The Rice Owls (4-4) square off against a fellow C-USA foe when they host the UTEP Miners (4-5) on Thursday, November 3, 2022 at Rice Stadium.
The Owls enter the matchup after losing 56-23 to the Charlotte 49ers in their last outing on October 29. The Miners are coming off of a 24-13 loss to the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders. Against the 49ers, TJ McMahon led the Owls with 218 yards on 18-of-33 passing (54.5%) for three touchdowns and one interception. He also carried the ball nine times for 45 yards. Luke McCaffrey took one carry for 37 yards (37.0 yards per carry), while adding four receptions for 58 yards and one touchdown in the passing game. Bradley Rozner led the receiving charge against the 49ers, catching five passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns. Gavin Hardison went 19-for-34 with 177 yards, one touchdown and one interception for the Miners against the Blue Raiders. Deion Hankins carried the ball 13 times for 68 yards (5.2 yards per attempt). In the passing game, he added one catch for seven yards. Tyrin Smith caught 10 passes on 14 targets for 117 yards (11.7 yards per reception), and scored one touchdown.
The Owls are the favorite (-3.5) against the Miners. The total is set at 48.5 points.
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