Football team faces No. 18 LSU on road after losing to Tulane

---

by John Fredland

---

There the team will take on a Tiger squad looking to regain its past glory after several lean years.

LSU entered the season on a string of six consecutive losing seasons, the longest streak in school history.

In their first year under Head Coach Gerry DiNardo, the Tigers do appear to be on the way back to national prominence.

Last week they upset then-fifth-ranked Auburn University,12-6. As a result, LSU entered the national top 25 -- 18th in Associated Press , 20th in CNN/USA Today -- for the first time since 1989.

The game will represent a stern test for an Owl squad that expected to come in with a 2-0 record, instead of 1-1.

"It will be a challenge to us," Rice Head Coach Ken Hatfield said. "They have so many weapons. They just have a good, solid team."

On the season, LSU is 2-1, with an opening-game loss to Texas A&M University followed by victories against Southern Mississippi University and Auburn.

Defense has led the way for the Tigers. They held Auburn, who entered the game first in the nation in scoring offense, without a touchdown.

LSU limited Auburn to 274 yards total offense, almost 300 fewer than its season average.

"Their top four linebackers are big and fast," running back Yoncy Edmonds said. "We are have to play hard and hope for the best."

Hatfield said, "Their defense is swarming, and they have eaten up Auburn two years in a row.

"I don't think their defense is worried about anybody they play, including Texas A&M when they played. Their defense is as good as there is in the country."

Senior quarterback Jamie Howard, who has been the starter for most of his four years at LSU, leads the Tiger offense.

The Tigers also shown signs of developing a running game with freshman tailback Jamie Faulk, who rushed for 171 yards against Mississippi State.

"The difference in LSU, this year, is that they can run the football," Hatfield said.

"They can throw all day with Jamie Howard and their great receivers. Now, they can run the ball hard and run it well," he said. "The first drive against Auburn, they just stuck it down their throat and ran the ball right at them the whole way. They are as balanced as it is."

The Owls will also have to contend with playing before a homecoming crowd of more than 80,000 at Tiger Stadium, also known as "Death Valley."

"It is a great home-field advantage, yet is an exciting and electrifying place to play football," Hatfield said.

"I think our players will respond in that manner, too. They will enjoy the atmosphere of big-time college football. The main thing is that you don't let the other distractions affect you from playing your best."

Tulane held off a late Rice rally to defeat the Owls 17-15 last Saturday at Rice Stadium.

The contest followed a pattern similar to Rice's games with Tulane and Baylor University last season. The Owls played sluggishly and fell behind on a pair of first half touchdown runs by freshman tailback Jamaican Dartez, who finished with 154 yards on 24 carries.

Beginning in the third quarter, the offense awakened from its slumber and produced a pair of touchdown drives but could not get Rice all the way back.

"It was pretty much a total team loss," Hatfield said.

"Offensively, we were ineffective in any consistent manner. Defensively, we let them have two long drives in the first half to get ahead 14-0."

Dartez, who had rushed for 103 yards against Wake Forest University the week before, ran up the middle against an Owl defense playing without injured linebacker Joe Davis for a 32-yard touchdown in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, he ran through the middle once again for a 61-yard touchdown.

"Their freshman running back (Dartez) is a great player," Rice defensive end Ndukwe Kalu said. "We just couldn't stop the run up the middle. He impressed me a lot."

The Owl offense, struggling without injured offensive linemen Chris Cooley and Mark Spinner, managed to produce two long drives in the second quarter.

Both, however, ended with missed field goals by Johnny Bagwell, who has been hampered by a leg injury.

For the most part, Rice could not move the ball consistently on offense. The Owls damaged their chances for sustained drives by converting only one of 10 third-down attempts.

"We didn't take advantage of our opportunities," quarterback Josh LaRocca said.

"We were in the red zone twice in the second quarter and didn't score. Our offense needs to score touchdowns when we're in the red zone. Scoring comes down to concentration, and when we have an opportunity to score, our concentration has to be the best."

The Owls came to life late in the third quarter. Jamey Whitlock ran for 26 yards on a fake punt on fourth down and three yards to go to continue a drive.

LaRocca hit Byron Godfrey with a 33-yard touchdown pass on the next play to cut the deficit to 14-7.

After the teams exchanged possessions, Tulane expanded its lead with its only substantial drive of the second half.

Controlling the ball for 7:39 in the fourth quarter, the Green Wave culminated the drive in a 32-yard Brad Palazzo field goal for a 17-7 advantage.

LaRocca threw an interception on the next Owl possession, and the game appeared to be out of reach when Rice took over the ball at their own 35 with 2:01 to play.

The Owls, however, would make the end interesting.

LaRocca's 49-yard pass to freshman receiver Thad Bridges -- Rice's only third-down conversion of the game -- set the Owls up at the Tulane one.

Whitlock ran the ball in on the next play, and LaRocca's two-point conversion pass to Jeff Venghaus cut the gap to 17-15.

Bobby Dixon recovered the ensuing onside kick at the Tulane 39.

Three plays advanced the Owls to the 31, and set up a 48-yard field goal attempt for backup kicker Mike Ruff.

Ruff's kick, however, was short, and the Green Wave defeated the Owls for the second year in a row.

Although disappointed by the loss, Rice hopes it galvanizes itself for its upcoming schedule, which sends the Owls on the road for five of the next six games.

"It made us realize that we have to go out there and play hard week in and week out," Edmonds said. "Another Tulane may happen. It will make us better and give us an incentive."

Hatfield said, "A lot of times, it takes a loss to really get you down to earth and really show where all of your weaknesses are.

"I think now it is just a matter to take what we might have learned from the other night and see if we can make improvement. The attitude is there. The effort is there. Now, we just have to get the execution there, and we'll be alright."

This item appeared in the Sports section of the September 22, 1995 issue.

Copyright © 1996 The Rice Thresher. All Rights Reserved.
This document may be distributed electronically, provided that it is distributed in its entirety and includes this notice. However, it cannot be reprinted without the express written permission of:
The Rice Thresher, Rice University, 6100 Main, Houston, TX 77005-1892, USA.