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Rice Football: Special Team Coach Drew Svoboda hired by Memphis

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The Rice football coaching staff will look slightly different next season. The Owls will have to replace special teams coach Drew Svoboda.

Coaching staff changes are part of the norm in today’s college football. Rice football coach Mike Bloomgren has fairly well when it comes to retaining his staff but hasn’t curtailed turnover completely.

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This offseason Rice football will have to replace its special teams coordinator. Drew Svoboda has been hired for the same role by the Memphis Tigers. Yahoo’s Pete Thamel was first to report. The Roost has since confirmed.

Further Staff notes

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Rice Football 2020: NFL Owls final regular season update

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Rice Football is well represented on 2020 NFL rosters. Here’s the latest from the NFL Owls in action in Week 17.

There are former Rice football players scattered across the NFL. Stay tuned each week for their game results and notables from each player. Playoff matchups have been notated. Three Rice football alums are on playoff teams this year.

Week 17 results

Baltimore def. Cincinnati (Covington), 38-3
Cleveland (Sendejo) def. Pittsburgh (Boswell, McDonald), 24-22
Las Vegas def. Denver (Anderson, Callahan), 32-31
Minnesota def. Detroit (Fox), 37-35
Tennessee def. Houston (Gaines), 41-38
Seattle def. San Francisco (Walter), 26-23

Wildcard Round Schedule

Cleveland (Sendejo) at Pittsburgh (Boswell, McDonald) – Sunday at 7:15 p.m. CT

Offense

Calvin Anderson – OT, Broncos

Week 17 marks completed a full 17 game run for Anderson with the Broncos this season. He played in every game, making two starts and contributing weekly on special teams. The Broncos did not qualify for the playoffs.

Vance McDonald – TE, Steelers

McDonald saw an uptick in activity as a pass catcher in the Steelers’ Week 17 game against the Browns. He caught five passes on six targets for 33 yards. That’s the most receptions and targets he’s had this season and the most yards he’s tallied since a Week 4 game against the Texans when he had 35 yards.

He finishes the regular season with 15 receptions for 99 yards. This was the first year since 2014 in which he did not score a touchdown. The Steelers won the AFC North and will be the No. 3 seed for the AFC in the playoffs. They get a rematch with the Browns in the Wildcard Round.

Austin Walter – RB, 49ers

Walter was activated from the reserve/COVID-19 list this week in time for the 49ers’ final game of the 2020 season. He returned two kickoffs against the Seahawks, with a long return of 18 yards.

After signing with the team midseason, Walter tallied five kick returns, one rush for three yards and one reception for 27 yards. The 49ers did not qualify for the playoffs.

Defense and Special Teams

Chris Boswell – K, Steelers

For the third time in five games, Boswell was inactive because of injury. Instead, Matthew Wright handled field goal duties for the Steelers.

Boswell’s regular season stat line was impressive. He converted on 19 of 20 field goal attempts, with his lone miss coming beyond 40 yards. He made 34 of 38 extra point tries. The Steelers won the AFC North and will be the No. 3 seed for the AFC in the playoffs. They get a rematch with the Browns in the Wildcard Round.

Bryce Callahan – CB, Broncos

Callahan’s last game of the season came in Week 12 against the Saints, landing on injured reserve with a foot injury for the remainder of the year.

When he was healthy, Callahan was one of the best cover corners in the league. He had five passes defended, one shy of a career-high even with his shortened season. He also had one fumble recovery and one tackle for a loss on 42 tackles. Per Pro Football Reference, he was the allowed third-lowest passer rating in the league when targeted. The Broncos did not qualify for the playoffs.

Christian Covington – DL, Bengals

Covington had a season-high six tackles in the Bengals’ Week 17 regular season finale against the Ravens, giving him 39 tackles for the year, a career-best. Covington started 14 of the Bengals’ 16 games. Coming into the season, he’d started 15 games in five seasons, spanning stints with the Texans and Cowboys. The Bengals did not qualify for the playoffs.

Jack Fox – P, Lions

Fox finishes a Pro Bowl season among the league leaders in most punting statistics. He ranks third in punting average, second in net punting and tied for sixth with 26 punts inside the 20 yard line. He punted 59 times this season. The Lions did not qualify for the playoffs.

Phillip Gaines – CB, Texans

Gaines was inactive for the Texans’ final game against the Titans in Week 17. He finishes 2020 with 12 appearances, the most he’s had in a single season since 2014 when he was with the Chiefs. Gaines had one pass defended this season and 24 tackles, making two starts. The Texans did not qualify for the playoffs.

Andrew Sendejo – Saf, Browns

Sendejo missed the Browns’ regular season finale against the Steelers after being placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list earlier in the week. His status for the Browns’ playoff game is unknown.

During the regular season, Sendejo accumulated 67 tackles, his highest mark since making 80 tackles in 2017. He also had two passes defended and one forced fumble. The Browns clinched a wildcard berth. They get a rematch with the Steelers in the Wildcard Round.

More Owls in the NFL

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

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Rice Women’s Basketball 2021: Owls fly past UTSA with ease, twice

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Rice women’s basketball continued their winning ways in Conference USA play, beating UTSA twice in two days on the road.

For the fourth consecutive season, Rice women’s basketball opened conference play 2-0. This year, both of the Owls’ victories came against the same team in the same venue. As a part of Conference USA’s efforts to reduce travel, Rice opened their conference slate with back-to-back road games against UTSA.

Rice announced the arrival in San Antonio with authority, jumping out to a 16-3 lead in the opening quarter of the Friday affair. UTSA would hang around into the before a near-perfect third quarter shooting performance from the Owls, who made 10-of-13 shots to push their lead to 20 points. Lauren Schwartz and Nancy Mulkey led the team in scoring with 19 points apiece.

More: Men’s Basketball goes 2-0 against UTSA 

UTSA managed more than three points in the opening frame during the rematch on Saturday, but the result was the same. Rice held the roadrunner to 32.9 percent shooting and never let the Roadrunners get within striking distance after the Owls took the early lead. Sydne Wiggins had a season-high 14 points, but it was Mulkey, again, who led the team in scoring with 20 points.

Rice has now won 36 of their last 38 games against Conference USA opponents. Tina Langley’s squad has adapted as they’ve gone, developing complementary pieces to keep the Owls consistently ahead of their conference foes.

Player Spotlight | Katelyn Crosthwait

Crosthwait is making the most of her insertion into the starting lineup this season. She scored 20 points across the two games against UTSA, also contributing six assists and a pair of steals. She’s continued to develop as a shot maker and consistently provides the Owls another option on that side of the court. Crosthwait was third on the team in minutes played on the weekend.

Stat Corner | Shooters shoot and stoppers stop

Rice is No. 1 in Conference USA in field goal percentage, connecting on a staggering 50% of their shots through seven games. The Owls are also No. 1 on the defensive side, limiting their opponents to 31.6 percent shooting from the field.

Old Dominion is the only other team in the conference to rank in the top half of both metrics. The Monarchs rank fourth in shooting percentage and sixth in shooting defensive percentage.

The Owls have always hung their hat on suffocating defense. Adding an explosive offense that takes (and makes) high percentage shots will make this team hard to beat in conference play.

Up Next

Rice women’s basketball will open their home slate of Conference USA games next weekend against UTEP. Once again, it will be another Friday/Saturday double feature. The Miners are 5-2 this season. Like the Owls, they also swept their opening C-USA series. UTEP took both games against Southern Miss by final scores of 83-65 and 74-72, respectively.

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Rice Athletics: Top 10 Moments from 2020

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2020 was filled with highs and lows on the home from, but Rice Athletics made the best of the tough year. Here are some of the most impactful moments.

10. Men’s Basketball upsets C-USA regular-season champion North Texas

Rice basketball started slow out of the gates in conference play this past March, falling to 1-7 with a home game against 8-1 North Texas entering the final month of the season. Not only did the Owls put up a fight, they knocked off the eventual regular season champs. Rice shot 53.6 percent from three and hit 15 triples, includes three apiece from Drew Peterson, Trey Murphy, Robert Martin and four from Ako Adams.

9. Football signs Top 5 C-USA recruiting class

You can read more about the recent signees in detail in our recruiting updates over on Patreon. In short, the 2021 Rice Football Signing Class edged out the 2020 class for the highest-rated class in program history. The Owls currently hold the No. 4 class in C-USA and a Top 100 class in the country with a few spots remaining before National Signing Day in February.

8. Women’s Track and Field wins C-USA Indoor Championship

For the fourth time in program history and the first time since 2009, the Rice women took home the gold in the C-USA Indoor Championships. Grace Forbes and Michelle Fokam helped spur the Owls victory. Head coach Jim Bevan was recognized afterward as the Coach of the Year.

7.  Swimming top Tulane in duat meet

In their only home meet of the fall, Rice swimming emerged with a win. The Owls were dominant in the pool in the two-day meet, winning 15 of 21 events, including 400-freestyle relay. Rice set a facility record in the event, closing out the meet with a resounding 245-146 final score.

6. Women’s Basketball avenges Old Dominion loss

The Rice women’s basketball team saw a 30-game conference winning streak snapped on the road against Old Dominion. It was only fitting the Owls closed out the regular season with a rematch against the Monarchs. The game marked the final time senior Erica Ogwumike took the court for the Owls, making the victorious sendoff that much sweeter.

5. Grace Forbes wins C-USA Title

The women’s cross country squad only made one appearance this fall, but Grace Forbes made it count. The sophomore left her competition in the dust, crossing the finish line with no foes in sight. Her strong showing propelled the Owls to a fourth place finish in the meet.

4. Erica Ogwumike selected in WNBA Draft

The Ogwumike family name had already become a mainstay in WNBA circles before Erica Ogwumike played her final season at South Main. Her sisters, Nneka and Chiney, were both No. 1 overall selections. Erica went from off draft boards to becoming a third round pick of the New York Liberty, which was then traded to the Minnesota Lynx. Ogwumike said she was just grateful to hear her named called.

3. Women’s Basketball win’s second consecutive regular season title

Not only did Rice get revenge when they beat Old Dominion to close out the regular season this spring, they clinched their second consecutive regular season championship. The Owls were the favorites to cut down the nets in the conference tournament and to make a repeat appearance in the NCAA Tournament before COVID-19 concerns forced the cancelation of the remainder of the season.

2 Jack Fox named to NFL Pro Bowl

Released by the Chiefs last season, Fox signed a futures contract with the Detroit Lions in the offseason and won the Lions’ starting punting job in camp. From that point on, he took the NFL by storm. Fox led the NFL in most key measures for most of the season before being named to his first Pro Bowl. He’s the 12th Owl to earn a spot on a Pro Bowl roster and the first since fellow specialist Chris Boswell in 2017.

1. Rice Football shuts outs No. 15 Marshall

Rice football hadn’t beaten a ranked opponent in more than two decades when they made the trip to a cold Huntington, WV on Dec. 5 to play a then undefeated No. 15 Marshall squad. Not only did Rice win, they shut out The Herd, forcing five interceptions on their way to the upset win, a marquee victory for Rice. The Owls became the first team in 206 games to shut out Marshall at Joan C. Edwards Stadium.

Honorable Mentions…

How about you? Which of these moments from Rice Athletics did you enjoy the most? Which Rice Athletics events should be added to the list?

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Rice Football 2020 Team MVP: Austin Trammell

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Team captain Austin Trammell broke records and more than earned the selection for our 2020 Rice Football Team MVP.

Austin Trammell didn’t touch the football in the first two quarters of the Owls’ season opener against Middle Tennessee. In the third quarter of that game, he hauled in his first catch, an eight-yard touchdown reception. From that moment onward, he was a touchdown machine, an unquenchable spark plug for the Rice offense.

It was Trammell on the receiving end of Mike Collins’ fourth down heave in the final minute of regulation. It was Trammell again, on the very next pass, racing into the endzone for the go ahead score. Who else would the Collins hit on the two-point conversion that followed? Once more, it was Trammell.

When Rice needed a play, Trammell produced. After watching how much the star receiver impacted the game down the stretch against Middle Tennessee, wide receiver’s coach Mike Kershaw stated the obvious in the days following the game: “He needs to be more involved.”

The next time Rice took the field, Trammell was more than involved, he was the centerpiece of the Rice offense. He caught three touchdowns against Southern Miss, torching the entire secondary down the sideline for a 72-yard score. He found the paydirt again in the first quarter of the Owls’ third game against North Texas. In the span of seven quarters, from the end of the first game to the beginning of the third, he scored six times.

Entering the season, Trammell has scored seven times in 37 career games, a rate of roughly one touchdown every five or so games. In 2020, he averaged two touchdowns per game. After looking the part in fall camp, he delivered jaw-dropping performances from the gridiron stage every Saturday.

Then, almost out of nowhere, the show stopped.

Trammell suffered an injury against North Texas that prevented kept him out of the Owls’ final two games. When accounting for one defensive score, an offense that averaged 27 points per game with him on the field scored 14.5 points per game with him on the sideline. If the MVP belongs to the team’s most valuable player, it’s hard to argue for anyone else other than the Owls’ team captain and leading touchdown man.

His shortened 2020 season propelled him further up several of the program’s all-time lists. He’s eighth all-time in receiving touchdowns. He’s the ninth Owl with 3,000 all-purpose yards. His six touchdown receptions in a single season were the most since Jordan Taylor caught seven in 2014, and it took Taylor 10 games to reach that mark. Trammell did it in three. The spark he brought to the offense was undeniable.

Trammell first earned a starting job in his sophomore season. He caught 62 passes that year, following that with a 60 catch performance as a junior. His 16 receptions this year, when averaged against a typical 12-game season, put him on pace for 62 receptions. To some extent, his usage was on par with what it had been in the past. In reality, though, how he was targeted took a significant step further down the field.

After averaging 10.2 and 12.1 yards per reception in 2018 and 2019, respectively, Trammell averaged 20.9 yards per catch in 2020. No player in Conference USA averaged more. In fact, he and North Texas wideout Jaelon Darden were the only players in the conference to average at least 15 yards per reception and catch at least five touchdowns. Trammell wasn’t just a deep threat. He was a bonafide playmaker.

Even though he wasn’t playing, Trammell was present in the final weeks of practice and game prep. He mentored Jake Bailey and the younger wide receivers, conversing with them in between drills and providing pointers along the way. Just as he had done when he missed spring practices as he rehabbed from a separate injury, he found a way to lead the team from the sideline.

The narrative of who Austin Trammell was as a player changed in 2020. He went from a reliable slot man to a legitimate weapon. No matter where he goes from here, he’ll always have his place in Rice football history.

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