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Rice Football 2022 Spring Practice Notebook 5: Defense suffocates in Scrimmage 2

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Rice football wrapped up its second scrimmage of spring practice on Friday, marking the last scrimmage before the Spring Game next Saturday.

There wasn’t too much new that stuck out in the second Rice football scrimmage of the spring, but several underlying themes of the spring were emphatically reinforced with some new flair along the way.

The quarterback battle remains close and the defense remains dominant, making the Rice offense scrap for every inch. We’ll unpack all of that and more in this week’s spring practice notebook. Stay tuned for a scrimmage report this weekend.

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The Roost Podcast | Ep 108 – Rice Football spring practice and Naeem Smith

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Rice Football continues its spring practices as Owls prep for their NFL futures. We talk both with former Rice safety Naeem Smith.

Rice football hosted its Pro Day this past week, featuring five now former players who went through various drills in front of a host of NFL scouts. One of those Owls working out was Naeem Smith, a multi-year starting safety who is hoping for a chance at the next level. We caught up with Smith on this week’s episode of the podcast to talk about his journey to Rice, his pro aspirations and more.

You can find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, give a listen to Episode 108.

Episode Notes

  • Housekeeping
    • Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on your platform of choice. Every little bit helps.
    • Please support us on Patreon. Be the first to get the inside scoop on what’s going on with Rice football and stick around for even further analysis. That includes updates from spring practices and more. Your support matters and makes The Roost better.
      Become a Patron!
  • 2022 Rice Football Spring Practice Notes
    • Scrimmage and spring practice updates
    • Stadium renovations
  • Naeem Smith joins the show
    • Smith’s journey to Rice
    • Memories from his time at South Main
    • What does “draft prep” actually mean?
    • His take on the Rice football defense and the future
    • What’s life like outside of football?

Where can you find us?

Download and subscribe to The Roost Podcast on any of your favorite podcast providers. The show is available on iTunes, GooglePlay, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn and PodBean. Please consider leaving a review wherever you listen.

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Rice Basketball 2022 Roster Tracker

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The Rice basketball roster will grow and change between the end of the regular season and the start of the next. Stay tuned here for updates.

Roster churn has become a part of college sports as we know and Rice basketball is not immune to the ebb and flow of players coming in and out. With the 2021-2022 season in the books, this page will serve as a running tracker regarding the roster for the upcoming season as it currently stands. The last official roster is available here.

Feel free to bookmark it and refer back to it from time to time as players announce their intentions throughout the offseason.

Departing with Eligibility (4)

  • C Mylyjael Poteat
  • G Chris Mullins
  • F Riley Abercrombie
  • G Noah Hutchins

Departing Seniors/Graduates (2)

  • G Terrance McBride
  • G Carl Pierre

Incoming High School Signees (3)

  • G Mekhi Mason
  • G Mason Jones
  • F Andrew Akuchie

Incoming Transfers (2)

Current Expected Remaining Roster (10)

  • G Jaden Geron
  • G Jake Lieppert
  • G Travis Evee
  • G Quincy Olivari
  • F Cam Sheffield
  • F Ben Moffat
  • G Reed Myers
  • F Max Fiedler
  • F Damion McDowell
  • F Jackson Peakes

Rice Basketball News

Rice Football, NCAA

Judge Approves Historic House v. NCAA Settlement

Posted: June 6, 2025

Following a lengthy process, a federal judge on Friday granted final approval of the House v. NCAA Settlement, paving the way for schools to pay athletes directly. In a landmark decision that will alter the landscape of collegiate sports, Judge Claudia Wilken of the Northern District of California approved a far-reaching settlement of the House […]

Rice basketball, Rice women's basketball, Conference USA, Conference USA Basketball

Rice Basketball Recruiting: G Jordan Williams commits to Owls

Posted: June 3, 2025

An SEC transfer has signed as the final addition to the 2025 Rice basketball recruiting class. Former Vanderbilt point guard Jordan Williams is officially an Owl. Following an initial flurry of activity with the end of the season, rosters across the country have been trending closer and closer towards competition. The 2025 Rice Basketball recruiting […]

Rice Basketball, Rice Basketball recruiting, Eternity Eguagie

Rice Basketball Recruiting: F Eternity Eguagie commits to Owls

Posted: April 23, 2025

A dynamic JUCO hooper is joining the 2025 Rice basketball recruiting class. Forward Eternity Eguagie has committed to the Owls. Since he arrived at South Main, head coach Rob Lanier has made it abundantly clear he’ll look everywhere for talented playmakers to add to his roster. The most recent addition to the 2025 Rice Basketball […]

Rice Basketball, Rice Basketball recruiting, Dallas Hobbs

Rice Basketball Recruiting: G Dallas Hobbs commits to Owls

Posted: April 22, 2025

The Transfer Portal remains kind to Rice basketball recruiting efforts. Mount St. Mary’s guard Dallas Hobbs has committed to the Owls. A high-scoring point guard with NCAA Tournament experience is heading to South Main as the most recent addition to the 2025 Rice Basketball recruiting class. Mount St. Mary’s guard Dallas Hobbs has committed to […]

Rice Basketball, Rice Basketball recruiting, Nick Anderson

Rice Basketball Recruiting: G Nick Anderson commits to Owls

Posted: April 19, 2025

Another Transfer Portal addition to the Rice basketball recruiting class has been announced. Prairie View A&M guard Nick Anderson committed to the Owls. Days after the Transfer Portal has opened the 2025 Rice Basketball recruiting class has grown by two. Following the commitment of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi center Stephen Giwa on Thursday, the Owls have […]

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Rice Football 2022 Spring Practice Notebook 4: Offense bounces back

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It was a good week of spring practice for the Rice football offense, particularly on the ground as explosive plays started to become more routine.

After the Rice football defense had their way with their counterparts on the other side of the ball in the first scrimmage of the season, the offense bounced back the following with much better showings across the board. Explosive plays began to become more frequent and several individuals started to stand out, although there was at least one defensive group that seemed to go on without missing a beat.

We’ll unpack all of that and more in this week’s spring practice notebook. Stay tuned for a scrimmage report this weekend.

Get Caught Up

Subscriber content.<br /> Please login to see the full post or visit our Patreon page.

For those checking in for the first time, or those returning, a quick programming note. Special updates like this are reserved for our subscribers. Get access to all practice notes, features and more insights like this one when you subscribe on Patreon today.

Sorry! This part of content is hidden behind this box because it requires a higher contribution level ($10) at Patreon. Why not take this chance to increase your contribution?
Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

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Rice Baseball pummels HBU in shortened midweek bout

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It only took seven inning for Rice baseball to overwhelm HBU, sweeping the season series with a 7-inning victory over the Huskies on Tuesday night.

Simply put, Tuesday night was one of the most excellent performances Rice baseball has put forth on the diamond in quite some time. From start to finish, the Owls routed their crosstown rivals, sending HBU home after seven innings, a joint decision by the coaches given the decidedly one-sided state of the game.

The score became slanted as it was by an 11-run, 8-hit fifth inning in which Rice came one batter away from going through the order twice. Guy Garibay, Austin Bulman, Aaron Smigelski, Pierce Gallo and Antonio Cruz all reached base twice in the inning as the Owls tallied two triples in the frame.

Last Time Out : Rice baseball wrestling with sweep at hands of FAU

Rice was aided by an HBU error midway through the inning, but they did more than their fair share of damage without any help from the visiting Huskies.

As exciting as the big inning was, it would turn out to be window dressing on the final box score because of the superb pitching performance by Thomas Burbank. The San Jacinto transfer picked up his first win of the season, throwing five innings of one-hit ball, striking out five and silencing the HBU bats.

Burbank would have still picked up the win even if Rice had been shut out from the second inning onward. Smigelski broke the seal on the scoring with a two-run double in the opening inning. From then on it was smooth sailing for the Owls on the mound and at the plate.

“It was nice. It was something positive. We haven’t had something positive in a bit,” Rice baseball head coach Cruz Jr. said after the game. “Now its build on this, come back tomorrow, practice, tighten it up and get ready to go to Louisiana.”

What it means | Midweek magic

Outside of a sloppy 4-error, 9-run loss against Baylor in early March, midweek games have been favorable to the Owls so far this season. Rice is 4-4 in games played on Tuesday or Wednesday, and the majority of those losses have been competitive ballgames, including last week’s slugfest against Texas A&M Corpus Christi.

Meanwhile, Rice baseball is 5-17 in all other contests. That might mean the Owls are better equipped for the churn and chaos that comes with midweek games and stretched bullpen or it may just be a nod to the offense which has teed off against pitching and made opposing hurlers pay for their mistakes in recent weeks. Whatever the case, Rice will take the good fortune whenever it comes around.

ON DECK | at Louisiana Tech

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