HOUSTON (Nov. 28) -- It wasn't a bowl win; it wasn't a championship game, but it surely was an upbeat way to end a season.

After a mid-schedule swoon that had dedicated fans questioning the leadership and future direction of their football program, the Rice Owls finished off a closing, two-game win streak with a thrilling, immensely satisfying, 28-23 win over a solid UAB Blazer team here Saturday.

It took a 22-yard dash from, who else, super freshman Jeremy Eddington, to put the Owls in command with 44 seconds left in the game. Even then, the outcome remained in doubt, for the Blazer offense still had time for a handful of heaves downfield, any one of which might have spelled the undoing of the artillery-vulnerable Owls -- remember the Tulane game.

In fact, this time, on third and ten and with a dozen ticks left, UAB quarterback Bryan Ellis barely overthrew his deep receiver who'd separated from the Rice secondary, but a miss is as good as a mile, and, when on fourth down, next play, Chris Jones nailed Blazer receiver Patrick Hearn seven yards short of the first down marker, the comeback celebration could begin in earnest.

"I am proud of this football team," an ebullient Rice head coach David Bailiff said aferwards. "I am proud of the seniors. We hung together to win our last two conference games in a row. Our last two at home was fitting for this senior class. It gives us a lot of hope for the future."

This one was different, in that Rice managed to win despite their opponent's taking away from them their best offensive weapons. They did so by opportunistic play,  and, for once, aggressive defense, and by saddling up the reliable hosses and riding them to the stable as the sun went down.

First half ended even-steven

The first half was punch and counter-punch, with the Owls landing the first blow.

Rice was facing fourth and two from the UAB five yard line after having marched 56 yards in eight plays. UAB appeared to be expecting the fade route, and Owl quarterback Taylor McHargue made a creditable fake of that, but split seconds earlier he'd handed off inside to Sam McGuffie, who sprinted in for the score untouched to spot the Owls a 7-0 lead.

It didn't take the Blazers long to even the score, as Ellis hit his open receiver Jacki Williams from 23 yards out to cap a five-play, 67-yard drive.

The Owls were able to take the lead early in the second quarter, abetted by a 38-yard, Xavier Webb punt return. At that point, Taylor McHargue was spelled by Taylor Cook at the quarterback aftet sustaining a ding  to the ankle, and T-Cook immediately took advantage.

The Miami transfer first hit Luke Willson for 12; then, after Sam McGuffie bulled for eight mroe, found Vance McDonald for 19 yards to the UAB 9 yard line. Next play, Jeremy Eddington romped in for the first of his two touchdowns on the day, and the Owls were back up by seven.

Once again, the Blazers immediately responded, driving 71 yards in 11 plays, the last 12 of them coming when Ryan Ellis hit a wide-open Pat Shedd in the end zone.

The Owls cranked up in response, quickly roaring into UAB territory, but a personal foul set back the Owls 15, and the drive ran out of gas.

Only third-quarter scoring was UAB field goal

UAB took the second-half kickoff and methodically moved the ball downfield, finally stalling at the Rice 10 thanks to some key hits by Michael Smith and Justin Hill. From there, Josh Zahn's field goal attempt from 27 out put the Blazers up, 17-14.

And when the Owls went three-and-out on their next possession, a murmur went through the relatively sparse, but engaged, home crowd.

”We knew going into it they were going to give us a lot of different looks defensively and it was going to be feast or famine,” Coach Bailiff recounted “But it wasn’t going to be something we gave up on.”

After two exchanges of the football, the Owls were back in possession at their own 17 yard line with 1:26 remaining in the third quarter. The Rice offense had been relatively stymied, at that point, since early in the second quarter. The UAB defense had engaged a defensive line shift that, among other ploys, had effectively dampened the Owl offensive set that that worked so well against Tulane and UAB.

So at that pointk, the course was clear: it was time for some smash-mouth football.

And smash the Owls did, driving 83 yards in 19 plays, consuming almost ten minutes of clock time. Acrtually, add 29 more yards to that 83-yard total, for the Owls were assessed two illegal block penalties of ten yards each, and sustained two negative yardage plays totaling nine yards in the wrong direction.

So, check that, make it: the Owls drove 112 yards in 19 plays, but drive they did, Luke Willson hauling in two key catches for first-down yardage, and Patrick Randolph accomplishing the same.

Pat's second reception on the drive was a thing of beauty, and it came at a key juncture. The Owls were facing third and 17 from the UAB 26, when T-Mac found the senior wide receiver on a down-and-in pattern, right at the yard to gain. Randolph leapt and outdueled his defender, emphatically clenching his fist as he arose from the turf.

Randolph shone in front of pop and everybody

“I thought Pat had his biggest game as a Rice Owl,” Coach Bailiff said. “I think this was Pat’s finest game." It was a game, one may note parenthetically, that was observed by the senior wide receiver's father, Paul Randolph, who on most Saturday's is busy commanding the University of Tulsa defense.

Next, it was Sam MGuffie who was able to pick his way for six yards to the UAB three, where the Blazers were flagged for one of their four personal fouls on the day (just couldn't help it, Coach).

That gave the Flock a first and goal just outside the one yard line, but two dives into the line by Tyler Smith netted negative yardage, and suddenly it was third and goal from the four.

The UAB defenders bunched up in the tackle box, but that was fine with T-Mac, for he was simply able to drop back two and hit his big receiver, Vance McDonald, at the visitors side of the end zone for an easy TD reception.

That put the Owls up, 21-17, but once again, they couldn't live with prosperity.

Five straight passing plays took the Blazers as far as the Owl 32, and then Bryan Ellis found Pat Shedd wide open, and we do mean wide open, at the Rice ten, where he waltzed in for the score.

Missed PAT attempt pumped life into Owl sideline

But Blazer placekicker Josh Zahn missed the extra point attempt, and that fact gave the Owls a bit of extra spring in their step -- which was certainly needed, as there remained exactly five minutes on the clock between that point and a 3-9 season.

Charles Ross got the Flock off to a good start by returning the ensuing kickoff to the Owl 35. But from there, the Owls had to earn every inch of the way, although they were able to convert each series  prior to reaching third down on all but one occasion. T-Mac scrambled for a couple of key firsts along the way. But despite the steady progression down the field, the clock began to loom as a factor.

Of course a last-second field goal would have won it just as well, but the Owls were aiming for a touchdown so as not to put the game on the back of their freshman place kicker.

Under a minute remained as Rice faced second and 12 from the UAB 22. Eddington came in, took the snap, immediately headed right, evaded one diving Blazer down lineman, faked out a linebacker protecting off-tackle, and then shockingly found himself with nothing but green grass ahead.

"As soon as I saw that end zone, nobody was going to tackle me,” said the freshman phenom. “Even if somebody was in the way, I was going to run right through them.”  

His 22-yard touchdown dash sealed the deal, on a day when the Rice offense netted but 354 yards total offense, yet garnered 28 first downs.

When J-Edd came into the postgame interview room, he sported a noticeable limp. That was something that was nowhere in evidence on the football field, though.

"Jeremy is tough," Coach Bailiff  noted. "Thursday he was not sure he could play. His ankle was sore and he kept getting treatment and makes the play to win the game for us."

When all was told, the Owls' ultimate success in no small part was owed the game of keep-away they were able to play, holding onto the ball for right at 14 out of the last 16 minutes of the game.

Now you do that, and it makes it hard for the other fella to score. And in this case it basically kept the other guy from having a chance to win -- which was exactly what Owl senior defenders had in mind. To a man, they were determined to bow out on a positive note, said senior linebacker Justin Hill.

“It feels great being a senior going out with a win,” Hill said. “But I’ll be around. I’ll be a Rice fan forever, so as long as they’ve got some momentum going into winter offseason, the spring and the beginning of next year, if they’ve got that momentum carrying them I think they’ll go a long way. I’ll be here watching.”