Two teams desperate for a victory meet tonight when Vanderbilt (1-2, 0-2 Southeastern Conference) visits Rice (0-3, 0-1 Conference -USA) in Houston.
The Commodores are coming off consecutive double-digit conference losses, most recently a 15-3 defeat at the hands of Mississippi State on Sept. 19. It knocked them to their first losing record since November of 2007.
The Owls have yet to hold an opponent to less than 41 points in dropping their first three games of the year. Their closet margin so far was losing by 17 points to Oklahoma State on Saturday.
Home in Houston: Rice played its first three games on the road, visiting UAB, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State, so this will be its home opener.
Vanderbilt has not played in Rice Stadium since winning 9-6 in 1975. The Commodores lead the all-time series 3-1.
Passing woes: Vanderbilt once again finds itself not just near the bottom of the conference, but at the bottom of the country, in passing offense, through its first three games.
The Commodores rank 11th in the SEC and 112th (out of 120) in the nation with 133 yards passing per contest. Their completion percentage of just 44.4 (36-80) is second-worst on the country; only Georgia Tech, who uses a triple option offense, is lower.
Not all of the blame can be laid on redshirt sophomore quarterback Larry Smith however; the wide receiving corps has struggled with drops, particulary in the last two contests where Vanderbilt has managed a scant 372 total yards of offense.
However, the Owls rank 116th in the country in pass defense (Vanderbilt ranks seventh). Something's got to give.
Smith will be making his fifth career start. He is currently 2-2 in that role.
How to watch/listen: The game will be broadcast on College Sports South (CSS) beginning at 7 p.m. CT. It will also air on the radio on 104.5 FM, with Joe Fisher making the call.
This is the fourth consecutive night game for the Commodores to open the season.
