The Rice Thresher

Location: http://the.ricethresher.org/sports/2006/10/27/owl_football_win_streak

October 27, 2006 > Sports > Smith runs for 3 TDs in Owls’ second straight win

Smith runs for 3 TDs in Owls’ second straight win

By Nathan Bledsoe | Thresher Editorial Staff

The football team notched consecutive wins for the first time in two years with a 40-29 victory over the University of Central Florida Saturday in Orlando, Fla. At UCF, sophomore Jarrett Dillard caught a touchdown pass for the 10th game in a row, extending his nation-leading streak.

Dillard had seven receptions for 85 yards in the game, but the real offensive standout was senior running back Quinton Smith, who scored three second-half touchdowns, the first of which came on a 69-yard scamper. Smith ran for a career-best 183 yards on 21 carries for his first 100-yard rushing game since the season-opener against the University of Houston Sept. 2.

Head coach Todd Graham said Rice (3-5, 2-2 Conference USA) was able to take advantage of the six-defensive back set UCF (2-5, 1-2) employed for much of the game.

“They tried to spread it out with six guys, [putting only] five in the box, so we had a great day running the football,” Graham said.

Defensively, the Owls continued to struggle, surrendering 482 yards of offense to the Golden Knights. The defense made plays when it mattered, though, as UCF committed two turnovers and scored just three touchdowns in seven trips inside the Owls’ 20-yard line.

“We played pretty good down in the red zone,” sophomore linebacker Brian Raines said. “We clamped down and played harder, and [several times] they weren’t able to come away with a touchdown.”

Rice opened the game with a trick play, recovering an onside attempt on the opening kickoff. Junior kicker Luke Juist then converted a 45-yard field goal attempt, setting the tone for the rest of the half. The teams battled to a 13-13 tie at halftime.

After UCF kicker Michael Torres made his third field goal on the Golden Knights’ first second-half possession, Rice began to put the game away. Smith’s 69-yard touchdown run gave the Owls a 20-16 lead, and after the defense forced a three-and-out, Dillard caught a 26-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Chase Clement to extend the lead to 27-16 at the end of the third quarter.

Rice never looked back after Dillard’s touchdown. Golden Knight receiver Mike Walker caught a 20-yard touchdown pass midway through the fourth quarter to cut the lead to 27-22, but Smith scored two touchdown runs from 19 and 4 yards to seal the victory.

The win over UCF was sweet redemption for the Owls. Last season, they lost to the Golden Knights 31-28 in their final home game of the year, blowing a 21-3 halftime lead. Sophomore guard David Berken said that game made Saturday’s win special.

“[The victory] also means a lot after last year,” Berken said. “We lost a close one to UCF. They were the defending champions to the east and going into their house and getting a win was big for us.”

The Owls have a bye this week and will prepare for the two most difficult games remaining on the schedule, both conference road contests. The Owls first take on the University of Texas-El Paso in El Paso Nov. 4. Then they travel to defending conference champion Tulsa University the following week.

“From my past experiences and watching Rice, Rice and UTEP is always a good game,” Raines said. “The thing we have to do [to beat the Miners] is not commit any penalties, not beat ourselves.”

To continue to win, Rice must also continue to create turnovers and take care of the football. The Owls are 15th in the nation in turnover margin, something the team needs to maintain if it hopes to become bowl-eligible. Conference-USA has five automatic bowl bids, so a 6-6 record would likely mean a berth in a December bowl game. To finish the regular season with a .500 record, the Owls must beat either UTEP or Tulsa, which currently sits alone atop the C-USA West Division, in one of their next two games. King thinks the team can build upon the victory throughout the remainder of the season.

“We need to use this momentum to carry us through our next four games,” he said.

End of article

Back to top