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Head Coach: Eric Morris
Record at School: 11-14 (2 Yr) | Career FBS Record 11-14 (2 Yr)
Offensive Coordinator: Jordan Davis | Defensive Coordinator: Skyler Cassity
ESPN’s Bill Connelly updated his key college football metrics following the spring portal cycle and, usurpingly, the biggest brands from the SEC and the Big Ten sat atop most of the rankings. What didn’t stand out as clearly at the time — at least to my naked eye — was the impact the modern landscape has had on team building at the lower levels of the sport.
Returning Production seeks to approximate the meaningful contributors from last year’s team who are still on the roster for the upcoming season. It’s not a perfect measure — returning every player from a bad team still likely leads to a bad team — but it does demonstrate which programs pose to gain the most from continuity and experience.
As I began my preparations for the upcoming season preview series, I noticed just how little returning production most AAC teams had. So many key pieces are gone, either to the Transfer Portal of the NFL Draft, leaving the AAC flush with teams installing so many new players this offseason.
Connelly puts just seven AAC programs in the top 100 nationally in returning production. Three crack the top 60. Here’s the full list:
| Nat. Rk | Conf. Rk | Team | Ret Prod | Off | Rk | Def | Def Rk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | 1 | USF | 67% | 69% | 22 | 66% | 19 |
| 27 | 2 | UTSA | 64% | 82% | 2 | 46% | 89 |
| 35 | 3 | Navy | 63% | 74% | 14 | 52% | 73 |
| 66 | 4 | Temple | 55% | 65% | 39 | 45% | 96 |
| 76 | 5 | Tulane | 52% | 49% | 84 | 56% | 57 |
| 77 | 6 | Tulsa | 52% | 46% | 93 | 58% | 51 |
| 88 | 7 | N Texas | 49% | 44% | 98 | 55% | 65 |
| 101 | 8 | Army | 43% | 36% | 120 | 51% | 80 |
| 103 | 9 | ECU | 43% | 51% | 77 | 35% | 117 |
| 105 | 10 | UAB | 43% | 43% | 103 | 43% | 101 |
| 110 | 11 | FAU | 41% | 50% | 79 | 32% | 127 |
| 113 | 12 | Rice | 41% | 36% | 122 | 46% | 91 |
| 115 | 13 | Memphis | 40% | 39% | 114 | 41% | 108 |
| 118 | 14 | Charlotte | 38% | 35% | 123 | 40% | 109 |
It’s no coincidence that the top three programs (USF, UTSA and Navy) all return their starting quarterbacks and several key skill players. That USF also brings back so many key defenders gives the Bulls a better starting point, at least from a roster construction standpoint, than most if not all of their conference peers.
How this plays out on the field this fall remains to be seen, but the era of slow builds and roster continuity seems long past, at least at this level of the sport. When your program does get the luxury of “running it back”, you better not miss. The odds of you getting that much continuity again soon are slim to none.
The fifth edition of our Rice Football opponent summer preview series is in your podcast feeds. First time visitor JD Davis who covers North Texas for the the North Texas Eagle joins the show to refresh us on the Mean Green and all that’s happened in Denton since the last time the Owls met this program on the gridiron. Listen in.
You can find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, give a listen to Episode 203.
The Roost Podcast is now part of the Dave Campbell’s Republic of Football Podcast Network. You’ll still get the same content with the same hosts, but now under the DCTF banner.
We’re thrilled to partner with Homefield Apparel, the premier proprietor of college football clothing. First-time buyers can use the code ROOST for 15% off their order. The Owls hoodie is a personal favorite as is the Luv-Ya-Owls shirt. Make sure you check out the sailor hat (pictured below) as you shop the Rice collection or pick up something else (or both)!
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College sports won’t be the same as they once were following the House Settlement earlier this summer, which introduces the first organized attempts at direct payments to college athletes. Every university is approaching the changes differently. What is Rice Athletics doing? That overarching curiosity is the foundation for this month’s subscriber Q&A.
Questions were edited briefly for clarity. Want to get your questions answered? Subscribe on Patreon for our monthly mailbag.
For those checking in for the first time, or those returning, a quick programming note. Special features like this are reserved for our subscribers. Have questions? You can get those answered in our monthly Q&As and get access to all practice notes, recruiting updates and features like this one when you subscribe on Patreon today.
Members of the 2026 Rice football recruiting class span from near and far, a mix of local talent from the state of Texas and the right pieces from across the country. The Owls’ last three commitments have come from outside those Lone Star lines, including the addition of this explosive pass rusher from New Jersey. Seth Clarke from The Hun School has committed to the Owls.
Clarke was a coveted player with 29 offers and counting. At the time he made his pledge to Rice football, those offers included a host of power conference programs like North Carolina, Pitt, Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Syracuse, Rutgers, Boston College and Duke. AAC rivals like Tulane and South Florida had thrown their hats in the ring, too.
Still, Clarke chose Rice, adding to an impressive haul in the trenches, which began with interior player Quincy Tchikou and was fortified last week with the commitment of edge JD Singletary. This brings the 2026 class to 12 players as the summer camp season winds down.
The 6-foot-2, 237-pound Clarke is a tenacious, powerful defender who overwhelms his opponents on film. He has the athleticism and bend to adjust his path into the backfield accordingly and make an impact at the point of attack. When it comes to a prep player, Clarke boasts a fantastic base of traits to build on as he refines his craft at the collegiate level.
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