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Defensive improvements a bye week focus, practice notes (9/19)

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Rice football has focused their efforts on themselves as they prepare for their first Conference USA game of the season against Southern Miss.

The consistency of the defense has been under fire after the team dropped back-to-back games to a pair of high-scoring offenses. One of the biggest advantages of the early bye week was time for the Owls to iron out those issues. “I wanted the bye week to be about Rice and how much we could improve,” said head coach Mike Bloomgren.

Players on both sides of the ball have taken that to heart, and few have worked harder than defensive tackle Zach Abercrumbia. “There’s always room for improvement,” admitted Abercrumbia,”Anyone who can look at tape, whether they’re a first team all-pro or benchrider and not have five things to work on the next day at practice is fooling themselves.”

Three games in the Owls have enough of a sample size to work with. The secondary has come under fire, but the pass rush has rightly born the weight of the pressure too. If the Owls can get to the quarterback, there won’t be any passes thrown.

Abercrumbia said that’s the goal on Saturday against Southern Miss and going forward. “That’s the big thing about pass rush, you just can’t ever stop. you never know how quick the ball is going to come out, you never know how the o-line is going to block,” he said, “but if you never stop, eventually you’ll get there.”

Injury update

Getting healthier will help the Owls improve their defensive play. Linebacker Dylan James is back in practice and is on track to play this weekend after being listed as questionable early during the week. Corner D’Angelo Ellis still has a ways to go with his recovery process.

Preparing for conference play

Although beginning with the caveat that all games matter, Bloomgren didn’t shy away from the importance of starting conference play 1-0. “When you’re talking about trying to get to championships and get to bowl games, like we’re always talking about around here, [conference games] can be big things. Everyone is kinda a mini championship.”

That’s quite the stage, but the team is ready for the challenge. “We can beat these guys,” declared Abercrumbia, “All we need to do is put what we do in practice into game day.”

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Owls add size with 2019 center Max Fiedler

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Rice basketball added some size to their 2019 recruiting class with the commitment of 6-foot-10 center Max Fielder from Melbourne, Florida.

One of three commitments in favor of the Owls over the span of less than a week, center Max Fiedler has locked down his recruitment, calling Rice “the right place for me.”

Fielder picked the Owls over a host of programs, including Army, Air Force, Lipscomb, Texas State and Lehigh. The latter was the most recent to offer Fiedler, but unable to fight off the momentum the Owls had picked up since they offered Feidler in early August.

Part of the reason for the Owls’ holding Fiedler’s interest was the relationships he’d developed with the coaching staff and the current players. The culture and the academics of a top-tier institution like Rice was too good for him to pass up. “I know Rice basketball has a bright future,” Fielder said, “I’m excited to be a part of it.”

It might not be long before Fiedler becomes an integral piece for the Owls on the court. Standing at 6-foot-10, he’ll be listed as the tallest person on the Rice team next year. Recent commit Zach Crisler is 6-foot-9, as is freshman Quentin Millora-Brown. Size can’t be taught. An offseason in the weight room to add power to that stature has the potential to pay significant dividends for both Fiedler and the Owls.

Adding a shooting element to his game would be icing on the cake. Feidler said Pera wants him to “be able to stretch the floor and shoot the three,” as well as be a weapon on the glass. If Fiedler can continue to develop on the offensive end, he could turn into an impressive under the radar candidate for Rice in the 2019 signing class. His work on the boards and in the paint speaks for itself.

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Owls add shooting guard Quincy Olivari to 2019 class

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Rice basketball continues to grow their 2019 recruiting class. Guard Quincy Olivari was excited to jump on board and join the Owls.

Scott Pera has been a busy man. A week removed from having only preferred walk-on Ben Moffat in the fold, Rice basketball added three players to the 2019 class. Power forward Zach Crisler jumped aboard first, but he was quickly followed center Max Fiedler and guard Quincy Olivari.

A 6-foot-3 combo guard from Atlanta, GA, Olivari was the final piece of a three-player haul brought in by Pera in a few days time, and he could be an important piece for the Owls on the court next season. He held an offer from Charleston Southern and had drawn interest from Cornell prior to pulling the trigger and committing to the Owls.

For Olivari, there wasn’t any need to wait around for more offers. “Rice is a great fit for me. It’s in the perfect place with great academics,” he said. Olivari continued, sharing high praise of the Owls’ coaching staff, led by Scott Pera. “Coach Pera is a great coach and he’s coached some great players. He’s a legend in the game and I look forward to playing for him.”

As to where he’ll fit once he gets to South Main, Olivari projects to be a fast-paced, accurate shooter who can play both ways. His quickness on the court will be crucial for winning fast break points, something he’s said Pera expects him to provide the Owls in the future.

Olivari is a more of a combo guard and a shooter than a true point guard. Ball handling is one of his focal points that he plans to improve during his senior year. He’s hoping a better handle on the ball will improve his versatility at the college level. Regardless, the guy can flat out shoot.

 

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Southern Miss Press Conference Notes (9/18)

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Coach Mike Bloomgren discussed Rice football‘s returns from the bye week and upcoming game against Southern Miss, the Owls’ second road game of the season.

Coach Bloomgren admitted the 1-2 start has featured a mixed bag of highs and lows. “We got to continue to play four quarters of football and finish strong.” He doesn’t blame conditioning, but rather the lack of consistency for the Owls’ last two losses. “If we just do the same things we’re doing in the second and the third quarter in the fourth quarter we might find a way to win,” he suggested, adding “You can’t do the things we did late in that game against a good football team… and expect to win the game.”

With the lumps have come moments of pride. “This team is showing great fight,” praised Bloomgren, “They’re continuing to work. They’re fighting for each other and they’re doing all the things we ask of them.” Little by little the Owls are making that incremental progress, something the bye week was particularly useful for this past week.

A few individuals earned special recognition for their strong starts. Bloomgren talked encouragingly about the progress quarterback Shawn Stankavage was making this year, citing his mental acuity on the field in addition to his accurate arm. Graysen Schantz was nominated for the Campbell Trophy, given to the nation’s top scholar-athlete, an award Bloomgren admittedly holds with great esteem.

Emmanuel Esukpa, who currently ranks in the top 15 in rushing, earned a shout out from his head coach as well. Bloomgren went beyond that, saying “What he’s doing without the ball in protection might be as impressive as what he’s doing with it.” Not faint praise for one of the better backs in Conference USA, and maybe the nation.

On the injury front, the Owls should have a full complement of weapons at their disposal on Saturday. All starters are expected to be available, with Dylan James the only member of the two-deep listed as questionable.

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Bye week comes at right time for Owls

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Rice football took advantage of an early-season bye to focus on fundamentals and discipline, both areas that will pay huge dividends for the Owls this fall.

Sitting at 1-2, the 2018 Rice football season is far from over. With 10 games still to play, the Owls are only just beginning what they hope will be a promising campaign. The bulk of their games will come after their Week 3 bye week.

Sandwiched between road trips to Hawaii and Southern Miss, Rice players and coaches have had a much-needed extra week during the middle of the season’s grind. The coaches have jetted off all over the country, recruiting from Califonia to D.C. Players have stayed home, using the time to focus on their craft.

The leadership of this young team knows the timing of this break couldn’t have been better. “It gives us a chance to see what we did early on and fix that for the rest of the season,” acknowledged safety George Nyakwol, remarking that he the team progress significantly simply by “focusing on technique and going back to the fundamentals.”

Quarterback Shawn Stankavage was equally confident, if not more so. “I think the bye week really helped us get locked in and turn this thing around… we’re close, we’re in these games, we’re just not pulling away at the end.”

In order to make that final play or two to push them over the edge, the team needs to continue to pursue excellence in everything they do. That starts with practice and extends to game day. “When we execute during the week, Saturday’s are easy,” Stankavage said. To get there, the Owls are focusing on the little things, leaving no stone unturned.

The bye week was extra time for a team still learning to continue ironing out the kinks. Neither side of the ball is going to be transformed overnight, but Rice football got a lot better this week — little by little.

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