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Rice Football Recruiting: JUCO cornerback Miles Mccord commits to Owls

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The 2019 Rice football recruiting class added another JUCO product to their secondary, augmenting the existing class with cornerback Miles Mccord.

The secondary was a problem area for Rice during the 2018 season. The safety play showed improvement with the additions of Prudy Calderon and consistent play of George Nyakwol. The 2019 class provided important reinforcement in the form of Hunter Henry, Kirk Lockhart and JUCO transfer Naeem Smith.

The corner position was more up in the air. That spurred additional attention after the bulk of the 2019 class has signed. Rice signed one true corner, Josh Landrum, in the first pass at the 2019 class. They added another with the addition of Duncanville’s Tre’shon Devones.

Even with those signings, there’s still room for more competition at the position. JUCO transfer Miles Mccord has jumped into the mix, committing to Rice after spending the 2018 season at Golden West College.

Rice Football, Rice Football Recruiting

Mccord appeared in eight games for Gold West College. The Rustlers rotated a lot of bodies in the defensive backfield while Mccord was there, keeping him fresh for the Owls in 2019. Even with somewhat limited playing time, McCord stood out with his top-end speed and ability to play the run and the pass well from the split out corner position. He’s an instinctive tackler with some burst and looks to possess the requisite speed to keep in stride with some of the faster receiving corps Rice will face.

Getting faster was a must at the corner position after their struggles with the deep ball in 2018. Way too many receivers got behind the defense. Mccord adds that speed and a raw, 6-foot, 161-pound frame with time to develop the rest of his game alongside a rebuilt secondary which suddenly features a host of options. He’ll be thrown into the mix immediately.

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Rice Football Recruiting: 2019 Cornerback Tre’shon Devones commits to Owls

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The 2019 Rice Football recruiting class added one more finishing touch with the commitment of Duncanville cornerback Tre’shon Devones.

The vast majority of schools around the nation have long since moved past their 2019 recruiting classes. Rice is working tirelessly to ensure they have the best talent available to them in every capacity possible. The 2019 class was poised to be special, but it got even better with one last addition from the high school ranks.

The Owls have tucked another high-ceiling, game-changing defensive prospect into their 2019 recruiting class. Teammate of Rice signee De’Braylon Carroll at Texas high school powerhouse, Duncanville, Tre’shon Devones has made his pledge to Rice.

A 3-star cornerback recruit, Devones committed to Air Force in February but chose not to sign a Letter of Intent on National Signing Day. That left him the latitude to sign with another school, should he choose to do so.

After weighing his options, Devones has opted to do just that. He picked Rice over Air Force, as well as offers from Baylor, Iowa State, Syracuse and Washington State. His addition immediately bolsters a position of great need.

Rice Football, Rice Football RecruitingDevones is the second-highest rated commitment in the 2019 class, trailing only standout California WR/DB Jake Bailey. Were he a member of the 2020 class, which ranks No. 1 among all CUSA schools, he’d be the highest rated recruit to commit thus far. When those inside the walls at South Main talk about raising the level of talent in the program, players like Devones are who they’re talking about.

The 6-foot, 165 pound defensive back plays with aggression. He’s going to attack the ball in the air and isn’t afraid to come up from the secondary to make a play. Devones is athletic and good with his hands, making opposing quarterbacks pay for their misfires with his fast break.

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Rice Baseball: Bullpen holds as Owls top LaTech at CUSA Tournament

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Rice baseball shook off their bullpen struggles, topping Louisiana Tech 4-3 in a Conference USA Tournament elimination game.

As the old saying goes, lightning doesn’t strike twice. For Rice, the lightning came in the form of a walk-off loss to Marshall a week ago on Thursday. Then it happened again. And again. And yet another time, with the final strike coming off the bat of Southern Miss slugger Matt Wallner on Wednesday.

Rice had led all four of those games by two or more runs entering the eighth inning. Each time the bullpen coughed up the advantage and the bats failed to rise to the occasion.

More: CUSA Tournament Bracket, news and notes

The story started in a similar way against Louisiana Tech in Thursday’s Conference USA Baseball Tournament elimination game. Rice got things going with a two-run double off the bat of Cade Edwards in the first, giving starting pitcher Evan Kravetz some breathing room early on.

Next, both sides swapped single runs, Louisana Tech in the third and Rice in the fifth, to bring the score to 3-1 in favor of the Owls. Then coach Matt Bragga made a bold decision. Rather than turn to the same pitchers who had failed to deliver over the past week, he put the ball in the hand of Jackson Parthasarathy.

Rice’s typical Sunday starter wasn’t as sharp as usual out of the bullpen. Following Kravetz’s five-inning, one-run performance, Parthasarathy struggled through a 1.2 inning showing. He allowed two runs before Dalton Wood came to relieve him.

After watching countless relievers fail to shut the door, Wood delivered. The freshman reliever worked two and a third perfect innings, allowing no hits, striking out one and clinching the Owls first win in a week’s time.

Apparently lightning does strike twice, but its encores are limited to four dismissive blasts. For the first time in a week, Rice took the lead and held on. Now they’ll look to do it again on Friday.

Up Next | Winner of Marshall vs Southern Miss, 3:00 PM, Friday

Rice will meet their demons face to face on Friday where they’ll face the winner of the Marshall and Southern Miss game scheduled to take place later Thursday afternoon. Rice is 0-3 against Marshall this season and 2-2 against Southern Miss.

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Rice Baseball: Owls stunned by walk-off loss to Southern Miss in CUSA Tournament

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Matt Canterino’s gem was wasted. The Rice baseball bullpen caved again as the Owls fell to Southern Miss at the Conference USA Baseball Tournament.

The formula for Rice advancing in the Conference USA Baseball Tournament was simple: Pitch well and take advantage of opportunities at the plate. Matt Canterino answered the call. The bullpen did not as the Owls fell to 2-Seed Southern Miss 6-4 in 10 innings.

More: CUSA Tournament Bracket, news and notes

The staff ace, Canterino was every bit as special as the Owls needed him to be. He was sharp as ever through 7.1 innings, striking out nine, walking two and allowing one run on three hits. With the Southern Miss offense confounded, even a slight lead felt commanding.

To that point, the offense had been sturdy. Braden Comeaux reached based on each his first four plate appearances, coming in to score three times. Trei Cruz blasted a two-run dinger in the third. Rice led 4-0 at the seventh inning stretch.

Owls fall by walk-off for the fourth straight game

When Canterino left the game Rice fans held their breath. The bullpen was coming off their worst week of the season. It took guts for Bragga to pull Canterino when he got into the seventh inning jam. While it might have been ideal to ride Canterino as far as he could carry them, he’s already thrown 100 pitches. His availability the rest of the week would have been factored into Bragga’s decision to turn to the pen.

With Garrett Gayle on the mound, Rice coughed up the four run lead including three runs scored in the ninth inning. Rice needed one more out to advance. On multiple tries, they failed to get it. A walk-off home run by Southern Miss slugger Matt Wallner ended any hope of a late rally.

Rice isn’t going to advance without a few big outings from their bullpen. They came close Wendesday, but fell painfully short once again.

UP NEXT | Louisiana Tech – Thursday 9:00 am

Rice will play Louisiana Tech in the loser’s bracket. The Bulldogs dropped their first-round game to Marshall in 12 innings., the longest game (by time) in CUSA Tournament history. Rice swept Louisiana Tech at home earlier this season.

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Rice Baseball: Owls switch gears to CUSA Tournament after Marshall sweep

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Riding high after a series win over Southern Miss, Rice baseball was stopped stone-cold in their tracks by Marshall, narrowly clinching a CUSA Tournament spot.

The week began on a high note, with Rice baseball besting rival Houston to clinch the Silver Glove Series. After the Tuesday night victory, Rice hit the road to finish conference play with a three-game set in Huntington, West Virginia. Both Marshall and Rice were fighting for a spot in the Conference Tournament. Rice clinched their berth on Friday but Marshall had more work to do, eventually locking up a spot of their own after taking three straight from Rice.

Both the Owls and the Thundering Herd earned spots in Biloxi this coming week. Here’s how the series unfolded with three overarching themes as Rice enters the conference tournament.

THURSDAY | Marshall 5, Rice 4 (11)

Rice used a big fifth inning to jump ahead in the series opener. Trei Cruz broke the deadlock with an RBI single to center, scoring Aaron Beaulaurier. Andrew Dunlap followed with a three-run bomb to break things open.

Matt Canterino was in top form on the mound, holding Marshall to two earned runs in seven innings with nine strikeouts. He handed the ball to Kendal Jefferies at the start of the eighth. Jefferies, and later Garrett Gayle, were unable to hold the line. Marshall walked it off in the 11th on a two-out RBI single after holding Rice scoreless through the final six innings.

FRIDAY | Marshall 4, Rice 3 (10)

Kel Bordwine took the ball on Friday after Evan Kravetz was a late scratch. Even with the deviation in the weekend rotation, the Owls weren’t threatened early in game two. Bordwine was superb, throwing seven innings of one-run ball. The Marshall offense mustered five hits off the short-notice starter, allowing the Rice offense to slowly build a lead.

Rice climbed ahead 3-0, courtesy of a few impactful extra-base hits. Bealaurier doubled in the third, scoring Antonio Cruz. Bradley Gneiting and Antonio Cruz added solo home runs in the fourth and seventh innings, respectively.

Marshall wouldn’t score until the eighth, leveling the score at 3-3 after Blair Lewis surrendered a 2-run home run. That score would hold for one more inning until Marshall scored a final, unearned run on an infield error to win the game in the 10th.

SATURDAY | Marshall 5, Rice 4

Marshall struck first in the finale, taking a 1-0 lead on a home run in the first inning. Playing from behind for the first time in regulation, Rice was forced to muster a comeback. Trei Cruz gave Rice the lead with a fourth-inning double. Justin Collins extended the advantage to 3-1 with a solo home run in the sixth. Jackson Parthasarathy powered through the Marshall lineup as Bordwine and Canterino had before. Things were looking good.

Yet again, Rice took a lead into the later innings. Yet again, Marshall found an equalizer. The Thundering Herd knotted the game at 3-3 in the eighth, but this time Rice punched back, squeezing out the go-ahead run via a sac bunt in the top of the ninth inning. The small ball wouldn’t be enough, though, as Marshall tied and went on to win the game in the bottom of the ninth, their third walk-off win of the weekend.

TAKEAWAYS | Marshall wins series 3-0

1. Who will step up in the bullpen?

The Owls most trustworthy bullpen arms failed them in big spots against Marshall. Staked to late leads with few outs to get, nobody was able to come up with an answer. That’s not a problem the Owls were hoping to run into this late in the season, but May is the time to make the best with what you have, not to reinvent the wheel.

Coach Bragga could try to implement a quicker hook or experiment with bumping someone like Bordwine from a spot starter to a bullpen piece. Bragga will undoubtedly push all the buttons he thinks will make the most sense for the team in its current state, but he’s not able to step on the mound and physically throw the pitches.

Those same players who had rough weekends have proven capable in the past. Jefferies and Gayle have combined for nine saves, 100 percent of the team’s total on the season. And that’s the peculiar thing about baseball. The sport built upon failure will put these same pitchers in high leverage situations again, soon. They’re going to get another chance. If they capitalize on their opportunities in Biloxi, their shortcomings in Huntington will fade, quickly.

2. It’s going to be a short week if something doesn’t change

Even without a win in their final regular-season series, Rice qualified for the Conference USA Baseball Tournament. The starting pitching showcased their extraordinary depth over the weekend, digging beyond their typical weekend trio and still producing three quality starts. The bullpen and the offense can’t ask for much better than they got against Marshall, setting the stage for a game of Russian Roulette going forward.

Assuming a strong start on the mound, Rice needs to find a way to avoid joint implosions by the bullpen and the lineup. If one of those two units can produce at a level commensurate to the starting pitching, Rice has a shot to advance deep into the conference tournament. If both units fade into a repeat of this weekend. Bang. Season over.

3. CUSA Tournament set

If there is any good fortune to be found in the weekend sweep, Rice draws a familiar opponent in the opening game of the CUSA Tournament. Rice took two of three from Southern Miss a week ago, relying on their now embraced pattern of high-caliber pitching and just-enough offense.

UTSA’s loss on Saturday might prove to be fortuitous for the Owls, too. A win by the Roadrunners would have dropped Rice to the 8-seed where they’d have met 1-seed FAU in Biloxi. FAU swept Rice earlier this season and the games weren’t as close as the three Rice loss to Marshall. Nevertheless, Rice has its opponent. Now they need to execute.

ON DECK | vs Southern Miss (Wed) in CUSA Tournament

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