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Rice Football Recruiting: WR Aaron Turner commits to Owls

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The 2025 Rice Football recruiting class just landed its first offensive addition from the Transfer Portal. Cincinnati transfer WR Aaron Turner has committed to the Owls.

The new offensive scheme was always going to require some new pieces, several of which were destined to come from the Transfer Portal. The first new addition by Scott Abell and his staff on that side of the ball is official in. Former Cincinnati wide receiver Aaron Turner has committed to the Owls.

Rice will be Turner’s third stop as a college player following a pair of two-year stints, first at UConn and then to Cincinnati. Turner was the Huskies’ leading receiver as a true sophomore in 2022 before moving on to the Big 12 where he was limited to 16 receptions over the past two seasons. He’s also seen frequent use as a runner, carrying the ball 26 times across his collegiate career.

Turner is one of three transfer commits the Owls have received this month joining a pair of JUCO defensive backs, Jerrick Harper and Jo Chavez. That trio will work to complement a strong high school class which largely stayed intact during the coaching transition.

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The 5-foot-9, 175-pound athlete wins with speed and elusiveness. A high school running back, Turner has been utilized in a variety of ways at each of his stops since. That sort of versatility jumps out on his film and undoubtably is what made him so appealing to the Owls.

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Rice Football 2024: NFL Owls Week 16 Roundup

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Rice Football is well represented on 2024 NFL rosters. Here’s the latest from the NFL Owls in action in Week 16.

There are former Rice football players scattered across the NFL. Stay tuned each week for their game results and notables from each player.

TeamNFL Owl(s)This WeekResultNext Week
Detroit LionsJack Fox (P)
Myles Adams (DL)		at BearsW, 34-17at 49ers (MNF)
Indianapolis ColtsKylen Granson (TE)vs TitansW, 38-30at Giants
Pittsburgh SteelersChris Boswell (PK)
Calvin Anderson (OL)		at RavensL, 34-17vs Chiefs (Christmas)
Washington CommandersLuke McCaffrey (WR)vs EaglesW, 36-36vs Falcons (SNF)

Offense

Calvin Anderson – OL, Steelers

Anderson was active but did not see action in the Steelers’ game against the Ravens this week.

Luke McCaffrey – WR, Commanders

McCaffrey played a crucial role in the Commanders’ upset of the Eagles on Sunday, racking up 197 all-purpose yards between one 13-yard reception and six kick returns for 184 yards, including a long return of 47 yards, showcasing his explosiveness.

Kylen Granson – TE, Colts

It was a quiet day for the Colts’ receiving room on Sunday. Quarterback Anthony Richardson only attempted 11 passes while the team ran the ball 50 times. Granson did not get any of the teams’ seven completions.

Defense

Myles Adams – DL, Lions

Adams played on two defensive snaps for the Lions this week but did not record any tackles.

Special Teams

Jack Fox – P, Lions

Fox was only asked to punt one time in the Lions’ win over the Bears on Sunday, booting his lone try 47 yards.

Chris Boswell – K, Steelers

Boswell went 1-for-1 on field goals against the Ravens on Saturday, a singular long blast from 51 yards. He also connected on a pair of extra-point attempts. He’s made 39-of-42 field goals this season

More Owls in the NFL

From practice squads to current free agents, there are other Owls on the cusp of returning to active rosters. Find more details on current contractual agreements and former Rice football players waiting for their next opportunity here.

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Rice Football 2024 Rising Star: Ty Morris

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A breakout sophomore season solidified linebacker Ty Morris as the 2024 Rice Football Rising Star.

There might not be an official statistic for it, but Ty Morris led the Rice football in “Woah” plays on defense. The kind of plays that force onlookers to straighten up in their seats and take a closer look at the game. The kind of plays that spark questions like, “Who did it?” and “Was that Number Three?”

Yes, it probably was Number Three, Ty Morris. The Owls sophomore linebacker plays the game with what, at times, feels like a supernatural awareness of where the football is and the best path to move himself through bodies to meet it. If there was a big play to be made, it’s a good bet that Morris was the one to make it.

“You could see it coming last year. You knew that there was going to be some good things down the road for him,” Rice football interim head coach Pete Alamar said of Morris toward the tail end of this season. “I think active would be a great word to describe Ty, as far as seeing how he plays. He’s all over the place. He runs hard. He plays hard all the time. Those are good hallmarks for young linebackers.”

The sophomore linebacker developed a knack for making plays in the opposing backfield, leading the team in sacks and finishing second to defensive end Charlie Looes in tackles for loss. And when he wasn’t taking the ballcarrier down himself, he always found a way to get into the mix, leading the team in assisted tackles.

More: 2024 Rice Football Season Superlatives

Morris credits his leap in production with a good spring, having extra time to familiarize himself with the scheme and the playbook, enabling him to think less and do more.

“It gets me to play confident,” Morris said of that added level of understanding. “It gets me to play fast and physical. I feel like that’s the way I feel this year.”

That internal confidence is translating to external production. That’s part of what has made Morris’ rise through the defensive ranks so exciting. As a freshman he had made a few plays here and there, but he wasn’t quite read to be the sort of player that stayed on the field for 50 or 60 snaps and took care of the dirty work from down to down. Now he is. And that growth hasn’t come by happenstance.

“He works hard. He practices hard,” defensive coordinator Brian Smith said of Morris. “He’s really taken off and made a jump this year.”

Morris had at least one tackle in every game and was involved in at least one play that went for a loss of yardage in nine of the Owls’ 12 games this year. That next step from flashy moments to sustained success arrived and with it came an up-and-coming player who was prepared to seize the moment.

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If Morris has anything to say about it, that trajectory won’t stop now. As veterans on the defense graduate and others opt to move on with the wave of changes surrounding the program as it swaps head coaches and offensive schemes, Morris has an opportunity to position himself at the forefront of what this team will look like in 2025 and beyond.

“He’s somebody who should lead this defense for years to come. That should be his next step, being that guy that’s able to take over and be a leader on the field,” Alamar projected. “As he grows and gets older, his voice will become louder.”

Perhaps this rising star has only just began his ascent.

** Photo Credit: Maria Lysaker **
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Rice Basketball overcomes slow start, tops PVAMU

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Rice basketball trailed at the break before closing in furious fashion, taking down Prairie View A&M at home.

Rice basketball led for 28 seconds in the first half against Prairie View A&M on Sunday afternoon, another prolonged slump against a nonconference foe the Owls were expected to handle rather easily, this on the heels of an upset by North Texas-Dallas a few days prior.

An early three from Emory Lanier was one of just two triples the Owls made in an opening half in which they shot 26.5 percent from the floor. A strong defensive effort gave Rice a chance to weather those early woes and try once more to generate some momentum in the second half. After trading a few baskets in the early moments, Rice started to take control.

More: Rice Basketball 2024-2025 Season Preview

Lanier got things going with a jumper, then got help from three different teammates to spark a 9-0 run, the longest of the game for the Owls, which put Rice up by seven in a game they’d trailed for so long. Both teams would pick up the scoring pace from that point, but Rice managed to keep their advantage to multiple baskets, thwarting another would-be upset bid in its tracks.

A seven-point lead ballooned to 19 points as Rice basketball began to find their rhythm with the ball, matching their defensive intensity with some efficient offensive execution. Rice would wrap up the much-needed win and go into the holiday break on a high note.

Final Box | Rice 64, PVAMU 46

Key takeaway | Bring back the Bahamas?

Rice basketball largely hasn’t looked the same since they arrived back on American soil following a 2-1 stretch at the Nassau Championship in the Bahamas where they beat a vey good Arkansas State team rather convincingly.

The Owls were 7-2 at that point with losses to Florida State and Hofstra (in overtime). They’re 2-2 since and the losses are about as ugly as they can come. Dropping this game to a bad PVAMU squad might have signaled the time for a full blown panic. As it is, they found a way to battle back and win. That matters, but the need for the rally is another warning in itself.

Following Sunday’s game, the program is off until they open conference ply on January 1 at Tulsa. Time will tell whether a break to mentally reset is the right medicine for the Owls’ currently maladies, but whatever the right answer is, doing something different seems like a solution worth trying.

It’s been two weeks of largely bad basketball with a sliver of hope at the tail end of this contest. They’re going to need a lot more of the latter if they want to get it where they hope to go.

Up Next: at Tulsa (Wed, Jan. 1)

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Scott Abell announces additions to Rice Football staff

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Rice football head coach Scott Abell has announced eight new position coaches and a few additional staffers who will join him in his first season on South Main.

“I am so excited about the staff we are surrounding our program with,” Abell stated in a release from the Rice football program on Friday. “Quality people that have a strong history of winning, developing leaders, recruiting Texas, and recruiting top scholar-athletes.”

The eight coaches he announced are as follows:

Munch, Eisenhofer, Porter, Decker, and Jackson were all on Scott Abell’s staff at Davidson. Kay and Modkins were on the Rice staff last year and will be retained, as will Cooks who served as a defensive analyst for the team last fall but will not be promoted to full time work as a position coach.

Kay takes over the defensive coordinator role from Brian Smith, who departed for Temple this offseason.

Abell has two more coaching spots to fill, presumably along the defensive line and an outside wide receivers post. He’s also opted to combine the special teams coordinator role with a positional coaching spot, hiring Mark Hogan for that job. Hogan spent time on Abell’s early Davidson staffs before spending the last three seasons at Charlotte.

Lew Caralla will take over the Strength and Conditioning program while Nick Decker and Steven Jackson will also play key operations roles.

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