2017 Rice
1–11 (1–7 Conference USA), coached by David Bailiff. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat UTEP 31–14Sep 9
By 17 points, its widest win.
- Most excitingLost to Old Dominion 21–24Nov 18
The win probability swung the most, by CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 26 | vs 14Stanford | L 7–62 | 19% |
| Sep 9 | at UTEP | W 31–14 | 43% |
| Sep 16 | at Houston | L 3–38 | 20% |
| Sep 23 | vs Florida International | L 7–13 | 60% |
| Sep 30 | at Pittsburgh | L 10–42 | 27% |
| Oct 7 | vs Army | L 12–49 | 40% |
| Oct 21 | at UTSA | L 7–20 | 22% |
| Oct 28 | vs Louisiana Tech | L 28–42 | 33% |
| Nov 4 | at UAB | L 21–52 | 22% |
| Nov 11 | vs Southern Miss | L 34–43 | 35% |
| Nov 18 | at Old Dominion | L 21–24 | 23% |
| Nov 25 | vs North Texas | L 14–30 | 30% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Lost to North Texas 30–14; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 12th in the Conference USA.
In program history: The 110th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 115 on file).
Led the nationAaron Cephus: yards per catch (24.9)
- Record
- 1–11
- Conference
- 1–7 tied for 12th in Conference USA
- AP final
- Unranked
- Points
- 195–429
- Coach
- David Bailiff
- Elo
- 1255 −141 this season
- SP+ rating
- -23.6 No. 126 of 128; offense No. 116, defense No. 124, special teams No. 114
- SRS
- −21.4 No. 125 of 130 in FBS
- Returning
- 38% of last season’s EPA, No. 104 of 128
- Recruiting class
- No. 122 roster talent No. 100 in FBS
- Offensive coordinator
- Billy Lynch
- Defensive coordinator
- Brian Stewart
- Offense
- Spread
- Defense
- 3–4
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | -0.03 | 40% | 1.22 | 115th of 130 |
| Defense | 0.27 | 50% | 1.25 | 124th of 130 |
| Opponent-adjusted | -0.03 off 0.24 def | 39% off 50% def | — | 122nd off 130th 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 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 2.8 | own 28 | 20% allowed |
| Defense | 4.1 | own 30 | 14% caused |
CORE rating -18.7, 125th of 130 (offense -6.6, defense 12.1).
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. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.
Leaders
| Passing yards | Miklo Smalls QB | 623 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Sam Glaesmann WR | 3 TD |
| Rushing yards | Nahshon Ellerbe RB | 409 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | Nahshon Ellerbe RB | 6 TD |
| Receiving yards | Aaron Cephus WR | 622 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Aaron Cephus WR | 5 TD |
| Tackles | Emmanuel Ellerbee LB | 120 tkl |
| Sacks | Brian Womac DE | 10 sacks |
| Interceptions | Brandon Hamilton Douglas-Dotson CB | 1 INT |
Top recruits in the 2017 class
| Miklo Smalls ATH | ★★★ | No. 1582 |
| George Nyakwol CB | ★★★ | No. 1706 |
| Kenneth Orji WDE | ★★★ | No. 1815 |
| Corbin Smith OT | ★★ | No. 2227 |
| Isaiah Richardson CB | ★★ | No. 2307 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2017 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Running backs | 1 | 2.0 | 0.775 |
| Receivers | 4 | 2.0 | 0.775 |
| Offensive line | 3 | 2.0 | 0.776 |
| Defensive line | 2 | 2.5 | 0.790 |
| Linebackers | 2 | 2.0 | 0.784 |
| Defensive backs | 3 | 2.3 | 0.801 |
| Athletes and specialists | 2 | 2.5 | 0.792 |
| Whole class | 17 | 2.2 | 0.785 |
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.
Roster 97
The 2017 roster97 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2017 line; 58 have a stat line. See the roster
2017 Conference USA standings
| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
 Florida Atlantic | 8–0 | 11–3 | |
| North Texas | 7–1 | 9–5 | |
| Southern Miss | 6–2 | 8–5 | |
| UAB | 6–2 | 8–5 | |
| Florida International | 5–3 | 8–5 | |
 Marshall | 4–4 | 8–5 | |
 Middle Tennessee | 4–4 | 7–6 | |
| Louisiana Tech | 4–4 | 7–6 | |
 Western Kentucky | 4–4 | 6–7 | |
| UTSA | 3–5 | 6–5 | |
| Old Dominion | 3–5 | 5–7 | |
 Rice | 1–7 | 1–11 | |
 Charlotte | 1–7 | 1–11 | |
| UTEP | 0–8 | 0–12 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.