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Rice Football 2019 Defensive Newcomer of the Year: Naeem Smith

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It didn’t take long for Rice Football safety Naeem Smith to earn his place at South Main, easily earning the title of 2019 Defensive Newcomer of the Year.

2019 Defensive Newcomer of the Year Naeem Smith is what Rice football head coach Mike Bloomgren likes to call one of his needles in a haystack. No, the moniker has nothing to do with the locale of Smith’s previous football team in Iowa. It references the transition from the team Smith once played for to the blue and gray uniform he wore at South Main this season.

Smith spent 2018 as a member of the Ellsworth Community College football team, a junior college tucked away in Iowa Falls, IA. There are thousands and thousands of JUCO athletes long for the opportunity to play at the next level. The best make the jump. The top JUCO prospect in Smith’s class, Jermaine Johnson, signed with Georgia. Other top junior college athletes ended up at Texas A&M, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee and Texas.

The list of junior college players who enrolled at high-caliber academic institutions like Rice, Stanford, Northwestern, Vanderbilt or Duke is much shorter, almost nonexistent. Finding a JUCO product with the talent level to play D1 football and the grades to get into Rice is almost impossible. Almost.

Enter Smith. Alongside fellow JUCO products Brad Rozner and Blaze Alldredge, Smith represents some of the most remarkable recruiting work the current staff has done. Not only did Smith leap the academic hurdles, he passed the on-field challenges with flying colors.

Smith enrolled early and was on campus for spring ball. It was there he began the process of assimilating into a defensive scheme flush with complexities. At that time, Rice football had incumbent starters at the safety spot. George Nyakwol was one of the few veteran defensive backs that had retained his starting job through the coaching transition. Prudy Calderon, dubbed the 2018 Defensive Rookie of the Year by The Roost, had emerged beside him. There was no rush to get Smith onto the field. Smith had other plans.

To some extent, Smith spoke his own future at Rice into existence. “We have one goal, and that’s to get better each day,” he said prior to his first game at South Main. That mission, to always improve, has paid it’s dividends.

Calderon started the first game. Smith started the remaining 11. It wasn’t so much that Calderon’s production had slipped — he was the same centerfielder-type safety that led the team in interceptions last season — Smith was just better.

Smith is a dual-threat asset. He’s as comfortable playing near the line of scrimmage as he is in the back of the secondary. He moved downhill fast, engaging blockers and ballcarriers with a fury that few expected from the 5-foot-11-inch dynamo.

Like Calderon the year prior, Smith led the team in interceptions (tied with fellow defensive back Treshawn Chamberlain). He tacked on 50 tackles, fifth-most on the team, 3.5 tackles for a loss and one sack. He also forced a fumble and had three pass break ups. Smith gave the secondary an edge, propelling everyone lined up with him to play to their absolute best.

Smith and the secondary capped off their season with a near-perfect outing against preseason Conference USA Player of the Year Mason Fine on Senior Day. The North Texas quarterback was held without a touchdown pass, in a game in which he attempted at least 15 passes, for the first time since Sep. 16, 2017 at Iowa. Nobody keeps Fine out of the endzone, but Rice football did. And Smith was a crucial piece to that puzzle.

As dominant as he felt he and the secondary had played, Smith still wanted more. “I really wish we would have gotten a shutout,” he said, a perfect snapshot of his laser focus. It’s also a sign that 2019 could be the beginning of a very special career. Smith is already one of the best defenders Rice football has, and he’s on a mission to get even better.

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Rice Football Film Room 2019: UTEP Review

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Rice football finished out the season on a three-game winning streak, making for an exciting finale in our 2019 film room series.

Hey y’all! Welcome back to the final Rice Football Film Room of the 2019 season. We’ll highlight one play to Austin Trammell that I just enjoyed, and two plays by redshirt freshmen that show how bright the future is for the Rice offense.

Texas Flood

Setup

About midway through the third quarter, Rice is down 16–14. The Owls have the ball 1st & 10 at the UTEP 34. They’re in 12 personnel from the shotgun: Aston Walter is the back, Jaeger Bull is the inline TE to the left, Jordan Myers is at H-back to the right, and Trammell and Bradley Rozner are wide to the right with Trammell in the slot. UTEP’s in a 3-3-5 look with one deep safety on defense.

The Play

Rice goes max protect, keeping 7 guys (the OL, Walter, and Bull) in to protect. That’s more than enough, because UTEP drops all the linebackers and DBs, leaving only the three DL to rush. Eight in coverage vs three guys running routes should make things easy on UTEP in coverage here.

Rice is running a route combination commonly referred to as a Flood concept, which involves running three routes of different depths all to the same side of the field. The idea is to stretch the defense vertically, and it’s particularly effective against a zone coverage like this one (which appears to be a variation on Cover 3). For the QB, the reads go high to low: first the go route from the outside receiver; next the out route from the slot; and finally the flat route from (in this case) the H-back.

Here, the outside corner sinks into his deep zone and stays over the top of Rozner, taking that read away. So Stewart’s next read is Trammell, who runs a double move, faking a post route before breaking back into a deep out. Both inside DBs to that side are preoccupied watching Myers in the flat (the apex guy falls over, but Trammell is long past him by the time that happens), and the deep safety is in no position to get over in time to defend an out route. So Austin finds a nice open spot in the zone, and the ball should go to him

Stewart does a great job of reading this play. He’s got the ball out right as Trammell is breaking back toward the sideline. His ball placement isn’t perfect; ideally you’d lead Trammell to the sideline with this throw. But Trammell shows fantastic body control, smoothly turning back to the ball and then continuing the spin to carry himself upfield without ever really breaking stride. Nothing special about this play. Just a well-run concept, a good read by Stewart, and a great play by Trammell.

The Need for Speed

Setup

Having kicked a field goal on the prior possession, Rice has the lead 17-16 and has the ball 1st & 10 at its own 48. The Owls are in 11 personnel, with Walter next to Stewart in the shotgun. Rozner is the X receiver to the boundary, and Trammell, Myers, and true freshman speedster Zane Knipe are in a bunch trips set, tight to the formation. UTEP is again in a 3-3-5 type look with a single deep safety.

The Play

Rice shows play action. Stewart fakes a handoff and Myers comes across the formation to sell split zone action. But ultimately we again end up with three rushers against seven blockers, though this time, with Myers charged with coming all the way across to block the edge rusher, the rush nearly gets home anyway. Walter helps out, though, and the two of them divert the rusher upfield in time for Stewart to step up and make the throw.

I can’t get a full picture of this concept since the camera doesn’t go wide enough, but it looks like Stewart’s first read may have been Trammell, because he looks that way for a while before coming back to Knipe. Here, since Rozner was the only receiver to the boundary, his go route completely clears out his side of the field.

With Knipe darting across the field on a dig route, he ends up wide open, with nobody even in his ZIP code by the time the ball arrives. The throw’s a bit late, but we can forgive Tom for that, because it’s not easy to get the ball out in time for a guy with Knipe’s raw speed. In any case, the placement’s a little better, and Zane turns it smoothly upfield for a big gain. The gif cuts off there (sorry, it was long already), but Knipe nearly manages to stiff arm the safety and get to the end zone. An offseason in the weight room might just fix that!

JoVoni on the Rise

Setup

Just one play later, Rice has it 2nd & Goal at the 8. The Owls are in a shotgun 12 personnel look, with Rozner and Trammell wide, Myers and Bull both inline to the left, and JoVoni Johnson and Walter in the backfield. UTEP responds with what’s basically a nine-man box and man coverage on the two receivers.

The Play

I picked this one because it’s the first of Johnson’s two TD runs and they were both the same play: QB power. This is exactly the same blocking scheme as the numerous big plays we’ve seen Rice get from that 22 personnel power toss play, but by having the QB carry the ball, the RB act as lead blocker, and subbing in another receiver, we now have one less guy in the box for the same number of blockers.

And y’all this one is blocked perfectly. From Myers inward, the TEs and OL completely wall off the defense inside, and there are basically two guys who can make the play. One gets erased by Shea Baker, the pulling guard. The other is expertly cut blocked by Walter. Johnson waltzes into the end zone.

Two plays by two freshmen who, eligibility-wise, will still be freshmen next year. Big things are coming for this Rice offense.

And finally, I just wanted to thank y’all for sticking with me and this column for the year. It’s been a blast doing it, and the work I’ve put in has made me a smarter football fan. I hope y’all have enjoyed it as well.

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Rice Football 2019 Special Teams Player of the Year: Garrett Grammer

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Rice football linebacker Garrett Grammer isn’t the most well-known defender, but the former long snapper is this year’s Special Teams Player of the Year.

For the first two years of his collegiate career, the average Rice football fan didn’t know who Garrett Grammer was. Fans know the starting quarterback(s). They know the stars. The most devoted Owls could probably recite the depth chart two-deep on both sides of the ball. But you won’t find many jerseys bearing the number and surname of the team’s long snapper. Much less so, his backup. That’s where the journey of the 2019 Rice Football Special Team’s Player of the Year begins.

Supplanted by Campbell Riddle in 2018 at long snapper, Grammer found himself buried on a crowded depth chart. The coaching staff hadn’t even known Grammer could snap when he arrived on campus. Now the advantage that originally secured him playing time was gone — he’d been beaten out. Not one to mope or quit, he did the only thing he knew how to do. He worked.

Fast-forward to November 3, 2019.

Marshall led Rice 10-7 in the second quarter. The Owls’ offense had shown signs of life under freshman quarterback JoVoni Johnson, but the defense knew every drive mattered. Needing a spark, Marshall quarterback Isaiah Green tossed the ball to speedy wide receiver Willie Johnson on a reverse.

The trick caught some off guard. Grammer was ready. Now a linebacker, Grammer had risen through the ranks and become a trustworthy member of the front seven. Grammer, listed as the backup to starter Antonio Montero who led the team with 11 tackles that day, made the play.

In a flash, Grammer exploded into the backfield and brought down Johnson for a loss of eight yards. Not only did the trick play not work. It backfired spectacularly.

“He’s probably the most underappreciated [line]backer we have,” said linebacker coach Scott Vestal. “If he goes in, I have no worries. It’s truly the same. The standard’s the same.”

That standard has been elevated significantly thanks to the shrewd defensive prowess of Grammer who has proven to have much more of a knack for the making plays than snuffing out a single reverse. A week prior to his moment against Marshall, Grammer laid waste to a fake punt attempt by UTSA.

Two big plays in two weeks haven’t just turned the heads of the coaching staff. Grammer’s peers are keeping tabs as well. “Garrett Grammer is a guy that I know can play,” said linebacker Blaze Alldredge. “And when you watch on film, that play that he made [against UTSA], it’s almost like he had a psychic premonition that it was coming because everybody else is running the other way and this guy is triggering downhill ready to make a play.”

Whether it’s a premonition, good luck or a combination of all of the above, Grammer chalks it up to him just doing his job. In his eyes, he was just doing what he was supposed to do on both of those big plays. Find the ball carrier and bring him down.

“I just happened to the person that made the play,” he said, almost nonchalantly recalling the blocked punt. Although he did let on there was a slew of thoughts firing off in his head as he worked. “That played didn’t last very long, right? But there’s so much stuff going through my mind at that time,” things like “Man, if I miss this tackle.” Fortunately for Grammer and for the Owls, he didn’t.

In some ways, those two moments represent the apex of Grammer’s entire Rice football career. The unassuming, lunchpail tackler had his moment in the spotlight, enjoyed it, and went back to work. But his story won’t end there, regardless of whether or not anyone else tries to outsmart the Owls’ trick play sleuth.

Grammer’s primary path onto the field, special teams, will remain his focal point moving forward. With his way to a starting linebacker job blocked by Montero (83 tackles this season) and Alldredge (second nationally in tackles for a loss with 22), Grammer’s contributions will be geared a bit more toward the “behind the scenes”-type work.

Spotlight or not, if anyone knows where No. 46 is at all times, its Rice football head coach Mike Bloomgren. “He’s a guy that we rely on for a lot of things on our team. He is the special teams ace on our team. And we trust him with everything,” he said. That, in itself, would have been high praise, then Bloomgren continued, “I remember we had like one every year on our team with the [New York] Jets. At one time it was Larry Izzo, former Rice Owl.”

Izzo, whose single-season school-record 17 tackles for a loss was surpassed by Alldredge this season, had a lengthy NFL career. He made three Pro Bowls as a special teams ace and took home three Super Bowl rings. There could not be a higher compliment paid to a special teamer at Rice than simply to be mentioned in the same breath as the Owls’ legend.

Humble excellence. That’s pretty much Garrett Grammer in a nutshell. And that’s why this season, despite the string of defeats, has been so rewarding for many on this team. His efforts are the backbone of a team in the progress of pulling itself up by the bootstraps, of a collection of players working their butts off to earn a win, somehow, someway.

“When [Grammer] made that play in the UTSA game on the reverse on the fake punt our sideline couldn’t have erupted anymore,” Bloomgren recalled, “And part of it was because the result of the play, but part of it was because it was Garrett and our guys just love him and they love the way he works.”

For now, that work will be starting on every special teams unit the Owls employ. No matter the situation, the staff and his teammate know they can trust Grammer implicitly. Not only will he make the right play,  but he’ll commit every ounce of effort to each moment. That strain, that willingness to commit to the little things in hope of fulfilling his commission to do his “one-eleventh” as Rice players are wont to say, could set up another bigger moment. Like the thwarted reverse against Marshall. Or that blown-up punt against UTSA.

Fellow linebacker Antonio Montero echoed that sentiment. “[It was] probably the most joyous I’ve been this season, seeing [Grammer block the punt], because I know how hard Garrett works, how good of a play that was,” he said, smiling.” Coach Vestal said that he was up in the box jumping up and down going crazy because we know how much it means to [Grammer] and how much it means to the linebacker corps.”

“I kinda was just the guy in the right spot at the right time,” Grammer chuckled with a modest grin.

Grammer made his first career start this season against North Texas. He finished the year with 15 tackles and 2.5 tackles for a loss, none bigger than his fourth down punt stop. Rice football hopes he’ll keep his penchant for consistency going into 2020. It might just result in the one play that matters, leading to the one result both Grammer and his teammates most desire: victory.

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The Roost’s 2019 Rice Football coverage postseason survey

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The 2019 Rice Football season has come to an end and we’d like to know how we did. Please take a few minutes and consider leaving your feedback.

When Rice football knocked off UTEP to close their 2019 season on a three-game winning streak we wrapped up our second full season covering the team. The Roost isn’t going anywhere — we’ve got a host of fall sports in progress and baseball will be here before we know it — but we don’t want to miss an opportunity to reflect on the past several months.

Please consider filling out the brief survey below. Tell us what you like and what we can do better. Your candor is appreciated. The Roost wouldn’t be what it was without our members.

Lastly, this survey is being released on Giving Tuesday. This site, podcast and future projects are all self-funded. If you’ve enjoyed The Roost, please consider making a donation here or purchasing some gear at The Roost Shop.

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Rice Football: Owls soar over UTEP for third straight win

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Rice football enters the offseason riding high, knocking off UTEP on the road to win their third consecutive game for the first time since 2014.

The Rice football team who took the field on a blustery Saturday afternoon against UTEP never looked flustered, even when UTEP took a momentary lead. This team had become accustomed with adversity and put their learnings from the school of hard knocks to use, winning their third straight game. The last Rice team to win three and a row won six straight in 2014. The last Rice squad to win their final three came in 2013, a year which included a conference championship.

Here are a few immediate takeaways from another encouraging outing:

1. It’s not perfect, but the Owls have fixed their offense

For the first time since their road trip to Birmingham to face UAB, Rice football ended their first offensive possession in the endzone. Set up by an opportune special teams play and a short punt, the offense needed just three plays to traverse the 28 yards between them and a touchdown. Taking the 7-0 lead kept their first-half momentum going. It also quickly ended the Miners’ hopes of a reprisal of last year’s 27-0 onslaught that put the Owls in a massive hole before their offense woke up.

UTEP would answer with a defensive touchdown, putting the onus back on Rice to keep their foot on the gas. Not only did Rice respond with a score, they marched 67 yards in a little less than three minutes, capping things off with a 30-yard touchdown run by sixth-year senior Aston Walter.

Whether they’re at home or on the road, the past three games have given ample reason to believe the early-season woes of the Rice offense are a thing of the past. They’ve scored on the ground and through the air. They’ve mixed in some razzle-dazzle and some no-nonsense, run-you-over physicality.

Zane Knipe hauled in a 42-yard bomb for his first career reception. JoVoni Johnson looked electric in select packages, including his first career touchdown and a second score to ice the game in the fourth quarter.

All told, the Owls finished with 30 points (16 of which came after halftime) and 371 total yards. That’s a long way from a seven-point, 243-yard outing this same team had in their season opener against Army.

2. There are no “gimmes” in Conference USA

Rice football won their prior two games in upset fashion, ending any bowl aspirations for both Middle Tennessee and North Texas. They took Louisiana Tech to overtime. In their only other game as a favorite this season, they squandered a fourth-quarter lead, falling to UTSA on the road. Notice any rhyme or reason to those results? Not really.

The Owls have been playing well in all phases, but there are no “gimmes” in Conference USA. The talent level gap between the upper tier and lower tier teams is nowhere near the chasm that exists in some other conferences around the country. Nobody can throw the ball out on the field and win games with willpower alone. It takes focus, execution and good coaching. Every Saturday.

The tone in the locker room matched this mindset all week. Leading receiver Brad Rozner was direct with his viewpoint of the game at hand: “We haven’t really done much. All we’ve done really is win two games.” Rice wasn’t overlooking UTEP, but even well-prepared, winning this game on the road against a team desperate to find any way to finish on top was always going to be hard. Credit Rice with this: for the third time in three weeks, they found a way to win.

3. The jury is still out on the Owls’ third down defense

From the box score alone, the defensive performance seemed presentable. The Rice defense allowed 10 points (none after halftime) with only one touchdown drive to a UTEP offense that put up five touchdowns last weekend. But after turning UTEP away on their first third down of the game, Rice allowed their opponents to convert five of their next seven third downs.

It was the defense’s inability to get off the field that proved to be the biggest stumbling block for the Rice offense. Rice had two offensive possessions in the second quarter while UTEP controlled the ball for 11:29 of the 15 minutes of play.

To some degree, an injury to Kai Locksley helped Rice solve their third down problems. The Miners’ starters left the game on the final drive before halftime with a wrist injury. UTEP looked lost without their dual-threat quarterback at the helm, going three and out twice and picking up just two third down conversions after halftime.

Rice can’t control injuries, but they can control their own defensive effort. The second half performance was a fantastic response, enabling Rice not only to take the lead but to extend it.

4. The no-quit attitude is paying off

Someone asked an interesting question during a mailbag segment on The Roost Podcast earlier this season: how many plays is Rice football from a winning record? The Owls were 0-6 at the time but had played well in their losses. After pondering things for a moment, Carter and I concluded they were probably only seven or eight plays from three wins, which could have potentially included Army and Baylor, currently ranked ninth in the nation.

Plenty was questioned during the 0-9 start. The effort wasn’t. The team was ready in the fourth quarter, physically prepared to do battle for a full 60 minutes. In theory, those close games would begin to balance out. The Owls had lost a disproportionate amount of nail-biters. They were “due”.

The Owls’ effort never waned. The results have been as good as they could have imagined and should give plenty of optimism for what this team will be able to accomplish in 2020 and beyond.

5. Don’t miss the trees for the forest

An old adage would warn us not to miss the forest for the trees. Although undoubtedly sage advice, the inverse is also true, particularly for the current Rice football team.

The talk of “big picture” plans and building for the future have been ubiquitous as the team endured an onslaught of near misses and close losses. Patience was preached. There will be plenty of time to break down the wide-angled view of where this program is and where it’s going. Today, focus on the most immediate results.

Black Friday

Rice has won three games in a row against Conference USA opponents. Two of those victories came on the road. Three wins is short of where this program wants to be, but let’s not lose sight of the accomplishments the Owls have achieved in the past month. After winning twice in their first 22 games (.091 winning percentage), Rice is a perfect 3-3 after their bye week.

All those hopes and dreams of the program Mike Bloomgren and his staff are working to build? It’s become a reality over the past several weeks. We don’t have to theorize how they’ll win in 2020. They’ve already proven it can be done. In the midst of a particularly dark stretch, Rex Ryan challenged an 0-9 team to win three-straight. They did. Rice football has finally taken flight.

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