• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Rice seeking 10th win in Texas Bowl

Dec 30, 2008 - 12:35 PM Rice (9-3) vs. Western Michigan (9-3), 8:00 pm EST

HOUSTON (Ticker) -- After a dramatic turnaround this season, Rice was rewarded with a postseason game in its home town, a contest against Western Michigan of the Mid-American Conference in the Texas Bowl.

The Owls (9-3) posted a six-game improvement this year, winning their final six regular-season contests to tie Tulsa for the Conference USA's West Division title. Rice lost the tiebreaker based on its 63-28 defeat to the Golden Hurricane.

The Owls rolled through their final six conference games, however, averaging nearly 42 points. In the regular-season finale, Chase Clement threw for 381 yards and five touchdowns, pacing Rice to a 56-42 win over Houston.

Rice is seeking its first 10-win season since 1949 and its first bowl win since beating Alabama, 28-6, in the 1954 Cotton Bowl.

"I thought we could win six (games) this year, but it's amazing what young men can achieve when they do it together," said Rice's David Bailiff, the Conference USA's Coach of the Year.

"And then you start stringing some wins in a row and they start believing in themselves some more. It's just a tribute to our senior leadership."

Leading Rice into Tuesday's showdown is the potent trio of Clement, wide receiver Jarrett Dillard and multi-talented tight end James Casey, who set a Conference USA single-season record with 104 receptions this year, which ranks second in the Football Bowl Subdivision.

Against Houston, Casey caught 12 passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns, ran for a fourth score and threw for a fifth. It was the second time this year that the sophomore has caught, ran and thrown for a touchdown in the same game.

Clement ranks sixth in the FBS in passing yards (3,812) and fourth in touchdowns with 41. Dillard, who hauled in 79 catches for 1,224 yards, led the FBS with 19 TD receptions.

Western Michigan (9-3), which lost to Ball State, 45-22, in its last regular-season game, is seeking the first 10-win season in school history, having reached nine wins for only the third time.

The Broncos also like to throw the ball, with five receivers catching at least 30 passes, led by Jamarko Simmons with 98 catches for 1,184 yards and seven TDS.