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September 22, 2006 > Sports > Owls to finish tough three-game stretch at unranked FSU

Owls to finish tough three-game stretch at unranked FSU

By Nathan Bledsoe | Thresher Editorial Staff

Despite escaping the Rose Bowl with only a 10-point loss to UCLA Sept. 9, the football team suffered a humiliating 52-7 defeat to then-No. 8 University of Texas at Reliant Stadium last Saturday. The Owls (0-3, 0-1 Conference USA) will conclude their three-game stretch against top-tier schools when they travel to Tallahassee, Fla., to take on unranked Florida State University tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPNU.

Head coach Todd Graham said he thinks the Seminoles (2-1, 1-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) will be just as tough of a challenge as the Longhorns were.

“Looking at Florida State, I see more of the same,” Graham said. “They have guys that run extremely well … they may be faster on defense than Texas.”

Rice faces a Seminole team in a situation much like the one Texas faced last week. Texas came into the game against Rice fresh off a loss to top-ranked Ohio State University — Florida State lost to No. 19 Clemson University at home on Saturday. The Seminoles have had a sub-par season so far: they totaled one yard rushing in an ugly 13-10 victory over then-No. 10 University of Miami Sept. 4 but barely held off Troy University 24-17 at home Sept. 9.

The Rice defense may match up better with Florida State than it did with Texas, as the Seminoles have struggled to run effectively in the early season — their running backs are averaging a paltry 1.6 yards per carry this season. The big, physical Texas offensive line whipped Rice’s defense, and the Owls must figure out a way to fight a strong, yet less-talented offensive line at Florida State.

Offensively, Rice must generate more against Florida State than it did against Texas. Sophomore starting quarterback Chase Clement, who injured his thumb against the University of Houston Sept. 2, started throwing again in practice on Sunday, but his status for the coming game is still unknown.

Whether or not Clement plays, Rice must focus on the short, controlled passing game to be successful. If the offensive linemen are asked to hold blocks for extended periods of time against a defense as big, fast and talented as the Seminoles’, the Owls will not be successful. The best way to control the clock in the spread offense is with this quick passing game.

The defense must confuse the Seminoles just as it did at points against both Houston and UCLA, especially in the passing game. The many looks of the stack defense disguise coverages, blitzes and blocking schemes, and this confusion must be in full force to give the Owls a chance to compete with the talented Florida State offense.

Although the base look of Rice’s stack defense includes only three down linemen, putting a fourth man on the line at times will give the Owls a chance to clog more gaps against the run. Rice will most likely incorporate the four-man front several times against Florida State.

A win over the Seminoles would be tremendous for the Owls, who are still trying to get over the drubbing Texas (2-1) gave them in front of a “home” crowd at Reliant Stadium comprised mostly of Longhorn fans.

While Texas is obviously a more talented squad, the Owls were nowhere near as competitive as their first two losses indicated they might be. The Longhorns scored two touchdowns on 119 yards of total offense in the first 5:30 of the game. Five of Texas’s seven drives in the first half ended in touchdowns. The other two ended with a 46-yard field goal from Longhorn kicker Greg Johnson and a fumble recovered by senior defensive end Marcus Rucker at the Rice 1. Three plays after that fumble recovery, Texas defensive end Tim Crowder stripped the ball from senior quarterback Joel Armstrong in the end zone and held on for a touchdown to give the Longhorns a 24-0 lead early in the second quarter.

The Owls’ performance was not helped by several key injuries, including one to Clement, who missed a second straight game due to a thumb injury.

“We had a lot of guys not practicing [last] week,” Graham said. “We had three offensive linemen and two linebackers not practicing.”

The offense was completely stifled by the Texas defense, with a net of minus-12 rushing yards for the entire game. The lone bright spot on offense was sophomore receiver Jarrett Dillard’s 9-catch, 91-yard performance. Dillard also scored Rice’s lone touchdown on a six-yard toss from Armstrong midway through the fourth quarter. Dillard has now scored touchdowns in five straight games.

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