The deadly Dillard-Clement connection

By Meghan Hall     9/25/08 7:00pm

As the offense runs plays in practice, senior quarterback Chase Clement drops back and fires the ball. And whether it's a long spiral downfield that leads him across the goal line or a short, hard pass over the middle, senior receiver Jarett Dillard catches it. The problem for other Conference USA schools and the rest of the teams on the Owls schedule? The two often made make it look as easy in games as they do in practice.

In the season opener against Southern Methodist University, Clement tied his own school record - as well as the Conference USA record - with six touchdown passes, and Dillard tied his school record with three touchdown receptions.

And after Dillard caught a touchdown pass from Clement in each of the last three games - against Memphis, Vanderbilt and the University of Texas - the two are just one touchdown pass from tying the NCAA career record for a quarterback-wide receiver duo. Now with 38 scores, they need 39 to catch Tim Rattay and Troy Edwards of Louisiana Tech and Colt Brennan and Davone Bess of Hawaii.

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Clement and Dillard rely on their special relationship off the field to translate into a winning combination during games.

"I can talk to him in the kind of way that I can talk to a close friend or even a brother," Dillard said. "When he doesn't throw the ball my way, I can really ask him why and he'll give me a good answer or we'll yell at each other. We can argue and complain, but at the end of the day, we're still friends. I don't have a grudge, and he doesn't have a grudge. With Chase and I, we have more of a brotherly relationship that allows us to really dig into each other and really push each other to play our best."

Clement also cites Dillard's physical strengths as a key in their success.

"It's just his ability to find the ball," Clement said. "I think that some days when I'm off, he's able to go out and make plays and make catches that not every receiver can make."

Dillard was named a first team All-American by CBSSportsline.com and was placed on the Biletnikoff and Maxwell Award Watch Lists, while Clement is on the Watch Lists for the Davey O'Brien Award and the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award.

So far this season, Clement has thrown for nine touchdowns and 1,129 yards, while Dillard has six touchdown catches and 418 yards. Clement ranks fifth among NCAA active career leaders in total touchdowns and touchdown passes, and Dillard is the NCAA active career leader in receptions, receiving yards and touchdown receptions.

The two are seniors who redshirted together their freshman year and have played together ever since. They both credit their extended time together as a key in their success.

"We've spent so much time in the offseason [...] just throwing routes together," Clement said. "We've just spent so much time on the field getting to know one another and how each of us plays. I think we've got such a good relationship off the field that it allows us to be successful on the field."

The duo's strong relationship has held the offense together through incredible highs and lows. In the year between a one-win season in 2005 and a three- win season in 2007, Clement and Dillard led the Owls to their first bowl game since 1961, but they suffered a crushing 41-17 defeat at the hands of Troy.

"We've been here with three coaching staffs, and going through all those trying times and all those struggles has really brought us together," Dillard said. "We're in the fifth year of our college careers. When you've been around the same quarterback for four years and you're in your fifth year, no other receiver, I don't think, in the nation has had that opportunity."

The connection between the Owl stars dates back before they ever came to Rice University. The two are both from San Antonio, and both felt they were not recruited as heavily as they could have been. Clement is a graduate of Alamo Heights High School, where he made the all-area, all-city and all-district teams as a quarterback. He also led his team to a Class 4A state semifinal appearance as a senior and lettered in baseball and track. Dillard, who is from Sam Houston High School, was named to the all-district team twice, and was also an all-area selection. Dillard played on the varsity track and basketball teams.

"I just wanted to play college football, so given the opportunity, I just came and ran with it," Clement said.

Running with it is exactly what Dillard anticipated the Owls to do when he signed with Rice knowing they were planning on implementing an option offense.

"Knowing that they did nothing but run and I wasn't going to get the ball much, it was my only opportunity," he said.

Luckily for Dillard, the Owls switched to a spread offense after former head coach Ken Hatfield left in 2005, a move that gave Dillard the opportunity to be an integral part of their offensive explosion.

"We both came into Rice with the same goals and the same attitude," Dillard said. "We thought we could have been recruited more, but Rice was our choice that we decided to come to. With that, we both had a chip and thought we had to prove to the world something and that we were going to put Rice on the map. And when you have two individuals with those same goals and same aspirations, you're just bound to do incredible things. I didn't think what we're doing now was in my viewpoint, but now that I see it happening it's just ridiculous how everything has meshed."

During the Memphis game, Clement passed Randy Hertel for first place on the Rice career passing list, and two games later his total now stands at 6,795 yards. He also holds the mark for most completions in Rice history with 606. Dillard has also set two Rice records this season - he is now Rice's all-time leader in touchdowns (46) and points (276). His mark of 46 touchdown catches also ranks third on the NCAA career list.

And Dillard is able to use his recruiting woes as motivation.

"I play with that edge that this is what you missed out on," Dillard said. "But is there any place I'd rather be in the world? No. I'd only want to be right here at Rice University. Rice is the perfect fit for me."

Part of the reason Rice is perfect for Dillard is its academic reputation. Dillard, who graduated in May with a degree in politi--wwcal science, has been taking graduate-level classes this fall. "I'm just loving going to class," Dillard said. "I'm there because I want to learn this. And taking classes I want to learn from is by far so much different than just taking classes because you have to."

Last year, the Owls finished 3-9 after opening the season with their third coaching staff in three years. This year, the Owls are off to a 2-2 start with two come-from-behind victories over C-USA opponents.

"The difference has been clearly just confidence and trust in our coaches and trust in ourselves," Dillard said.

Clement also gives credit to the age makeup of the team. "It's definitely the senior leadership," he said. "Our seniors have led our team very well and they've put us in good position to be successful."

The Owls' auspicious start has led to loftier team goals. As Dillard chases the NCAA career touchdown mark, he hopes that his efforts will ensure that the Owls will not have to wait another 45 years for their next bowl game. "I want us to, in all our games, play as a team and play with confidence," Dillard said. "And individually, I just want to play my best year, and I want to end this year with, 'I gave it everything I had.'"

Coming into their final season after playing together for so long, the two are struggling with the thought that this is their last year.

"When the day comes it's going to be really hard knowing that you're never going to put on the pads and play at Rice again," Clement said.

Clement set 18 school records last year, permanently leaving his mark on history. Having ossified his position in the record books, he only faces the challenges of impressing scouts in 2008. Dillard, on the other hand, will be forced to wage his assult on the record books alongside his struggle to impress scouts that may be skeptical of his 5'11, 185 lbs. figure.

Despite his smaller figure, Dillard's impressive vertical jump, which he has been working on since the eighth grade, has led many to say that he may stand 5'11, but he plays as though he were 11'5. Before the time comes for combines and workouts, though, Dillard has unfinished business in the NCAA.

"For all the goals you set during college, this is the last chance to get to do them," Dillard said. "It's now or never. This is my last go-round, and I have to prove to myself as well as everybody else what I can do."

Regardless of their future in the NFL, both talents have already beat the odds and hushed the critics. Now, they will be charged with the task of doing it one more time. If history repeats itself, the NFL team that gives the duo a chance will be getting getting a real bargain.

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