early, doesn't
slow down, and keeps working for a full four quarters. The Trojans
can't win any sort of a shootout, so it has to control the time of
possession and keep Haugabook from having to force throws. RB Kenny
Cattouse has been fantastic over the second half of the season and
needs to be more of a workhorse than he's ever been to take
advantage of the nation's 114th best run defense. The Owls give up
191 rushing yards per game.
Rice will win if... it doesn't screw up. Rice
has made a living off of holding on to the ball giving up just 16
turnovers on the year while Troy has turned it over a whopping 30
times. The Trojan defense isn't the killer of years past and, while
aggressive, isn't good at forcing mistakes. Rice has to avoid the
temptation of throwing the knockout punch early by forcing the ball
to Dillard, and there can't be the three turnover performance like
there was in the season final against SMU. If the two teams play
evenly, Rice should be able to win without a problem.
What will happen: The Trojans simply don't have the offense
to keep up with the above-average Rice attack. It'll be close for a
half, and then Dillard and/or Smith will take over with Troy not
having much of an answer. Don't expect the Owls to pull away with
Cattouse a near-lock to run for 100 yards and the Trojan receivers
coming up with a few big plays to stay alive. Troy will turn it over
three times, Rice will give it away once, and that will be the
difference.
Line: Rice -7 ... CFN Prediction:
Rice 31 ...
Troy 20
New Orleans Bowl Player
Profile: Rice WR Jarett Dillard, team bowl history and more