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Rice Football Recruiting: DL Matthew Aribisala commits to Owls

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The 2025 Rice Football recruiting class continues beefing up its haul in the defensive trenches. Defensive lineman Matthew Aribisala has committed to the Owls.

The finishing touches to the 2025 Rice Football recruiting class are being made as the calendar bleeds into mid-May and players will soon be on campus for summer workouts. Before that happens, the Owls are adding a few more reinforcements via the transfer portal, including this latest new face from just north of town. Former Sam Houston defensive lineman Matthew Aribisala has committed to the Owls.

Aribisala arrives on South Main with two years of eligibility remaining following four years spent at Sam Houston State. He saw action in 21 games, making his largest impact in 2023 when he recorded 11 tackles across 12 games.

He picked up his first sack last season against Rice and was on his way to an even larger role in the defense before an injury sidelined him for the remainder of the year, limiting him to just four games last fall.

Upon entering the portal, Aribisala received interest from several Group of 5 programs with offers from Ohio, New Mexico State and Arkansas State, among others.

The addition of Aribisala gives the Owls a robust group of defensive additions from the Transfer Portal this spring. He joins fellow defensive line additions VJ Bronson (North Texas) and Sam Carrell (Texas Tech) as well as safety Jack Kane (Oregon State) and corner Khary Crump (Houston Christian).

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The 6-foot-3, 295 pound interior defender has the potential to make a sizable impact on the Owls’ front. There’s not a ton of highlights out there, but this sack of Rice QB EJ Warner in the season opener last year showcased the kind of speed and power he brings to the table as a pass rusher.

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Rice Baseball 2025: MLB Owls Update – May 14

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The 2025 MLB season is underway and Rice baseball alums are making the most of their time in The Show. Here’s the latest from the MLB Owls.

Dane Myers – Miami Marlins

Myers’s electric start to the season was slowed, at least briefly, by an oblique injury that landed him on the 10-day injured list on Monday. In his final appearance before his forced time off, Myers went 1-for-3 against the White Sox with a run scored and a stolen base, his seventh of the season thus far, and potentially the play which caused the injury.

Through May 14, Myers is hitting .337 with six extra-base hits, five walks and 21 strikeouts. His OPS is .857 and he’s collected 14 RBI.

Injured List

Anthony Rendon – Los Angeles Angels

Rendon is slated to miss a significant amount of time following him surgery this spring. The bad news is another bump in an injury-plagued stint with the Angels; Rendon missed a chunk of last season with an oblique strain.

Matt Canterino – Twins AAA

Canterino was thought to have a real chance to crack the big league roster at some point this season, converting himself to a reliver this offseason in hopes of limiting the stress on his arm and preserving his health. Unfortunately, he’s set to miss a third consecutive season, undergoing shoulder surgery in early March. The Twins since released him and signed him to a minor league contract while he rehabs.

Knocking on the Door

The following Owls began the season in AAA:

  • Tristan Gray – Charlotte Knights (White Sox)
  • Evan Kravetz – Louisville Bats (Reds)
  • Glenn Otto – Sugar Land Space Cowboys (Astros)
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Rice Football Recruiting: RB Carson Morgan commits to Owls

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The 2025 Rice Football recruiting class has picked up another boost in their skill position ranks. Former Kansas running back Carson Morgan has committed to the Owls.

Bolstering the running back room was one of the most evident objectives when it came to rounding out the 2025 Rice Football recruiting class and prepping the roster before summer workouts arrived. Rice was able to find that piece in the transfer portal. Former Kansas running back Carson Morgan has committed to the Owls.

A product of Bentonville West High School in Arkansas who grew up in Austin, TX, Morgan committed to Kansas as a member of the 2023 class. He appeared in six games for the Jayhawks last season, primarily on special teams, without recording any official statistics, before entering the portal this spring. He has three years of eligibility remaining.

Morgan picked up a handful of FCS offers before both Rice and Ohio made their offers on the same day. Less than two weeks later, Morgan opted to head south to Houston, TX, rather than north to Athens, OH. His prior relationship with Rice football head coach Scott Abell played role in the decision.

“Coach Abell and that entire staff recruited me pretty heavily out of high school when they were at Davidson,” Morgan told The Roost. “When they reached out after I entered the portal they were very enthusiastic about me and wanted me to come visit as soon as possible.”

Morgan rounds out a skill position group that has added a fair amount of veterans in the portal over the last several weeks. Before his announcement, Rice had added Louisiana-Monroe wide receiver Artis Cole, Coastal Carolina slot receiver Max Balthazar and Kennesaw State quarterback Lucas Scheerhorn.

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The film for Morgan is a compilation of practice highlights and some special teams work. Limited though it is, Morgan’s 6-foot, 210-pound frame is the fills a gap the position was lacking and he showcases a relatively quick transition in traffic that could pay off in big ways in the Rice offense.

“I’m gonna give this program everything I got and show this community that y’all got a special one,” Morgan said. “Can’t wait to get back down in the great state of Texas!”

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Rice Baseball 2025: International Owls Update – May 10

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In addition to the Rice baseball alums in the Major Leagues, Owls are playing professional baseball around the world. Here’s the latest from Mexico and Japan.

Jon Duplantier – Hanshin Tigers (Japan)

Duplantier signed a minor league contract with the Brewers this winter, but was granted his release soon after so that he could pursue an opportunity in Japan. The bet to go oversees has worked out extremely well for Duplantier thus far. In four appearances with the Hanshin Tigers, Duplantier is 1-1 with a sterling 1.23 ERA. He’s struck out 28 batters and allowed just 15 hits in 22 innings of work.

In (Nippon Professional Baseball) NPB, pitchers are required to hit, something Duplantier rarely did in the states. He has two official big league plate appearances without a hit. In Japan, however, Duplantier is 1-for-6, collecting his very first pro-baseball knock.

Through May 12, Duplantier has a 1.23  ERA with a 0.863 WHIP. He’s averaging 11.5 strikeouts per nine innings.

Tyler Duffey– Generales de Durango (Mexico)

A free agent, Duffey opted to play in Mexico following 10 seasons in the major leagues, most recently splitting his 2024 season in between AAA and the Kansas City Royals. He signed with Generales de Durango this offseason.

Duffey has made 11 appearances with the club so far, all in relief. He’s struck out 12 while handing out just seven free passes and while he has yet to allow a home run, several of the men he’s allowed to reach base have come around to score.

Through May 12, Duffey has a 5.06 ERA with a 1.594 WHIP. He’s averaging 10.1 strikeouts per nine innings.

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Rice Baseball inches closer to postseason with series win over Wichita State

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Rice Baseball won their fourth conference series in their last five weekends, taking two of three from Wichita State, drastically improving the Owls’ postseason chances.

FRIDAY | Rice 4, Wichita State 3

Rice baseball found itself in another Friday night pitcher’s duel between Owls’ ace Davion Hickson and Wichita State hurler Grant Adler. It was Adler who allowed the first blemish in the form of a leadoff home run from Colin Robson, the first of his Rice career. Hickson was charged with his only two runs of the night when a ball down the line — which resulted in an injury to left fielder Jacob Devenny — allowed one run to score with the second Shocker run coming on an infield single by the next batter.

More: 59 Minutes — David Pierce Challenges Rice baseball to grow

Cole Green leveled the score for the Owls with a single in the fourth to plate Hiram Bocachica, who would reach third base in the bottom of the ninth, but fail to score as the game went into extra innings. Neither side got much going in the next two frames before Wichita State took advantage of a Rice error to score the go-ahead run in the 12th. Green equalized with a home run in the bottom of the frame.

The Owls got a double play ball to make quick work in the top of the 13th inning before Treyton Rank came to the plate in the bottom of the frame. He took a 2-1 pitch deep to right field, the first walk-off home run of his career.

SATURDAY | Rice 9, Wichita State 3

Runs were much easier to come by in the second game of the series with Rice scoring early and often against a Wichita State pitching staff that had burned top arms on Friday night. Paul Smith got the scoring started with an RBI single in the second. Rice added two more in the third before Michael Zito blasted a three-run homer in the fourth to put Rice in front 6-0.

Last Weekend: Hickson gem propels Rice Baseball to series win over Charlotte

Wichita State would get three back in the next two innings, all charged to Rice starter JD McCracken, who still turned in a strong performance, going seven innings with four strikeouts and just those three runs allowed. Garrett Stratton got the final six outs, aided by a trio of insurance runs scored in the bottom of the seventh, the last two coming on a double from Aric Anderson.

SUNDAY | Wichita State 18, Rice 7

Rice baseball struck first with a two-run first, kicking off what would become a high-scoring series finale despite neither team scoring in the next two frames. It was then that the Wichita State bats woke up in earnest, scoring four runs in the fourth to drive Tucker Alch from the game.

With Alch gone, WSU teed off on the remainder of the Owls’ bullpen. Maddox Keo was charged with five runs, and Micah Davis was charged with three. In total the Owls would use 10 pitchers and surrender 18 runs, 15 of which were earned. The bats managed seven runs, nearly half of the last two of which came in on a home run from Blaine Brown, but the deficit proved too large as Rice dropped the series finale in run-rule fashion.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

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