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A swathe of graduations and injuries made it abundantly clear that the 2025 Rice Football recruiting class would need help in the secondary this spring, most specifically at corner. Rice did their homework on various available defensive backs and landed an extremely talented transfer from Houston Christian. Corner Khary Crump has committed to the Owls.
Last season, Crump led the Southland Conference in passes defended, registering 10 breakups and three interceptions during his only season with the Huskies.
Crump began his collegiate career at Arizona in 2020, where he did not see any game action before transferring to Michigan State. Crump appeared in nine games for the Spartans across three seasons, playing sparingly before landing in a full-time role for the first time at Houston Christian in 2024, where he excelled.
With the addition of Crump, Rice has now added a host of players in the spring transfer window on the defensive side of the ball, including one other in the secondary: Oregon State safety Jack Kane. Rice also picked up pledges from defensive linemen VJ Bronson (North Texas) and Sam Carrell (Texas Tech).
The tape is fantastic. At 6-foot,180 pounds, Krump is a physical corner who can hold his own on the outside, something the Owls’ demand in their defensive scheme. He’s an extremely talented defender who should challenge for a starting spot at South Main upon his arrival.
Become a Patron!Full season highlight film š§š°š° pic.twitter.com/5dap97IYIN
— Khary Crump (@Kjd1bez37) January 17, 2025
Myers made an emphatic statement this week with a thrilling pinch-hit grand slam, eliminating a four-run deficit to the Los Angeles Dodgers with one swing of the bat. In four games this week, Myers went 6-for-8 with five RBI and an absurd 1.903 OPS, further boosting his numbers in an already impressive start to the season.
DANE MYERS GRAND SLAMS JUST HIT DIFFERENT š pic.twitter.com/wagkVhr8Hx
— Miami Marlins (@Marlins) April 29, 2025
Through Apr. 30, Myers is hitting .351 with four extra-base hits, two walks and 15 strikeouts. His OPS is .864 and he’s collected 10 RBI.
Rendon is slated to miss a significant amount of time following him surgery this spring. The bad news is another bump in an injury-plagued stint with the Angels; Rendon missed a chunk of last season with an oblique strain.
Canterino was thought to have a real chance to crack the big league roster at some point this season, converting himself to a reliver this offseason in hopes of limiting the stress on his arm and preserving his health. Unfortunately, he’s set to miss a third consecutive season, undergoing shoulder surgery in early March.
Update: Canterino was released from his contract this week and promptly resigned to a two-year minor league contract days later.
The following Owls began the season in AAA:
The Rice football defense lost a lot of leaders to graduation this offseason. Having a familiar face in Jon Kay take over as the coordinator helps, but there was still plenty of dust to knock off as the Owls went through spring practices over the last several weeks. With new staff and new players, the program had plenty to work on from a defensive perspective.
“I think there’s a fair amount of new,” Kay said, addressing those changes during the offseason. This spring practice review tackles some of that new, some of the old and takes a more holistic look at what this side of the ball looks like with spring practices complete.
Spring is the season to make sure the roster is ready for the year ahead and with the program light in the defensive trenches, adding at least a couple of defensive linemen to the 2025 Rice Football recruiting class. That group gained another member this week. Texas Tech defensive end Sam Carrell has committed to the Owls.
Carrell’s college football career began as an offensive lineman at Washington State before he transferred to Texas Tech following a redshirt season with the Cougars and flipped to the defensive side of the ball. He split time between defensive end and outside linebacker with the Red Raiders across three seasons, primarily playing a support role and entering the Transfer Portal this spring.
When it came to arriving at South Main, Carrell credited the staff and the scheme, first and foremost calling head coach Scott Abell and defensive line coach Ty Warren “the kind of people I want to play for,” crediting the staff with establishing a unit that allows him to “play confident and free.”
Carrell’s commitment comes amidst a run of recent defensive additions for the Owls in the portal. North Texas defensive lineman VJ Bronson committed a few days prior and Oregon State safety Jack Kane announced his pledge on the same day. That’s a lot of experience added to the roster in a short window of time.
At 6-foot-4 and 270 pounds, Carrell certainly has the frame to play on the line in this scheme. He’ll slide in as a pass rusher off the edge, providing another veteran hand in a room in need of depth. “Iām very proud of my versatility, strong hands, and pass-rush ability,” Carrell told The Roost.
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