CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2014 Rice

8–⁠5 (5–⁠3 Conference USA), coached by David Bailiff.

Schedule and results

Rice in 2014, game by game: lost at No. 17 Notre Dame 17–48; lost at No. 7 Texas A&M 10–38; lost vs. Old Dominion 42–45; won at Southern Miss 41–23; won vs. Hawai’i 28–14; won at Army 41–21; won vs. North Texas 41–21; won at Florida International 31–17; won vs. UTSA 17–7; lost at No. 21 Marshall 14–41; won vs. UTEP 31–13; lost at Louisiana Tech 31–76; won vs. Fresno State 30–6+24−45Lost 17–48 at No. 17 Notre Dame-31No. 17 Notre DameLost 10–38 at No. 7 Texas A&M-28No. 7 Texas A&MLost 42–45 vs. Old Dominion-3Old DominionWon 41–23 at Southern Miss+18Southern MissWon 28–14 vs. Hawai’i+14Hawai’iWon 41–21 at Army+20ArmyWon 41–21 vs. North Texas+20North TexasWon 31–17 at Florida International+14Florida Interna…Won 17–7 vs. UTSA+10UTSALost 14–41 at No. 21 Marshall-27No. 21 MarshallWon 31–13 vs. UTEP+18UTEPLost 31–76 at Louisiana Tech-45Louisiana TechWon 30–6 vs. Fresno State+24Fresno State
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 30at17Notre DameL 17–⁠4830%
Sep 13at7Texas A&ML 10–⁠3821%
Sep 20vsOld DominionL 42–⁠4569%
Sep 27atSouthern MissW 41–⁠2360%
Oct 4vsHawai’iW 28–⁠1477%
Oct 11atArmyW 41–⁠2161%
Oct 25vsNorth TexasW 41–⁠2175%
Nov 1atFlorida InternationalW 31–⁠1768%
Nov 8vsUTSAW 17–⁠779%
Nov 15at21MarshallL 14–⁠4129%
Nov 21vsUTEPW 31–⁠1372%
Nov 29atLouisiana TechL 31–⁠7645%
Dec 24Bowls & playoffvsFresno StateHawai’i BowlW 30–⁠654%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Fresno State 30–⁠6 in the Hawai’i Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 3rd in the Conference USA.

In program history: The 19th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 115 on file).

Record
8–⁠5
Conference
5–⁠3 tied for 3rd in Conference USA
AP final
Unranked
Points
374–⁠370
Coach
David Bailiff
Elo
1566 +37 this season
SP+ rating
-3.1 No. 81 of 128; offense No. 72, defense No. 80, special teams No. 109
SRS
−2.9 No. 74 of 128 in FBS
Returning
43% of last season’s EPA, No. 98 of 125
Recruiting class
No. 91
Offensive coordinators
Larry Edmondson and Billy Lynch
Defensive coordinator
Chris Thurmond
Offense
Spread
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense48th of 128
  • Defense80th of 128
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted63rd of 128
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted83rd of 128
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1742%1.2848th of 128
Defense0.1742%1.2880th of 128
Opponent-adjusted0.15 off
0.18 def		40% off
44% def		—63rd off
83rd def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.6own 332% allowed
Defense3.9own 312% caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsDriphus Jackson QB2,842 yds
Passing touchdownsDriphus Jackson QB24 TD
Rushing yardsJowan Davis RB956 yds
Rushing touchdownsDarik Dillard RB11 TD
Receiving yardsJordan Taylor WR842 yds
Receiving touchdownsMario Hull WR8 TD
InterceptionsBryce Callahan CB2 INT

Top recruits in the 2014 class

Samuel Stewart APB★★★No. 826
Aston Walter ATH★★★No. 1104
Destri White ATH★★★No. 1631
J.T. Ibe ATH★★★No. 1890
Cory Klingler OC★★No. 1918

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2014 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Running backs13.00.851
Receivers32.00.773
Offensive line42.00.787
Defensive line22.00.766
Linebackers22.00.770
Defensive backs22.00.770
Athletes and specialists33.00.816
Whole class172.20.787

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2015

The 2015 draft
Rd 6Christian Covington DTHouston Texans

Roster 108

The 2014 roster

108 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2014 line; 30 have a stat line. See the roster

2014 Conference USA standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
Marshall7–⁠113–⁠123
Louisiana Tech7–⁠19–⁠5
Rice5–⁠38–⁠5
UTEP5–⁠37–⁠6
Middle Tennessee5–⁠36–⁠6
Western Kentucky4–⁠48–⁠5
UAB4–⁠46–⁠6
Old Dominion4–⁠46–⁠6
Florida International3–⁠54–⁠8
UTSA3–⁠54–⁠8
North Texas2–⁠64–⁠8
Florida Atlantic2–⁠63–⁠9
Southern Miss1–⁠73–⁠9

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.