Nov. 22, 2010

Senior RB Justin Brooks, senior DE Bryant Turner and senior DE Darrion Wilson look ahead to Rice.
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- UAB football head coach Neil Callaway held his weekly press conference Monday as the Blazers enter the final week of the season.

Senior running back Justin Brooks and senior defensive ends Bryant Turner and Darrion Wilson also met with the media to recap last week's win over Memphis and look ahead to Saturday's contest at Rice.

UAB (4-7, 3-4 C-USA) is coming off a 31-15 victory over Memphis in the annual rivalry game as the Blazers retained the "Battle for the Bones" trophy. The team rolled up 510 yards of offense, including 361 through the air by quarterback Bryan Ellis.

Rice (3-8, 2-5 C-USA) had an offensive explosion of its own with 639 total yards in a 62-38 win over East Carolina last Saturday. The Owls put up 410 yards on the ground and had three individual rushers with at least 97 yards.

"We will be playing a different style of offense this week," Callaway said. "Rice leans more toward running the football. They are capable of both running and passing, but my statement is based on what they have been doing over the last couple of weeks ... They will be a tough challenge for us because they do a nice job."

UAB and Rice have met just three times previously since the Owls joined Conference USA in 2005, and the Blazers have won two of those games.

Saturday's contest will kick off at 2:30 p.m. CT and be carried live from Houston on the Blazer Sports Network, airing locally on 107.7 WUHT-FM. David Crane, John Whitcomb and Otis Leverette will call the action with the pregame show beginning at 1 p.m. CT.

UAB Head Coach Neil Callaway

On the win over Memphis
"Anytime you win a football game is good. I was very happy and excited for our players, especially the seniors who were able to play their last home game and come out with a win on Senior Night. We were able to honor them and keep the `Battle for the Bones' trophy at home. I think it was a very good win for our football team.

On the challenge of facing Rice
"Looking ahead to Rice, I see that they have really come on during the last two or three weeks, especially offensively. They scored 62 points against East Carolina last weekend and 49 against Tulane in the week before. They have caught fire offensively. They are doing a lot of things, such as running the football and mixing it up. Offensively, they have been so successful, and I think that has bled over into the rest of the team. They are playing good football, so it is a game that we will have to make sure we are ready to play. We are looking forward to it."

On the state of this UAB team and its expectations against Rice
"We still have our same issues injury-wise. We are not going to get anybody back. I don't think we lost anybody defensively (last week), but we will be playing a different style of offense this week. Rice leans more toward running the football. They are capable of both running and passing, but my statement is based on what they have been doing over the last couple of weeks. They had over 400 yards rushing against East Carolina. So they will be a tough challenge for us because they do a nice job."

On Bryan Ellis' 72-yard touchdown pass after a fumbled reverse handoff
"It wasn't exactly how we practiced it. We worked on it a lot and felt like it was going to be a good play, and it was. I thought (offensive coordinator) Kim Helton called it at a great time. We didn't execute the handoff like we were supposed to. Bryan picked the ball up and made the play work, and that's the main thing."

On the Rice defense
"They do some good things, particularly up front with their defense. They are a strong defensive football team."

Senior RB Justin Brooks

On winding down his college career
"You kind of start to cherish your opportunities, knowing that they have become limited as a college athlete here at UAB. Last week to me was really special. I'm glad we got the win. We won the rivalry game between us and Memphis, and we got to keep the bones (trophy). It was special for me and the rest of the seniors with it being our last home game. The challenge for us going on the road at Rice is also going to be a special one. I mean, it is an away game, but it's the last time us as seniors will put on a UAB uniform."

On the possibility for a letdown playing the final game on the road
"I think we are actually a little more on top right now with the win. When you're on the road, if you lose that (previous) home game, then that kind of lags over. But with us winning, if you go back and look a couple years ago at UCF, we finished up down there on top, and that does catapult you into the offseason."

On building for the future
"As seniors, you want to leave that legacy, something they can build on. Going into the offseason with a two-game win streak isn't a bad thing to be building on."

Senior DE Bryant Turner

On the Rice running game
"These last two games, they have switched up their offense a little to some wildcat. They have a running back that lines up at quarterback, and they do a pretty good job with it. I think we're going to make good adjustments to it. I think if we adjust to it and play like we're supposed to, we'll stop it."

On finishing his UAB career Saturday at Rice
"It's the last game of my college career. I want to go out with a win, of course. I'm kind of looking forward to it. I know when it gets here, I'm going to be sad, but right now I'm excited."

Senior DE Darrion Wilson

On the importance of closing the season with a win
"With a win, especially with all the adversity we've faced this season, finishing up on a good note is going to set the tone for next year and the years to come."

On the strength of Rice on the ground
"They have a pretty good running game, period. They can throw the ball, but defensively we're focusing on stopping the run. If we stop that, we'll be pretty good. They've had a lot of yards in the past couple weeks, and most of it was on the ground, so if we can stop the ground game, we'll be fine."