Rice football looks to make championship run

By Aniket Tolpadi     8/27/15 12:38pm

Rice football will look to build upon its recent success under Head Coach David Bailiff, confident that they can compete for their second Conference USA title in three years and qualify for their fourth consecutive bowl game. 

Bailiff has engineered one of the more remarkable turnarounds of an athletic program in recent memory. When he was hired as coach in 2007, Rice had qualified for only one bowl game in the previous 45 years; in his eight years as coach, Rice has qualified for four, including a 30-7 victory over Fresno State University in the Hawai’i Bowl last season. The talent coming through the school is also being recognized by the National Football League: Seven Owls have been drafted under Bailiff, including at least one draft pick in each of the last four seasons. Members of last year’s team currently playing in the NFL are Houston Texans defensive tackle Christian Covington, a sixth-round pick, as well as Chicago Bears cornerback Bryce Callahan, Denver Broncos wide receiver Jordan Taylor, and San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Mario Hull. 

One of the hallmarks of Bailiff’s tenure at Rice has been continuity. Over the past two seasons, there have been no changes to the coaching staff, a rarity in Division I college football. An additional advantage Rice has is continuity at the game’s most important position: quarterback. Rice’s redshirt senior quarterback Driphus Jackson is entering his second season as the starter. Much of the excitement surrounding Rice football in 2015 is based on anticipated improvement from Jackson, who threw 24 touchdowns and 8 interceptions in his first season as the sole starter.

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In addition to being a redshirt senior and the quarterback of the team, Jackson is also entering his second year as a team captain. Bailiff said the leadership role is one that Jackson has accepted and one in which he has excelled.

“He’s out there, he’s leading,” Bailiff said. “He’s not too worried about being liked, he wants to win. He’s there to hug people when they need it, reminding his teammates of their responsibilities, and we’re very excited about it.”

Several key players from 2014 are returning this season with Jackson: junior running back Jowan Davis and redshirt junior linebacker Alex Lyons. However, graduation has taken several starters from both sides of the ball, which cannot be overlooked.

Jordan Taylor and Mario Hull were the leading receivers on last year’s team, so at first glance, losing both may seem harmful to the 2015 team’s chances. Despite their leaving, Bailiff said he is confident in their younger replacements.

“At receiver, we have [redshirt junior] Zach Wright and [senior] Dennis Parks stepping into bigger roles,” Bailiff said. “Both have looked good in practice. Also, [redshirt freshman] Lance Wright is a younger guy who didn’t play a lot last year, but is very talented.”

Additionally, Bailiff specifically mentioned a few players who could make an impact this season. According to Bailiff, senior Luke Turner is a versatile player who could make significant plays at a variety of positions this season.

“[Senior] Luke Turner is a guy that plays tight end and some [halfback] — he does a lot of things for us,” Bailiff said. “He’s a player to look out for this season.”

According to Jackson, the loss of the top two receivers has not slowed the efficiency of the offense.

“We haven’t had any falloff,” Jackson said. “A lot of guys have stepped up and been watching Mario [Hull] and those guys play. I’m just excited for those guys to step up and show their talent.”

A common idiom in football is a team is only as strong as its offensive line. Three offensive linemen were lost to graduation, which may be a cause for concern. Jackson, however, is not concerned, and said he has faith in the new offensive line.

“[Bailiff] has done a good job in mixing lineups and getting everybody comfortable with one another, so I don’t see too much falloff there at all,” Jackson said. “Maybe it’ll take a couple of games for them to gel, but once we get to the grit of the season, we should be fine.”

Rice opens its season on Sept. 5 against Wagner University. Kickoff for the game is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. at Rice Stadium.

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