Sept. 26, 2006

With hearts heavy with the emotions surrounding the loss of teammate Dale Lloyd on Monday, the Rice Owls returned to the practice field at Rice Stadium on Tuesday to begin preparations for their game at Army this Saturday.

At the same time, funeral arrangements for Lloyd were announced by the family and the school. Services will be held at 3:00 on Sunday at Second Baptist Church (Woodway & Voss) in Houston and is open to the public.

The Dale Lloyd II Memorial Scholarship In lieu of flowers, the Lloyd family has requested that memorials be directed to The Dale Lloyd Memorial Scholarship Fund. This scholarship will benefit a future Rice University Student Athlete. Interested individuals or groups can donate either on-line or by mail. To donate on-line simply click here to access the Dale Lloyd Scholarship Fund On-Line Option and you will be directed to the Rice University on-line donation page. When filling out the form please put Dale Lloyd Memorial Scholarship Fund in the "special instructions" section so that your gift gets directed to the appropriate fund. Gifts can be mailed to: Rice University Office of Development PO BOX 1892 Houston, TX 77251-1892 Payable to: Rice University Put in Memo line: The Dale Lloyd II Memorial Scholarship

The Owls will honor Lloyd's memory by adding a #39 sticker in the middle of their helmet logos, between the wings of the Owl. The school also announced the creation of The Dale Lloyd II Memorial Scholarship, which is intended to benefit a Rice University student-athlete. (See Box)

Rice head coach Todd Graham admitted before practice that his first reaction when he learned of Lloyd's passing was to cancel this week's game. But after speaking with a number of people, including former Baylor coach Grant Teaff, Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden and Bobby Ross of Army, as well as the grief counselors and team captains, he decided to move forward with the game.

"Bobby Ross told me, `Todd you have to lead those kids, you have to be strong for those kids' and I told him that is what we are going to do. We will honor Dale with everything that we do," Graham said.

Lloyd had been a member of the Owls travel party in both their road games this season, and Graham indicated the team will also carry his jersey with them on each trip the rest of the year before presenting it to his parents at the end of the season.

Graham and his staff face a challenge this week unlike any they have confronted in their careers.

"The thing I have gotten from everyone is that we need to get back up. We've got to get back out on that field. I think that is what Dale would want us to do. That's the type of player he was. We're just going to pull together, lock arm in arm, and get back up. We have a closeness that will get us through this," he added.