Started Rice’s last game, the first career start.
L 49-51 at Florida Atlantic, Oct 24: 2 of 5 for 80 yards, a touchdown · 12 carries for 259 yards, 4 rushing touchdowns.
Rice’s next game: at North Texas, Sat Nov 7, 4:00 p.m. ET · ESPNU
Notre Dame · L 0-52
No pass attempts.
Western Michigan · L 21-28
No pass attempts.
Fresno State · L 24-38
No pass attempts.
UTSA · L 14-16
No pass attempts.
Ochoa has pass attempts in 4 of Rice’s 8 games: none in the other 4.
Dashed line: 300 yards.
Ochoa six yards away from breaking the Rice rushing record. And the third quarter isnt over yet
Rice fan
4 stories in the last 30 days, from 4 outlets.
Gael Ochoa
Played for two head coaches across two seasons and two programs.
160 passing yards · 1 passing TD · 278 rushing yards
from 4 outlets
from 4 outlets
Each week: his team’s game, the stories about him that week, and the week’s biggest news headline.
Stories we tracked, by school.
Rice4 stories2026 to nowMost about: awards and watch lists, profile and feature, performance and stat line.
AOL.comFormer Pebble Hills standout Gael Ochoa shines in first collegiate start for RiceOct 26
The Rice ThresherRice University quarterback Gael Ochoa rushes for 259 yards, four touchdowns in lossOct 28
El Paso TimesAfter years waiting, Pebble Hills' Gael Ochoa makes Rice historyOct 31
UNLV1 story2024 to 2025
The RoostRice Football Recruiting: QB Gael Ochoa commits to OwlsJan 6Stories are headlines grouped by what they are about, counted through Nov 4.
Against Florida Atlantic on Oct. 24: 2 of 5 for 80 yards. In the 4 games drawn here: 8 of 16 for 160 yards.
Each game is split into its four quarters, so the columns line up from game to game; inside a quarter, plays keep their order. Third and fourth downs are marked under the line, bold when he moved the chains.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Last game (Wk 8): 80 passing yards, 1 passing TD.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 4 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | Grade | CMP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | YPA | QBR | SK | RUSH | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 31-3vs Houston Christian | Left in Q2 | 2/5 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 3.4 | — | 0 | 34 | |
| Wk 6 | L 12-28@ East Carolina | Came on in Q4 | 2/4 | 48 | 0 | 0 | 12.0 | 25.8 | — | -6 | |
| Wk 7 | L 17-38vs Tulsa | Came on in Q4 | 2/2 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 7.5 | -- | 1 | -9 | |
| Wk 8 | L 49-51@ Florida Atlantic | 2/5 | 80 | 1 | 0 | 16.0 | 99.9 | 1 | 259 | Season-high 80 yds | |
| Total | 8/16 | 160 | 1 | 0 | 10.0 | — | 2 | 278 |
Week 8 · 2026
L 49-51
The plays that mattered most
| Stat | His | Nation | American Athletic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Passing yards | 160 | 212th of 370 | 19th of 37 |
| Yards an attempt | 10.0 | Not ranked | Not ranked |
| Touchdown passes | 1 | T-202nd of 370 | T-20th of 37 |
| Passer rating | 154.6 | Not ranked | Not ranked |
| Completion percentage | 50.0 | Not ranked | Not ranked |
| Rushing yards | 278 | 34th of 370 | 6th of 37 |
| Rushing touchdowns | 5 | T-25th of 370 | T-4th of 37 |
Counting stats rank all FBS quarterbacks with a pass attempt; the rates rank those with at least 10 attempts a game. He has 16 attempts of the 80 needed after 8 games, so the rates are not ranked.
| Rk | Quarterback | Yards | TD | INT | Att | Y/A |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tayven Jackson | 2,568 | 22 | 5 | 268 | 9.6 |
| 2 | Caden Veltkamp | 2,534 | 23 | 5 | 315 | 8.0 |
| 3 | Marcus Stokes | 2,532 | 25 | 6 | 259 | 9.8 |
| 4 | Owen McCown | 1,751 | 10 | 4 | 243 | 7.2 |
| 5 | Baylor Hayes | 1,343 | 10 | 2 | 192 | 7.0 |
| 6 | Ryder Burton | 1,333 | 6 | 5 | 194 | 6.9 |
| 7 | Michael Van Buren Jr. | 1,273 | 6 | 0 | 181 | 7.0 |
| 8 | Ajani Sheppard | 1,245 | 8 | 3 | 140 | 8.9 |
| 9 | Conner Harrell | 831 | 5 | 2 | 108 | 7.7 |
| 10 | Kadin Semonza | 804 | 4 | 2 | 119 | 6.8 |
| 11 | Cole Gonzales | 802 | 3 | 7 | 127 | 6.3 |
| 12 | Mitch Griffis | 753 | 4 | 5 | 126 | 6.0 |
| 13 | Trace Johnson | 749 | 2 | 4 | 106 | 7.1 |
| 14 | Jackson Gutierrez | 717 | 7 | 1 | 71 | 10.1 |
| 15 | Emory Williams | 716 | 7 | 2 | 117 | 6.1 |
| 16 | Jacurri Brown | 471 | 2 | 2 | 82 | 5.7 |
| 17 | Cale Hellums | 462 | 4 | 2 | 76 | 6.1 |
| 18 | Dexter Williams II | 340 | 3 | 0 | 59 | 5.8 |
| 19 | Gael Ochoa | 160 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 10.0 |
| 20 | Chaston Ditta | 159 | 1 | 0 | 19 | 8.4 |
| 21 | Braxton Woodson | 152 | 0 | 1 | 25 | 6.1 |
| 22 | Jaxon Smolik | 129 | 1 | 1 | 27 | 4.8 |
| 23 | Air Noland | 83 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 9.2 |
| 24 | Zach Mundell | 82 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 27.3 |
| 25 | Drew Devillier | 79 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 6.1 |
| 26 | Zeon Chriss | 64 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 7.1 |
| 27 | Luke Kromenhoek | 60 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 4.3 |
| 28 | Chris Jimerson Jr. | 55 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 18.3 |
| 29 | Patrick Crayton Jr. | 29 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 14.5 |
| 30 | Nate Rogers | 24 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4.8 |
| 31 | Jordan Magwood | 16 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5.3 |
| 32 | Ethan Washington | 13 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6.5 |
| 33 | Bryson Luter | 12 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3.0 |
| 34 | Dagan Bruno | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10.0 |
| 35 | Jeremiah Daoud | 6 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1.5 |
| 36 | Jaylen White | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1.0 |
| 37 | Brandon Tennison | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 |
Sorted by passing yards. Gray: under 10 attempts a game, so not ranked on yards an attempt.
Ratings of the games shown run from -4 to -2 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Clark and Matthews saw 8 of the 16 charted throws.
| Receiver | Targets, caught | Targets | Catches | Yards | Throw depth | After catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jordan Clark | 6 | 5 | 73 | 9.0 | 5.8 | |
| Payton Matthews | 2 | 1 | 10 | 7.0 | 0.0 | |
| Davis Lane Jr. | 2 | 1 | 6 | 5.5 | 0.0 | |
| Braylen Walker | 1 | 1 | 71 | 29.0 | 42.0 | |
| Ben Grice | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 | — | |
| 3 others | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10.3 | — | |
| No receiver charted | 1 | |||||
Play by play: 16 passes, 8 caught, 160 yards. Throw depth: average air yards per target. After catch: average yards after the catch per catch. Bar: targets; the blue part was caught.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 4 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | TD/g | YPA | INT/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home2g | 16.0 | 0.0 | 5.5 | 0.0 |
| Road2g | 64.0 | 0.5 | 14.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | TD/g | YPA | INT/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 26.7 | 0.0 | 7.6 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+1g | 80.0 | 1.0 | 16.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Scott Abell
Pass share
20.2%
100 pass / 394 run
Plays / game
61.8
8 games
Scheme: Run-heavy, slow tempo.
| Gael Ochoa | Threw in 4 of 8 games · 8 of 16, 160 yds, 1 TD, 0 INT · 10.0 yards an attempt on 16 attempts · ran for 278 yds, 5 TD |
| Jacurri Brown | Threw in 7 of 8 games · 39 of 82, 471 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT · 5.7 yards an attempt on 82 attempts · ran for 668 yds, 6 TD |
| Patrick Crayton Jr. | Threw in 1 of 8 games · 2 of 2, 29 yds, 0 TD, 0 INT · 14.5 yards an attempt on 2 attempts · ran for 45 yds, 0 TD |
Box score. Every quarterback on the team who has thrown a pass this season.
Who threw in each quarter. Blue: Gael Ochoa. Gray: Jacurri Brown, Patrick Crayton Jr.. From the play by play.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer passes and runs a game than most FBS quarterbacks who play every week.
The No. 2,017 recruit in the country is starting at quarterback in the American Athletic.
2026 is in progress.
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
3 coachesPlayed for 3 head coaches at 2 schools: Barry Odom, Dan Mullen and Scott Abell.
Next stop · Transfer
Transferred to Rice
