CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Chase Jenkins threw for a touchdown and ran for another, Daelen Alexander rushed for 73 yards and two touchdowns, and Rice beat Charlotte 28-17 on Thursday night in an American Conference opener for both teams.
Rice has opened a season 3-1 for the first time since 2001, when the Owls won six of the first seven. Scott Abell is the first coach to have three wins in his first four games of a career at Rice since Bo Hagan in 1967.
Jenkins was 8-of-11 passing for 87 yards, and he carried it 10 times for 71 yards. Quinton Jackson added 80 yards on the ground.
Charlotte’s first touchdown came with 7:27 left in the fourth quarter after Grayson Loftis’ 31-yard connection with Javen Nicholas. A successful two-point conversion capped the scoring
Rice had a key sack on each of Charlotte’s final two possessions to help seal it.
Loftis was 15 of 31 for 186 yards for Charlotte (1-3). Liam Boyd went 3 of 4 on field-goal attempts, with a long of 40. Conner Harrell, who threw for 382 yards last week in a win over Monmouth, was 8 of 13 for 73 yards.
Last season, Charlotte rallied for a 21-20 win at Rice Stadium after driving 77 yards in less than a minute to score a touchdown with 47 seconds left in the game.
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