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Rice Football 2024 Defensive Newcomer: Charlie Looes

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An Ivy League pass rusher headed South for one last ride, defensive end Charlies Looes is our 2024 Rice Football Defensive Newcomer of the Year.

Expectations were high when Ivy League-leading sackman Charlie Looes made the decision to transfer from Dartmouth to South Main for his final season of collegiate eligibility. He made the most of his time in Texas, tying for the lead among all Owls’ defensive linemen in sacks on his way to earning honors as our 2024 Rice Football Defensive Newcomer of the Year.

Looes, like many before him, was limited by Ivy League eligibility restrictions which bar graduates from playing in the league. For graduates who still want to play college ball, they must go elsewhere. That opened a door for him to become the next in a growing pipeline of Rice football players who honed their craft in the Ivies before transferring south for their final season.

More: 2024 Rice Football Season Superlatives

Returns were positive early on as Looes seamlessly fit into the scheme and learned the defense during spring practices. “They’ve been bought in since we recruited them,” defensive line coach Cedric Calhoun said about Looes and fellow transfer Michael Daley from BYU, making it clear he was happy with what he’d seen from the newcomers thus far.

But when Coleman Coco’s waiver for another season was denied during the summer, the pressure on Looes to be productive started to ramp up. Coco, another Ivy League transfer, had led the Owls in sacks the prior season and was expected to compliment Looes on the line in 2024. Now that aspiration was squarely on Looes who did not disappoint.

In his second play in a Rice football uniform, Looes burst through the line and sacked Sam Houston quarterback Hunter Watson, killing the drive which led to a quick three-and-out. Rice wouldn’t win the game, but Looes would rack up another half sack and four total tackles in his debut.

“He didn’t make you wait long to learn his name if you didn’t already know it,” then head coach Mike Bloomgren remarked. “Really proud of Charlie stepping in there and doing that.”

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As injuries and shifting personnel around him ebbed and flowed, Looes kept working and finding ways to contribute. He would go on to lead the team in tackles for a loss (nine) and was the only player to both force a fumble and recover a fumble this season, he had two of the latter. He even had a pass breakup, too.

A finalist of the Bushnell Cup in his final season at Darthmouth, an award given annually to the league’s best defensive player, Looes was a bonafide plug-and-play disruptor in the defensive trenches during his time at Rice.

Often times it’s hard for a team to know exactly what they’re getting when they sign a player out of the Transfer Portal. Getting the kind of season they got from Looes is a deal worth taking every time. If you’re only getting a guy for one year he needs to show up and show out, something Looes did with flare.

Looes would bookend his season on South Main with a sack in his first and last game, playing a meaningful role in a Senior Day win that assuredly meant so much to him and a host of Rice football veterans that played their final game in the season finale against South Florida. Like those seniors, Looes did all he could to send this team out on a high note and his efforts were rewarded.

** Photo Credit: Maria Lysaker **
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Rice Football 2024 Offensive Newcomer: Chad Lindberg

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A rock on an ever-changing offensive line, Chad Lindberg, our 2024 Rice Football Offensive Newcomer of the Year.

Just weeks before the start of summer workouts, Chad Lindberg committed to transfer from Georgia to South Main. Even with the short runway to get acclimated to the program and the offense, Lindberg delivered in a big way on his way to becoming our 2024 Rice Football Offensive Newcomer of the Year.

A former blue-chip recruit who saw the field in a reserve role in the SEC, the plan when Lindberg arrived on campus was for him to take over one of the guard spots and stick there for the season. Lindberg was able to participate in summer workouts, but an injury sidelined him during much of fall camp. He missed the Owls’ season-opening game against Sam Houston, kicking off the first of a myriad of iterations in the trenches.

Lindberg made his Rice football debut in Week 2 against Texas Southern at left guard. His unit kept quarterback EJ Warner upright for a full 60 minutes, allowing no sacks against the FCS opponent. The following week they allowed just one sack in a loss to Houston, the Owls’ only Power Conference opponent of the season. Then the musical chairs began in earnest.

More: 2024 Rice Football Season Superlatives

Right guard John Long was injured against Houston, forcing Lindberg to switch to the right side of the line the following week against Army. Rice lost starting left tackle Ethan Onianwa in that game, another significant blow to an offensive line that seemed to finally be finding its stride.

Because of other injuries that had accumulated around him, Lindberg was asked to move again, suiting up at left tackle for three games, including the program’s first AAC win of the year. Warner was sacked only twice in Lindberg’s three-game stretch as his blind side protector, always pushing himself and his teammates to do more.

“We take it personal when anyone gets close to EJ. We don’t want to give up any pressures, much less a sack,” he said during that run. “We feel like we’re talented enough and we’re a very talented unit. The expectation is to not let anyone close to him. That’s what we try to do every week.”

When Onianwa returned, Lindberg moved back to left guard, the position he thought he was going to be playing all season long. He would, at least, finish the year there as the Owls flip-flopped the other guard spot during the final stretch of games but kept Lindberg in one place.

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Center David Stickle and right tackle Brant Banks were the only two Rice offensive lineman to play a full 12 games, accounting for every start at their respective positions during the season. Lindberg played in all but one contest was the only player on the line to play three different positions. Only one other, Weston Kropp, played two, and that included a single spot start at right guard in six total appearances.

Despite all the upheaval and injuries, including six unique line combinations in 12 games, Rice turned in one of its most impressive showing in the offensive trenches in years. The team ranked seventh nationally in sacks allowed, ceding 11 sacks in 12 games, just one of 11 programs in the nation to allow fewer than one sack per contest. Two of the teams in front of the Owls, Army and Navy, run option offenses that rarely throw the ball.

Rice ranked ninth nationally in pass attempts per game. They threw the ball an incredible amount and yet still managed to keep their quarterback’s jersey remarkably clean. To that point, Rice ranked second nationally in sacks allowed per pass attempt. Lindberg’s versatility and consistency played a pivotal role in that. Not every Transfer Portal addition works out. This one paid off in droves.

** Photo Credit: Maria Lysaker **
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Rice Women’s Basketball buries Texas Southern

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Rice Women’s Basketball turned on the jets late in the second half, surging past Texas Southern in one of their most dominant wins of the season.

In front of a roaring crowd of school children on Friday morning, Rice women’s basketball jumped out to a 7-0 lead in front of intra-city foe Texas Southern at Tudor Fieldhouse. The Tigers composed themselves and fought back to within one before another Rice rally put the home team in front by 10 at the conclusion of the first quarter.

Both teams swapped scores in the second frame but the margin hung around double digits at halftime. Texas Southern put up a fight in the early portions of the third quarter but that was all the Tigers had left in the tank. Rice closed the frame on a dominant 21-5 run, taking a 23-point lead into the fourth.

More: Rice Women’s Basketball 2024-2025 Season Preview

Rice would go on to stretch their lead to 30 with Malia Fisher leading the Owls with 19 points and Emily Klaczek connecting on 3-of-4 from three. The 27 point win represents the largest margin of victory for Rice women’s basketball this season as the team moves to 7-4 on the year.

Final Box | Rice 89, Texas Southern 62

Key takeaway | Runaway Win

Rice women’s basketball defeating a 1-6 Texas Southern team is far from a Herculean feat. This year’s Tigers squad is not in the same weight class as the Owls, something which was quite clear on Friday. However, this is not the first time this season Rice has been head and shoulders better than their opponent.

Simply put, putting games away has been a problem for this team. They’ve been able to race out to double-digit leads with relative ease, but finding a way to turn a 10-point third quarter advantage into a 20-point fourth quarter lead has been lacking, until now.

Rice won by 27. And while margin of victory isn’t the most important statistic in the world, in this case it is instructive. The Owls found that next gear that’s eluded them to this point and that’s something that should be an encouraging sign for the program moving forward.

Up Next: at Georgia Tech (Wed, 12/18)

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Rice Football 2024: NFL Owls Week 14 Roundup

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Rice Football is well represented on 2024 NFL rosters. Here’s the latest from the NFL Owls in action in Week 14.

There are former Rice football players scattered across the NFL. Stay tuned each week for their game results and notables from each player.

TeamNFL Owl(s)This WeekResultNext Week
Detroit LionsJack Fox (P)
Myles Adams (DL)		vs Packers (Thr)W, 34-31vs Bills
Indianapolis ColtsKylen Granson (TE)— BYE ——at Broncos
Pittsburgh SteelersChris Boswell (PK)
Calvin Anderson (OL)		vs BrownsW, 27-14at Eagles
Washington CommandersLuke McCaffrey (WR)— BYE ——at Saints

Offense

Calvin Anderson – OL, Steelers

Anderson was active but did not see action in the Steelers’ win over the Browns this week.

Luke McCaffrey – WR, Commanders

McCaffrey and the Commanders were on bye this week.

Kylen Granson – TE, Colts

Granson and the Colts were on bye this week.

Defense

Myles Adams – DL, Lions

Adams racked up three tackles and a quarterback hit in his Detroit debut this week. He had previously been with the Seahawks but had since been signed to the Lions active roster.

Special Teams

Jack Fox – P, Lions

Fox was only asked to punt twice this week, averaging 46 yads per kick with a long of 50 yards.

Chris Boswell – K, Steelers

Boswell went 2-for-2 on field goals against the Browns on Sunday, including a long of 54 yards. He also connected on all three extra-point attempts. He’s made 36-of-39 field goals this season

More Owls in the NFL

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

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Rice Basketball comes up short at Texas State

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Rice Basketball drew close on multiple occasions but could never catch up to Texas State, falling on the road.

A pair of free throws from Trae Broadnax followed by a jumper from Trey Patterson put Rice basketball in front on the road against Texas State on Sunday afternoon. The Owls’ lead endured for the early portion of the first half before a 6-0 Texas State run leveled the score at eight apiece and signaled a changing of momentum for the remainder of the contest.

Both sides traded baskets from that point onward but a flurry of three-pointers by Texas State would prove to be significant. The Bobcats hit six in the first half, accounting for nearly half of their made baskets. The Owls had to make do with just two triples and went into the half training by four points.

More: Rice Basketball 2024-2025 Season Preview

Rice cut their deficit to one point on five separate occasions in the second half but never was able to break through and level the score. Each close call was answered by Texas State and while the Bobcats never built a commanding lead — their largest of the game was nine — it was enough to hold on for the victory.

Rice falls to 7-3 with the loss and 4-3 in games played away from Tudor Fieldhouse.

Final Box | Texas State 75, Rice 66

Key takeaway | A bit better on the boards

Rice basketball did a lot of things well against Texas State. Aside from a couple less threes and the already evident free throw inconsistencies, the Owls mirrored the Bobcats in shooting and outdid them in second chance points, blocks and steals. The one most glaring deficiency came on the boards, where Texas State finished with a commanding 37-28 advantage.

In a game that was within a possession or two for almost a full 40 minutes, those nine rebounds add up. Another rebound here or there can swing momentum and perhaps change the result of a close game like this. For the time being, this game should be considered the exception, not the rule. Rice was +49 in rebounds entering this game and had never been outrebounded by more than four.

Up Next: vs Alcorn State (Mon, Dec. 16)

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