| Year: | 1940 |
| Team: | Rice Owls |
| Sport: | football |
| Conference: | Southwest Conference |
| Short Conf: | SWC |
| Record: | 7–3 |
| Conf Record: | 4–2 |
| Head Coach: | Jess Neely |
| Hc Year: | 1st |
| Stadium: | Rice Field |
The 1940 Rice Owls football team was an American football team that represented Rice University as a member of the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1940 college football season. In its first season under head coach Jess Neely, the team compiled a 7–3 record (4–2 against SWC opponents) and outscored opponents by a total of 131 to 78.[1] [2]
Rice was ranked at No. 21 (out of 697 college football teams) in the final rankings under the Litkenhous Difference by Score system for 1940.[3]