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2019 Athlete TD Ayo-Durojaiye could be defensive gem for Owls

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Rice football continues to fill up their 2019 recruiting class. Could Maryland athlete TD Ayo-Durojaiye be another out-of-state commitment for the Owls?

The recruiting focus has spread across the nation since Mike Bloomgren arrived at South Main late last year.  The Owls have six commitments from inside the Lone Star state so far. They also have four more out-of-state commits: Garrett Braden (Linebacker, Connecticut), Trevor Bycznski (Quarterback, Ohio), Zach Hoban (Kicker, New Jersey) and most recently Gabe Jeudy (Cornerback, North Carolina).

If things work out the right way, Rice will add at least a few more commitments from outside the state of Texas. One of those possibilities is 2019 athlete TD Ayo-Durojaiye.

Ayo-Durojaiye plays his high school ball in Damascus, Maryland. He was already being recruited by Assistant Head Coach Mike Lembo last year while Lembo was at Maryland and has kept up that relationship as Lembo transitioned further south to Rice. Lembo was impressed enough with what he saw from Ayo-Durojaiye so far that the Owls went ahead and offered him a scholarship earlier this summer, despite the fact that he’s never set foot on campus at Rice.

That trust spoke volumes to Ayo-Durojaiye. “I think it shows the coaches really believe in my athletic ability,” he said regarding the out of state offer, adding that the coaches told him “he’d fit well” on the team and have a shot at early playing time as the Owls revamp their depth chart.

The potential fit between Ayo-Durojaiye and the Owls is intriguing. A 6-foot, 180-pound athlete, Ayo-Durojaiye has 17 offers so far across a variety of positions. A natural linebacker, he’s also been offered at running back and safety. The latter is where he feels he’ll have the best long-term success in college. That fits perfectly with how Rice plans to use him.

The three safety scheme (free, strong and viper) employed by defensive coordinator Brian Smith offers plenty of flexibility for different skillsets in the secondary. Ayo-Durojaiye’s burst and power would make him a great option near the line of scrimmage.

Whether or not the Owls can land Ayo-Durojaiye remains to be seen. He hasn’t scheduled any visits yet, but don’t be surprised to see head coach Mike Bloomgren will try to find a way to get him on campus this fall. Ayo-Durojaiye doesn’t plan to make any decisions regarding his future until the end of the season. That give’s Rice some time, but rest assured, they won’t be caught sleeping.

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2018 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs Season Preview

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Rice football and Louisiana Tech don’t have an extensive history, but the series has been rather one-sided since the Bulldogs joined CUSA in 2013.

After three straight nine-win seasons, Louisiana Tech stumbled to a 7-6 finish last in 2017. Things could have turned out quite differently had the Bulldogs not lost three games by one point. Those narrow defeats at the hands of South Carolina, UAB and North Texas kept the Bulldogs away from their first 10-win season as a D1 FBS program.

Head coach Skip Holtz will have a double-digit target placed in front of his team this season. Getting to that mark will be challenging considering a schedule that includes road trips to LSU and Mississippi State in non-conference play. That will require near-perfection in conference play.

Rice and Louisiana Tech have met on the gridiron 10 times. The Owls own a 3-7 record against the Bulldogs and have lost four straight. Righting that record starts one game at a time, but it could be a challenge for the Owls this year. Louisiana Tech fields a promising team in 2018. Here’s how they’ll look on both sides of the ball:

Offense

Louisiana Tech has typically boasted well-rounded offensive attacks under Holtz who took over the program in 2013. In his five years leading the Bulldogs he’s constructed offenses that averaged north of 430 yards per game and a lot of points. Last season marked the first time since his first season at LaTech in which his team averaged less than 37 points per game, falling off to 30.5 points per contest.

One of the driving forces behind the variation in points per game was the variation in quarterback play. The Bulldogs’ offense will once again live and die on the decision making of junior quarterback J’mar Smith.

Smith’s back-and-forth quarterback play made every game an adventure through his 13 starts last season. In consecutive weeks he posted these two very different box scores:

Week A: 15-of-28 passing (53.6 percent) for 203 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions
Week B: 7-of-21 passing (33.3 percent) for 101 yards, zero touchdowns and one interception

Week A was a win over UTEP. Week B was a win over UTSA. Both starts by Smith, but his play could not have been more hot-and-cold.

The Bulldogs will benefit from the deep receiving corps led by returning star Teddy Veal (79 receptions for 950 yards and seven touchdowns in 2017). The offensive line returns a ton of experience and will add former LSU offensive lineman Willie Allen to the mix as well.

Running back is another big question mark for the Bulldogs who lose their two leading rushers from a season ago. No one remaining on the depth chart has had any meaningful touches, setting up a wide-open competition between Jaqwis Dancy Jr. and Kam McKnight for lead back duties. A committee approach is most likely here.

Defense

Replacing three of their top five tacklers will be the biggest challenge facing LaTech as they enter the 2018 season. The good news is they carry depth at every level on the defense and have more than enough options to plug into the gaps left by Secdrick Cooper, Russell Farris and DaMarion King.

The secondary was one of the best in Conference USA last season thanks in large part to the tandem of Cooper and true freshman Amik Robertson. He forced his way into the starting lineup quickly and led the team in interceptions (five) and pass breakups (six) by the end of the season while also finishing third on the team in tackles.

While Robertson and his companions are locking down the back end, future NFL draft pick senior Jaylon Ferguson is providing the rush up front. The talented defensive end tallied seven sacks last season and is already receiving legitimate first-round buzz. He’s got a long way to go before that happens, but at 6-foot-5, 260 pounds he has the frame that NFL teams will look to build on.

The glue in between those two units will be the linebackers. In addition to last year’s leading tackler Dae’Von Washington the team adds three JUCO transfers including NJCAA Defensive Player of the Year Connor Taylor. A Snow College product, Taylor led the NJCAA in tackles (139) with a stunning 21 tackles for a loss and three sacks.

This unit allowed 25.4 points per game in 2017 and should be even better. If the offense comes along with it the Bulldogs could be looking at a special season in 2018.

Schedule

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11 Days: Tracking all 11 Owls in the NFL

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Rice football boasts 11 active NFL players and coaches, spread across 10 different teams. Where are they and which players are making noise at the next level?

The NFL Preseason is underway. As the first kickoff of the season approaches teams will be forced to cull their pool of players down to their final 53-man roster. That final cut will be official on Sept. 1, giving a few Owls a chance to earn their spot in the NFL.

Along with a few new faces, Rice football has some veterans in the league as well. Here are the Owls 11 NFL personnel:

1. Chris Boswell, Kicker, Pittsburgh Steelers

Bowell entered the NFL in 2015. After a brief stint with the Houston Texans he made his way up north to join the Steelers where he’s been the primary kicker for three seasons. He owns a career 89.5 field goal percentage with a long of 53 yards.

2. Bryce Callahan, Corner, Chicago Bears

A reserve corner for the Chicago Bears, Callahan is also in his fourth professional season. He’s become more and more active with Chicago each year in the league. In 2017 he played in 12 games, registering two interceptions, a forced fumble and 25 total tackles.

3. Christian Covington, Defensive End, Houston Texans

A Canadian native, Covington stayed close to campus after being drafted in the sixth round by the Houston Texans in 2015. In limited action, he’s picked up four sacks, and 50 total tackles in his three year NFL career.

4. Emmanuel Ellerbee, Linebacker, Atlanta Falcons

Ellerbee signed with the Falcons as an undrafted free agent and is working to earn his way onto the roster in 2018. He led the Owls in tackles last season with 95.

5. Phillip Gaines, Corner, Buffalo Bills

A third round pick by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2014, Gaines saw sporadic action (16 starts over four seasons) with the Chiefs before signing with Buffalo this offseason.

6. Larry Izzo, Assistant Special Teams coach, Seattle Seahawks

After playing 13 seasons in the NFL, winning three Super Bowls and earning three Pro Bowl nominations, Izzo retired from the NFL and quickly took a coaching position with the New York Giants. He went from the Giants to the Texans before being hired by the Seahawks this offseason.

7. Vance McDonald, Tight End, Pittsburgh Steelers

McDonald was a second round pick of the San Francisco 49ers in 2013. McDonald was a productive offensive cog for the 49ers in four NFL Season before moving to the Steelers in 2017. He’s caught 78 passes for 1,054 yards and eight touchdowns in his pro career.

8. Andrew Sendejo, Safety, Minnesota Vikings

After a brief start to his NFL career with the Dallas Cowboys, Sendejo has been with the Minnesota Vikings since 2011. During that span, he’s accounted for 237 tackles and six interceptions. He most recently made news with his reaction to the league’s new helmet contact rule.

https://twitter.com/Asendejo/status/1025466588424597504

9. Jordan Taylor, Wide Receiver, Denver Broncos

A nice depth piece behind Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders, Taylor has seen modest action in two NFL seasons. He caught 16 passes in 2016 and 13 more in 2017, totaling 251 receiving yards and two career touchdowns.

10. Luke Wilson, Tight End, Detroit Lions

A five year veteran with the Seattle Seahawks, Wilson moved on to a new team this offseason, signing at 1-year $1.5 million deal with the Detriot Lions. He’ll be in the mix with the rest of the Matt Stafford’s pass catchers this season.

11. Brian Womac, Defensive End, Los Angeles Rams

The No. 2 tackler for Rice football in 2017, Womac is fighting for a roster spot with the Rams after going undrafted following his senior season with the Owls in 2017. He finished with a team-best 21 tackles for a loss and 10 sacks.

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12 Days: Owls have been to 12 bowl games in school history

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Rice football has been to 12 bowl games in school history, most recently earning a bid to the 2014 Hawaii Bowl where they defeated Fresno State.

Rice is 7-5 in the postseason, dating back to their first bowl game ever, a victory over Colorado in the Cotton Bowl in 1937. That win was the first of three Cotton Bowl victories for the Owls and the start of a winning postseason tradition for the Owls.

It wasn’t that long ago that trips to the postseason were an annual affair for Rice Football. Former head coach David Baliff took the Owls bowling three consecutive seasons from 2012 to 2014, the longest streak of consecutive bowl appearances in school history.

Baliff finished 3-1 in Bowl games, the best postseason mark outside of Jimmy Kitts who led the Owls from 1934 to 1939. Baliff and Kitts join Rice legend Jess Neely and one-year head man  Todd Graham as the four men who have ever led Rice to a bowl game.

Year Conf W L T AP Post Coach(es) Bowl Result
1937 SWC 6 3 2 18 Jimmy Kitts (6-3-2) Cotton Bowl W
1946 SWC 9 2 0 10 Jess Neely (9-2) Orange Bowl W
1949 SWC 10 1 0 5 Jess Neely (10-1) Cotton Bowl W
1953 SWC 9 2 0 6 Jess Neely (9-2) Cotton Bowl W
1957 SWC 7 4 0 8 Jess Neely (7-4) Cotton Bowl L
1960 SWC 7 4 0 Jess Neely (7-4) Sugar Bowl L
1961 SWC 7 4 0 17 Jess Neely (7-4) Bluebonnet Bowl L
2006 CUSA 7 6 0 Todd Graham (7-6) New Orleans Bowl L
2008 CUSA 10 3 0 David Bailiff (10-3) Texas Bowl W
2012 CUSA 7 6 0 David Bailiff (7-6) Armed Forces Bowl W
2013 CUSA 10 4 0 David Bailiff (10-4) Liberty Bowl L
2014 CUSA 8 5 0 David Bailiff (8-5) Hawaii Bowl W

Rice’s heyday might have come several decades ago, but the Owls have been competitive for the last two decades or so. In fact, Ken Hatfield, who led the Owls from 1994 to 2005, had three seasons of seven or more wins, including an 8-4 finish in the WAC in 2001. Had there been enough bowl games in the late 90’s and early 2000’s Hatfield could have thrown his name onto the list of postseason coaches.

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13 Days: 13 Seasons in Conference USA and counting

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Formed in 1995, Conference USA has been the home for Rice football and athletics for 13 years and there’s always been plenty of drama in the conference.

Long-standing members of the Southwestern Conference until 1996, Rice had an eight-year stint in the Western Athletic Conference before joining CUSA in 2005, a year of tremendous upheaval for the conference.

Formed in 1995, Conference USA has had 32 members across the full spectrum of athletic competitions over its 22 years of existence. Cincinnati, Louisville, South Florida, Southern Miss, UAB, Memphis and Tulane were founding. all sports members while DePaul, Marquette, Saint Louis, Charlotte were non-football members.

Rice joined the conference in 2005 when more than half of the founding members left for the Big East and the Atlantic 10. Joining them that year were UCF, SMU, Tulsa, Marshall and UTEP. The American Conference poached half of CUSA in 2013 and 2014, opening up the door for current members FAU, Louisiana Tech, Middle Tennessee, North Texas, Old Dominion, UTSA and Western Kentucky to join across the span of those two seasons.

Conference USA has been the subject of two major realignments in the past 15 years, and more are likely coming. Rice has 13 years in the CUSA under their belt, but they too would be willing to move on if they find the right fit. The Owls, like many others among the Group of Five, are paying close attention to major television contracts as they expire and continuously looking for opportunities to improve their status.

The TCU model is where Rice is heading. The Horned Frogs parlayed success in the Mountain West with the perfect opportunity and made the jump to a better conference with more exposure and more money. If Rice wants to make the move any time soon, they’ll have to start with winning where they’re at. The rest will follow. For now, it’s time for year 14 in the CUSA.

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