Rice’s loss at UConn has led to a coaching change.
Sources told Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger that coach Mike Bloomgren has been fired. The 17-10 defeat dropped Rice to 2-6 on the season.
Rice has fired coach Mike Bloomgren, sources tell @YahooSports. He was 24-52 and the Owls are 2-6 in his seventh season. A team meeting is being held now.
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) October 27, 2024
Rice went to bowl games in 2022 and 2023, though the Owls won six games just once in Bloomgren’s tenure. Last season, Rice went 6-6 before a 45-21 loss to Texas State in the First Responder Bowl. The season before, Rice got to a bowl game despite a 5-7 season because there weren’t enough 6-6 teams and the Owls’ had one of the best Academic Progress Rates of any 5-7 team.
Overall, the Owls went 24-52 since Bloomgren was hired in 2018. The team was 2-11 in his first season and improved incrementally during his tenure. However, the Owls took a step back this season in their second year in the AAC. Rice’s only win over an FBS opponent so far this season is a 29-27 win over UTSA. The team has been outscored 193-104 by FBS opponents.
Per ESPN, associate head coach Pete Alamar will be the team’s interim coach.