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Football: Former Harvard Running back Charlie Booker to transfer to Owls

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Former Harvard Crimson running back and Houston native, Charlie Booker has committed to play out his remaining eligibility with Rice football at South Main.

Mike Bloomgren spent the winter and early spring scouring the Transfer Portal in search of players who can provide an impact on the field immediately this coming season. After adding several graduate transfers in the weeks leading up to National Signing Day the Owls are working to put the finishing touches in place this spring.

There are a few loose ends to wrap up in the 2019 class, but Rice crossed one area of need off the list with the addition of former Harver running back Charlie Booker. The former Cy Ranch standout plans to join his former quarterback Tom Stewart at South Main in the fall.

A two-time team MVP and senior captain for the Crimson, Booker was a first-team All-Ivy League selection in 2017, racking up 733 yards and six touchdowns that season. In three seasons he amassed 1,230 yards and 10 scores. He fell into a timeshare role in 2018, but remained every bit as explosive. Rice has several shifty backs on the roster. Booker has some twitch, but more importantly, he runs hard north and south.

Booker’s addition gives the Owls a stable of talented running backs to lean on to support Bloomgren’s run-heavy scheme. That’s especially important given the offseason departures of Austin Walter (graduation) and Emmanuel Esukpa (transfer).

The new transfer will be aided by Aston Walter and Juma Otoviano. Freshman Jawan King could force his way into the mix as well. Having this many capable mouths to feed is a good problem to have. That’s especially true when two of those four horses are experienced veterans like Booker and Walter.

Standing 5-foot-9, Booker tips the scales right at 200 pounds but he plays big. He’s a candidate to be the most physical runner on the roster from day one. Just check out the first play on his highlight reel.

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Rice Baseball: Anthony Rendon leads the way for MLB Owls

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Rice baseball boasts a long tradition of excellence at both the collegiate and professional level. This year five Owls have made MLB appearances.

While the college squad works to secure a Conference USA Tournament berth, five MLB Owls have made at least one appearance in The Show in 2019. Jon Duplantier made his MLB Debut and two of the Owls’ most prolific pro hitters have fought through injuries to make an impact on the field this season.

JT Chargois

Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the second round of the 2012 MLB Draft, Chargois spent the last two seasons with the Dodgers. He made 35 appearances last season but has only been elevated to the big leagues once in 2019. Chargois threw in back-to-back games against the Saint Louis Cardinals in April, allowing two runs on a home run to Marcell Ozuna in 1.2 innings pitched. He was then sent back to Triple A.

Tyler Duffey

Like Chargois, Duffey saw limited action in 2019 before returning to the minor leagues. He made four appearances for the Twins in April. In two of them, he held his opponent to one hit and no runs. In the other two games, though, he allowed five runs including a three run home run into the Crawford Boxes at Minute Maid Park to Jose Altuve.

Jon Duplantier

Duplantier made his MLB Debut on April, earning a three-inning save for his Arizona Diamondbacks over the San Diego Padres. Through three career outings, he’s maintained a spotless 0.00 ERA with three hits allowed, four walks and seven strikeouts over the course of eight innings. His last appearance came against the Chicago Cubs on April 28.

Brock Holt

After a scratched cornea courtesy of his son hampered Holt’s ability to play earlier in the season, a shoulder injury sidelined him in through mid-April. Since then he’s participated in one rehab and assignment and is on track to get back on the field with the Red Sox in the coming days. Manager Alex Cora expects Holt to resume baseball activities on Monday.

Anthony Rendon

The starting third baseman for the Washington Nationals, Rendon is off to the hottest start of his professional career. Already the owner of a 17-game hitting streak this season, Rendon leads his team with a .342 batting average, .433 on-base percentage and .711 slugging percentage. He’s mashed six home runs with 10 doubles in 21 games.

Rendon was hit with a pitch on April 20, sidelining him for several weeks. He was activated on Tuesday and played in the team’s last two games, both against the Milwaukee Brewers.

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Rice Baseball: What do the Owls need to do to clinch a CUSA Tournament berth?

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Rice baseball is working to secure a Conference USA Baseball Tournament berth. Here’s what they need to do to lock down their spot in the postseason.

In two weekends the Conference USA Baseball Tournament field will be set. Rice hopes to be one of the eight squads to make the trip to Biloxi, Mississippi, but they have some work to do before they can rest easy. With six conference games remaining, Rice is in the running, mathematically, for the full gamut of finishes in the conference standings. The Owls are 12-12, good for fifth place in the 12 team race. Here are a four possible outcomes for the next two weeks

Scenario 1 – Rice wins the CUSA Regular season championship (2% chance)

What it would take – Rice finishes 6-0 with plenty of help

A 6-0 finish with dreadful weeks from Southern Miss and FAU could skyrocket Rice into first place. That would give the Owls 18 wins, tied for the most in the league with Southern Miss. It would also clinch included the tiebreaker, an assumed sweep of the Golden Eagles in the Owls’ last home series of 2019. Rice swept a good Louisiana Tech team at home, but this would require an extra dose of good fortune.

Scenario 2 – Rice earns a Top 4 seed (28% chance)

What it would take – Rice wins final two series, WKU or LaTech lose two series

This scenario would require a strong finish with additional help, but it seems within reason. Rice winning their final two series would elevate the team to 16 wins. WKU is 14-9-1 and Louisiana Tech is 13-11. If WKU sweeps Louisiana Tech, Rice would hold the tiebreaker and thus the No. 4 seed. If Louisiana Tech beats WKU, Rice would need one of those two schools to lose out. Louisiana Tech closes at FIU. WKU is home against Old Dominion.

Scenario 3 – Rice earns a Bottom 4 seed (50% chance)

What it would take – Rice splits their next six games

Losing either of the next two series makes the odds of postseason play dicey. Rice is one win up of Marshall (11-12) and Old Dominion (11-13) and two ahead of UTSA (10-13) and Middle Tennessee (10-14). Rice needs to finish ahead of one of those teams to make the field, assuming 9-win Charlotte or FIU don’t surprisingly catch fire over the final two weeks. If Rice can manage a 3-3 finish they’re more than likely safe.

Scenario 3 – Rice misses CUSA Tournament (20% chance)

What it would take – Rice wins two or fewer games

Anything fewer than 15 wins opens the door for the rest of the conference to make a move. A 14-16 finish could push Rice to the bottom of the conference, falling even with lowly UAB who already has 16 losses entering the final two weekends. One win would leave them at the mercy of a potential tiebreaker to UTSA, MTSU, Charlotte or FIU, all of which have a series win over the Owls this season.

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CUSA Baseball: Race for the top is closer than ever

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With two weeks remaining before the CUSA Baseball Tournament, Southern Miss and FAU are neck and neck at the top of the standings. Can anyone else come close?

Notable weekend results

1. Rice sees surge stopped by sweep (more)

In the midst of their longest winning streak of the year, Rice baseball had swept back to back CUSA series entering their road set with Western Kentucky. Within striking distance of the top teams, Rice fell flat, dropping all three contests to WKU. It’s now the Hilltoppers who hold sole possession of third place in the standings trailing Southern Miss and FAU.

2. FAU comes close to an emphatic sweep of Southern Miss

Southern Miss could have put the race for the No. 1 seed to bed with a series win over FAU. Instead of locking things down, the Eagles find themselves perilously close with the Owls, who took two of three over the weekend. The lone win for Southern Miss came in walk-off fashion, escaping with a ninth-inning single to break a 7-7 tie. The 1-seed is officially a two-team race.

3. Mother nature spoils Marshall/UTSA series

Both Marshall and UTSA are close to the cut line to make the conference tournament. Rough weather over the weekend forced the cancellation of the conclusion of the series, split 1-1. Marshall is 11-12. UTSA is 10-13. Both teams needed the chance at another win, so the lack of a rubber game is a particularly problematic ending from Huntington, WV.

Standings

Team CUSA Overall
1 Southern Miss 18-6 31-15
2 FAU 17-7 32-15
3 WKU 14-9-1 23-22-1
4 Louisiana Tech 13-11 29-19
5 Rice 12-12 21-27
6 Marshall 11-12 24-23
7 Old Dominion 11-13 29-18
8 UTSA 10-13 22-25
9 MTSU 10-14 17-30
10 Charlotte 9-14-1 18-27-1
11 FIU 9-15 20-27
12 UAB 8-16 22-26

 

Upcoming series of note

1. FAU at UTSA

FAU wants to make their final push for the No. 1 overall seed. UTSA is looking for enough wins to make the CUSA field. There will be a lot at stake in San Antonio next weekend.

2. Western Kentucky at Louisiana Tech

Sitting at No. 3 and No. 4 in the conference standings the Hilltoppers and Bulldogs can push themselves into a secure position with a series win.

3. Old Dominion and Marshall

This might be an elimination series. The loser will enter the final weekend below .500 in conference play and could need some help to make the CUSA Tournament field.

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Rice Baseball: Sweep by WKU a headscratcher for Owls

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Rice baseball came back to earth over the weekend. The Owls saw their six-game CUSA win streak snapped by a sweep at the hands of Western Kentucky.

Rice swept each of their last two Conference USA series and was reasonably confident entering a three-game tilt with Western Kentucky. The Hilltoppers were right in the middle of the pack along with the Owls, but had proven themselves to be beatable along the way. Not only was Rice unable to take the series, they weren’t able to win a game. Here’s a rundown of the tough weekend and three closing thoughts on the regrettable string of defeats.

FRIDAY (GAME 1) | WKU 6 – Rice 3

Things started out as good as Rice could have hoped for in the series opener. Matt Canterino was lights out on the mound, striking out 11 batters in seven innings. Western Kentucky was able to rough him up a bit in his final inning, but after allowing four straight hits, Canterino survived the scare and left the game in position to earn the win.

Counting the two runs given up by Canterino, Rice still held a 3-2 advantage. A pair of RBI singles, one by Trei Cruz in the first and another by Aaron Beaulaurier in the second plus a wild pitch had put Rice ahead early. Then they turned to the bullpen for six outs.

One error and three hits allowed Western Kentucky to break things open against Kendal Jeffries who had been the Owls’ most trustworthy bullpen arm. After leading for seven innings, Rice saw the result flipped in less than 30 minutes, losing 6-3.

FRIDAY (GAME 2) | WKU 9 – Rice 5

A similar story materialized in the second half of the Friday doubleheader. Evan Kravetz threw five innings, striking out nine and allowing three runs. He’d had better days, but his solid outing was not the Owls’ undoing. It was the bullpen, again. This time Blair Lewis took the loss.

Lewis relieved Kravetz and retired two of the first three batters he faced. An error, followed by a walk and a hit by pitch put the fate of the game in jeopardy. With the bases loaded, WKU slugger Jake Sanford strode to the plate an uncorked a grand slam over the right-field fence. Rice would never recover, dropping the series.

SUNDAY | WKU 6 – Rice 4

Unlike the prior two games, Rice did not strike first in the series finale. WKU scratched across runs in the first, second and third innings, taking a 4-1 lead into the middle innings. Jackson Parthasarathy wouldn’t make it out of the fifth inning, being relieved in favor of Garrett Gayle after surrendering four runs in the first three innings.

With Gayle on the mound, the Owls traded runs. Following an RBI in the fifth by WKU’s Stanford, Cade Edwards doubled and Dominic Cox hit a sac fly to cut the home team’s advantage to 5-3. The squads each tacked on a single run over the remainder of the contest, with Rice falling short for the fourth consecutive game.

TAKEAWAYS | WKU wins series 3-0

1. Who can Bragga trust in the pen?

As recently as a week ago, Kendal Jeffries, Garrett Gayle and Blair Lewis were the Owls’ most trustworthy relief options. All three of them had regrettably rough outings this week, and were responsible, at least to some degree, for Rice losses.

Rice doesn’t have the depth behind them to make a quick fix. Ben Schragger, Jackson Tyner and Ben Content have had their chances – none have been able to consistently get outs. With Addison Moss on the mend, Rice is out of options.

Kel Bordwine’s strong start against Houston on Wednesday will put him in contention for relief minutes in the coming weeks. He got the final two outs on Sunday. Dalton Wood could be a candidate after his outing this week, too. The fact that few answers have been found this late into the season is frustrating. It’s an ever-present reminder the depth on this team has some ways to go before it’s back to the standard this program has enjoyed over the past several decades.

2. It’s time to go home

With the meaningful exception of the Old Dominion series, Rice has not been a good team away from home. The Owls swept the Monarchs, but are 6-11  away from Reckling Park with one series win in 2019. That .353 winning percentage contrasts sharply with the Owls’ home record of 13-15, a .464 winning percentage.

Rice can finish better than .500 at home if they sweep Southern Miss in their final home series. That’s a tall task, but equally as challenging as sweeping Louisiana Tech at home, a feat they achieved earlier this season. Rice has won three home series, playing comprehensively better baseball in Houston than anywhere else. They don’t get to bring the same dirt with them to the postseason, so they’d best take advantage of their own field while they can.

3. This team is running out of time to get in rhythm

On paper, a series against Western Kentucky’s porous pitching staff was exactly what this offense needed. After settling in on a starting nine, the Rice offense was beginning to up their production at the plate. They were getting hits. They just needed to convert those into runs. Rice scored some runs against Western Kentucky, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a shaky bullpen.

The same roster that swept Louisiana Tech at home crumbled on the road against a team squarely in the middle of the pack. Now Rice finds themselves further down the standings than they’d like. The Owls are one bad weekend away from finding themselves on the outside of the conference tournament looking in.

Which team shows up at home against Southern Miss next weekend? The answer to that question might determine whether or not Rice is playing baseball deep into May. As thing stands, they’ll enter their last home series in fifth place.

ON DECK | at Lamar (Tues), vs Southern Miss (Fri-Sun)

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