The source for Rice sports news

2019 Rice Football recruiting National Signing Day predictions

By

National Signing Day is upon us and the 2019 Rice Football signing class is nearly complete. Here’s how the Owls will look to finish.

Rice signed 17 players during the early signing period in December. Since then they’ve picked up commitments from four scholarship players, bringing their total up to 21 commitments on the eve of National Signing Day.

They’ve also added a host of preferred walk-ons, including a trio of players who made announcements on Monday: running back Ayden Noriega, safety Chike Anigbogu and wide receiver Bennett Mecom

The Owls have five spots remaining, but there isn’t a rush to fill them at all costs. The coaching staff is going to stay tuned in to the transfer markets as the day unfolds. Don’t be surprised to see a spot (or two) unused by the end of the day on Wednesday. The Transfer Portal will remain open for a while, giving the teams and players ample time to feel out which situations work best for all parties involved.

Here’s how the class is most likely to finish

QB – Stewart*, Johnson
OL – Riddle, Jones, Leverett*, [Chaffin*], [Gooseberry*]
WR – Knipe, Rozner*
TE – Bradley
FB – [Williams*]
RB – King
DL – Floyd, Bickham, Pearcy, Carroll
LB – Braden, Morrison 
S – Henry, Lockhart, Smith*
CB – Bailey, Landrum
K – Hoban

* = Graduate or JUCO transfer
(italics) = unsigned players
[projected additions]

That projection calls for three new additions: Stanford transfers Brian Chaffin and Reagan Williams as well as OBU offensive lineman Justin Gooseberry. Other targets Mike Hinton, Kenyon Reed, Ardell Brown and others remain options, but none are probable to sign with the Owls on Wednesday. Any of that trio of grad transfers could decide to keep their options open too, we’ll just have to wait and see.

Don’t Miss: Full commitments profiles on each of Rice football 2019 signees and commits

If Rice can pick up at least two of those grad transfers before they close the book on the 2019 class, they’ll be in good shape. Even if they don’t this is shaping up to be another strong class for Mike Bloomgren and his staff headed into Year 2.

Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

Recent Posts

Aston Walter granted additional year of eligibility by NCAA

By

Rice football running back Aston Walter will return to South Main in 2019 after being granted an additional year of eligibility by the NCAA.

In what has to be seen as a sign of good fortune for Rice football as the team heads into 2019, the NCAA has granted running back Aston Walter an additional year of eligibility. The young team will be flush with freshman and sophomore on the two-deep this fall. That makes the retention of a veteran leader who can contribute to the team on and off the field extremely important.

Aston signed with Rice in 2014 his brother Austin Walter. After redshirting his freshman season, Aston saw minimal usage in 2015 — 10 carries for 41 games. He scored his first touchdown in 2015, carrying the ball 23 times for 141 yards, also catching two touchdown passes.

The 2017 season was lost almost entirely. Aston registered a single carry against UTEP before suffering a shoulder injury which sidelined him for the year. He returned to a crowded backfield in 2018, fighting for carries with his brother Austin, Emmanuel Esukpa and later freshman Juma Otoviano.

Aston came in on spot duty throughout the year, picking important third downs and making big plays. As the season progressed, he proved to be one of the most reliable ball carriers on the team. His consistency earned him more touches and he made those touches count.

In his fifth year on campus, Aston saw some of his most productive games of this collegiate career last season. He tallied 72 yards rushing against Louisiana Tech and LSU in consecutive weeks, just the second and third time rushing for more than 50 yards in his career.

He returns to a backfield in 2019 which he’ll share with Otoviano and freshman Jawan King, among others.

Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

Recent Posts

Quarterback Jovoni Johnson commits to Owls

By

Rice football has a quarterback in their 2019 class. Arkansas native Jovoni Johnson has committed to Mike Bloomgren and the Owls.

Houston, we have a quarterback. After a surprise decommitment from long-time commit Trevor Bycznski on the first day of the early signing period, Rice was left in need of a signal caller. The Owls could have gotten by without signing a high school quarterback in the 2019 class, but the number of injuries suffered at the position last year combined with roster turnover made getting at least one a clear priority.

After whittling down their list to a select few, Rice keyed in on Conway, Arkansas product Jovoni Johnson. The 6-foot-5, 205-pound dual threat quarterback held offers from Central Arkansas, Delta St, Ouachita Baptist and Arkansas Tech. Instead of staying near home, he elected to head south to Houston. Johnson made his pledge to Rice during the Owls’ first official visit weekend of 2019.

Johnson brings a unique skillset to the table. Not only can he sling it, but he also carries the ball with power. Slides don’t make the highlight tapes, neither does throwing the ball away. Nevertheless, Johnson’s willingness to power through contact and make plays however possible make his upside exciting. A year or two under the tutelage of Bloomgren and offensive coordinator Jerry Mack should unlock even more ability from an already talented athlete.

The quarterback room is better and much more diverse with the addition of Johnson. Adding his skillset to the flashes of production this offense saw from Wiley Green and Evan Marshman last season makes for a brighter future for Rice quarterbacks in 2019 and beyond. Johnson is a big pickup for this class and one of the finishing touches for the staff in the final days before National Signing Day.

Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

Recent Posts

MBB: Owls best Charlotte for first conference road win

By

Rice basketball capped off the month of January with their first road victory in conference play, taking down Charlotte 65-61.

It didn’t take long for Rice to get rolling on Thursday night in North Carolina. After trading punches with the home team the Owls extended their early lead to 11 points, the widest advantage they’d had at the midpoint of any game yet this year.  Things were looking good.

A double-digit lead against a 5-win team is right where the Owls had hoped to be, but life is never easy on the road. Charlotte battled back, erasing the deficit and then some as they outscored the Rice 17-4 in the first eight minutes of the second half. The shots weren’t falling, but Rice persevered.

Rather than cave, the Owls battled back overcoming a 38.5 percent shooting night with 11 made three-pointers on 22 shots. Trey Murphy, Ako Adams and Robert Martin all got involved from deep as the Owls pulled away for their first CUSA road win of the season.

Box

PLAYER FG 3PT FT OREB DREB REB AST STL BLK TO PF PTS
J. Williams 0-5 0-2 2-2 3 7 10 2 0 1 4 3 2
Q. Millora-Brown 2-4 0-0 2-2 0 2 2 0 0 1 1 2 6
D. Peterson 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 0
C. Mullins 2-11 1-2 0-2 1 2 3 4 1 0 0 2 5
A. Adams 4-9 3-6 5-6 0 5 5 4 0 1 3 1 16
R. Martin 5-8 3-5 2-2 2 5 7 2 0 0 4 2 15
J. Parrish 3-6 0-1 3-4 1 0 1 2 1 0 1 2 9
P. Moore 0-3 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0
T. Murphy III 4-5 4-5 0-1 1 3 4 0 3 0 0 2 12

Player of the game – Ako Adams

Rice trailed 58-53 with less than 3:30 remaining in the contest. They needed someone to seize control and will the team to victory. Ako Adams stepped up scoring eight of the final 12 points for Rice, doubling the amount of scoring he’d racked up in 36 minutes over the final minutes. The junior point guard has been a pacesetter for the Owls this season. When he’s clicking, the entire offense is better.

Up Next

The road trip continues on Saturday. Rice will stick around the east coast, heading north to Virginia to take on a red-hot Old Dominion squad that’s won four of their last five games. Knocking off the Monarchs would be the Owls’ most impressive conference win to date.

Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

Recent Posts

MBB: Stock up and stock down

By

Rice basketball is nearing the end of a hard-fought month of January. Buy stock in Trey Murphy and sell the Owls’ streak of bad luck.

Stock up – Trey Murphy

Freshman guard Trey Murphy had never scored more than 13 points in his collegiate career prior to the Owls’ Jan. 19 game against North Texas. In fact, he’d scored 10 or more points four times in 18 games. He’s averaging 20 points and 3.3 rebounds per game over the last three games, leading the team in scoring and draining 13 three-point shots. He’s one of the hottest hands on the team right now.

Stock down – unforced errors and turnovers

Rice has averaged 12.3 turnovers per game in conference play, a mark which puts them right in the middle of the pack. Giving away extra possession has been amplified by the Owls’ own inability to take the ball away. Their 3.6 steals per game ranks last in conference play. They’ve won a few in spite of the mistakes, but playing more disciplined basketball will open up more opportunities to win.

Stock up – second half intensity

The first outing against North Texas gave a glimpse of what this team might be capable of doing in CUSA play. After leading by double-digits, a woeful second half performance resulted in a 103-87 defeat. Finishing was a problem against UTEP and North Texas, too. Since then, though, Rice has strung together encouraging second half performances against Middle Tennesee and UAB. This team is learning to finish on the fly.

Stock down – Luck

“I don’t know too many teams in certainly my 28 years of coaching have gone through what we’ve gone through the last two Saturdays”, Scott Pera said almost incredulously following the Owls’ win over Middle Tennesse. Continuing on to Ako Adam’s missed three-point attempt in the final second against UAB or looking back to the unfortunate end sequences against UTEP and North Texas, the ball hasn’t bounced the Owls’ way in recent weeks. Their three most recent losses have come by a combined five points.

Stock up – Tudor Fieldhouse

The road has not been kind to Rice this season. Sitting at 1-8 away from their own gym, a 75-67 win over UTRGV in December is the Owls’ only road victory. That contrasts sharply with the Owls’ 7-5 record at home, including a 3-2 mark against conference opponents. A 3-point loss to UAB and a squandered first half lead against North Texas have been the only blemishes on what has largely been a strong showing at home.

Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

Recent Posts