By Glen Miller/Sports Writer

HOUSTON — Having been to the “Big Dance” three times during his high school coaching days, Todd Dilbeck had gotten a taste of what it was like to coach in a high-profile game.

Now the former Mustang High School coach is getting another shot at winning some postseason hardware — but on the college level.

Rice University capped off a 7-5 regular season with a 31-27 win over Southern Methodist that assures the Owls one of Conference USA’s five bowl bids.

“This is going to be a neat experience,” Dilbeck said of coaching in a bowl game. “It’s like playing for a state championship, once you experience it, you want to go back to that arena — no matter where it is or what level.”

Dilbeck, the offensive line coach and run game coordinator, said he was not shocked to see the Owls make a miraculous turnaround. Rice went from a 1-10 season in 2005 to posting a 6-2 record in league play this season.

Rice is bowl eligible for the first time in 45 years. Its last bowl appearance was against Kansas in the 1961 Bluebonnett Bowl.

“I’m not surprised,” Dilbeck said. “We felt like this was something we could do.

Coach Graham (Todd) had raised over $6 million for stadium renovations and everything has taken off for us. We have a president and an administration that supports what he is doing.”

Dilbeck has been in the thick of Rice’s transformation from a run-oriented team to a spread offense, using his experience from Mustang and its high-powered passing attack. Behind Dilbeck’s line, the Owls have rushed for 1,664 yards (138.7 per game) and thrown for 2,478 yards (206.5 per game).

Rice’s total offense of 4,142 yards is 430 yards more than last season, while its average yards per play has increased from 4.6 to 5.2. The Owls have also increased their per game average in total yards from 337 to 345.

“The biggest thing has been converting the kids that were recruited to run the wishbone to run a pass pro attack. It’s a different type of offense, similar to what we ran in Mustang, and they have done a super job of adjusting,” Dilbeck said.
The players are not the only ones that have to adjust to a new way of life. Dilbeck has had to learn, on the fly, the vast sea of rules used by the NCAA to govern its Division I schools.

“There are a lot of rules and you have to make sure you cross your T’s and dot your I’s and follow the chain of command, but it’s not been all that bad,” Dilbeck said. “We have a compliance officer that does a great job of telling us what we can and cannot do.”

And one of those “no-no’s” was Dilbeck being allowed to attend Mustang’s final regular season game against Edmond Santa Fe. The coach who turned the Broncos program around from a doormat to contender was forced to stay away from Broncos Stadium.

“We already had our allotment of coaches out recruiting, so coach Graham allowed me to go home,” Dilbeck said of that Friday night. “Staying away from the field was tough. After 23 years of having the kids around you on the field and going to events on a Friday night, staying at home was hard.”

However, staying at home had a silver lining. It allowed him to spend quality time with his family that has remained in Mustang since he took the Rice position in January. Dilbeck said the decision for his wife, Bobbie and family to stay in Oklahoma was to allow oldest daughter, Meagan, the chance to graduate high school with her friends.

“That has been the hardest thing. We have spent all these years on the football field together. I was able to coach my son, Houston, and then having Meagan and Kolby as managers, I got to be around them every day on the practice field.

“That was always special and I do miss that time of the year. It’s been 10 months now and there have been a lot of working nights, but it does get lonely,” Dilbeck said of living in Houston alone.

Having those working nights has allowed Dilbeck to refocus his coaching career.

“It has been a great experience for me. When I was younger I thought this was the avenue I wanted to take, but you never know what it’s like until you experience it. This has been great in a lot of ways for me. Being the offensive line coach has allowed me to refocus in that area and right now I’m enjoying life as an assistant coach,” Dilbeck said.

How long he stays an assistant coach, rather than step up in the college ranks or return to high school coaching, is not his decision.

“That is all in God’s hands, but this has been good for me. I have become a more knowledgeable football coach and Todd (Graham) has taught me how to fine-tune things. I used a lot of his philosophies when I became a head coach in high school and now he’s showing me how to operate a Division I program,” Dilbeck said.

There have been a few negatives to his career change.

“It’s been a whirlwind. There’s been a lot of learning and a lot of traveling. We have flown from Los Angeles to New York and everywhere in between and it’s very time-consuming – more than I thought.

“Then there is the preparation to get ready to play, from breaking down opponents and all those considerations,” Dilbeck said.

One of the hardest hurdles to overcome was the loss of freshman football player Dale Lloyd, who collapsed on the field during a light workout in late September and died a day later.

Dilbeck said it brought up memories from the loss of lineman Andrew Bostic while at Mustang.

“It’s something you always dread and you never expect it to happen,” Dilbeck said. “We dedicated the rest of the season to Lloyd. You never want anyone to have to experience this, but it does bring people closer together. However, it’s never fun and it’s something I never want to experience again.”