The source for Rice sports news

Rice Athletics Director Joe Karlgaard to Leave Owls this Summer

By

Rice Athletics Director Joe Karlgaard is moving on to private business, ending a decade-long tenure at the helm of the Owls’ athletic department.

In a statement from president Reginald DesRoches, Rice Athletics announced that athletic director Joe Karlgaard will conclude his time at Rice at the end of July. Effective August 1, Karlgaard will become the CEO of GSV Summit LLC, leaving the world of collegiate athletics for the time being.

Rice will “soon be launching a national search for our new athletics director” and an updated is expected on that front “in the next month.”

From Karlgaard:

“I’m very fortunate to have worked with so many wonderful student-athletes, coaches, staff, faculty, and supporters over these past ten years. Rice is a special place, and I’m grateful for all those who pour their hearts and souls into making this university great.”

Read the full statement here.

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

Recent Posts

Rice Football Recruiting: QB Drew Devillier commits to Owls

By

The 2024 Rice Football recruiting class took off over the weekend including quarterback Drew Devillier, the newest of the Owls’ commits.

The camp circuit came to South Main this past weekend and the 2024 Rice football recruiting class benefited from the influx of talent onto campus. One key recruit wasn’t able to make it to camp, but didn’t miss out on the excitement. Quarterback Drew Devillier has committed to the Owls.

Devillier picked Rice over offers from Pitt, North Texas and others. His offer list was on the shorter side in part because as of a week previous, Devillier was committed to TCU to play baseball. He decommitted on June 12, announcing his intention to pursue a future in both baseball and football. Rice stepped up to the plate and won his services. Devillier plans to pursue both sports at Rice.

Devillier credited his relationship with offensive coordinator Marques Tuiasosopo as crucial to his decision to pledge his future to the Owls, that and his comfort level with the offensive scheme.

Premium: Rice Football Recruiting Offer and Commitment Tracker

The 6-foot-5, 215-pound Devillier has a cannon for an arm and can really sling the football, but it’s ability to create off-schedule that jumps out most on his film. Devillier told The Roost “[I] feel like I have the ability to make any throw on the field. I think I improvise on broken plays pretty well also.” That certainly shines through on tape.

Devillier is a threat with the football that can make defenses pay when they cheat too far to either extreme, either in coverage or at the line of scrimmage. He’s a big get for the Owls, who have secured their quarterback of the future in the early weeks of the summer as the 2024 class really starts to grow in earnest.

Become a Patron!
Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

Recent Posts

Rice Football Recruiting: RB Taji Atkins commits to Owls

By

The 2024 Rice Football recruiting class took off over the weekend with eight new additions. The first, running back Taji Atkins, has committed to the Owls.

The camp circuit came to South Main this past weekend and the 2024 Rice football recruiting class benefited from the influx of talent onto campus. Hundreds of campers came through and a host of them left with offers. Eight made their verbal pledges to the program. Running back Taji Atkins was the first to go public, leading the charge on this weekend’s recruiting boom.

Atkins had racked up a fairly lengthy offer list before the Westfield product made his pledge to the hometown team. He picked Rice over offers from Tulsa, North Texas, Texas State, Sam Houston, San Diego State, Navy, Utah State and others. Beating out multiple AAC peers and a few instate, FBS opponents is a positive mark for the Owls when it comes to Atkins’ recruitment.

On the field, the 5-foot-9, 180-pound Atkins can do so many different things with the ball in his hands. He’s the kind of playmaker you get on campus as quickly as you can with the knowledge that he’ll find himself a place in the offense to make a difference soon enough.

As it stands, Atkins is the fourth member of the 2024 Rice Football recruiting class which will balloon past 10 members once all of this weekend’s commitments are announced. He’s the first running back in the fold and only the second high school running back the Owls’ have received a commitment from in the past four classes dating back through the 2021 class.

Update: Atkins decommitted from Rice in October but relationships with the Rice football recruiting staff remained in place. He hadn’t soured on the Owls, rather he wanted to test the waters elsewhere. Fortunately for all parties, Atkins has come full circle and repledged to Rice in mid-January.

Premium: Rice Football Recruiting Offer and Commitment Tracker

Atkins is an offensive weapon, a human highlight reel. Every recruit has some splash plays they put on the front of their film, Atkins’ homerun plays seemed to play forever. He has speed but there are flashes of power and patience in his game too. And the vision he runs with helps amplify those traits as he moves. He’s a ton of fun to watch and will be an incredibly useful piece in the Owls’ offense.

Become a Patron!
Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

Recent Posts

Rice Football Recruiting: Post-spring additions

By

There have been a few additions on the Rice Football Recruiting front since the Owls broke camp this spring. Here’s the latest.

The vast majority of the 2023 Rice football recruiting class was completed before the Owls started spring practices. Still, it was always understood the program would make a handful of additions in the months that followed. There were scholarships ready for the right transfers and the walk-on program tends to pick up a few late acquisitions this time of year, too.

Here’s a quick rundown of the players that have made their pledges since the Owls wrapped up spring practices in mid-April as well as a bit more on how they fit in with the program. Rice probably isn’t completely done just yet, but this should serve as a good litmus test before summer workouts begin soon.

Subscriber content.<br /> Please login to see the full post or visit our Patreon page.

Transfers

OL Netane Fehoko, JUCO

Sorry! This part of content is hidden behind this box because it requires a higher contribution level ($10) at Patreon. Why not take this chance to increase your contribution?
Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

Recent Posts

The Roost Podcast | Ep 144 – ’23 Tulsa Preview with Golden Hurricast

By

The Roost Podcast continues its AAC previews. Up next: Matt and Ryan from the Golden Hurricast preview Tulsa football in 2023.

Rice football and Tulsa football haven’t met on the field in a decade, but that changes this year. This week’s episode of The Roost Podcast hopes to reinvigorate the rivalry and educate Owls and others on the Golden Hurricane. Our new friends Matt and Ryan from the Golden Hurricast stop by to talk about Tulsa’s recent news and outlook for the 2023 season.

You can find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, give a listen to Episode 144.

Episode Notes

DCTF

The Roost Podcast is now part of the Dave Campbell’s Republic of Football Podcast Network. You’ll still get the same content with the same hosts, but now under the DCTF banner.

Homefield

We’re thrilled to partner with Homefield Apparel, the premier proprietor of college football clothing. First-time buyers can use the code ROOST for 15% off their order. The Owls hoodie is a personal favorite. Shop the Rice collection or pick up something else (or both)!

Patreon

Get exclusive insight on Patreon. Be the first to get the inside scoop on what’s going on with Rice football and stick around for even further analysis. That includes practice updates, analysis and more. Your support matters and makes The Roost better.

Become a Patron!

Previewing 2023 Tulsa football with The Golden Hurricast

  • Tulsa’s coaching search and new coach Kevin Wilson
  • Expectations for the Golden Hurrican in 2023
  • Returning playmakers on offense
  • Defensive standouts to watch
  • The most forgettable team in the new-look AAC?
  • The Lightning Round

Where can you find us?

The Roost Podcast is part of the Dave Campbell’s Republic of Football Podcast Network. You can find this podcast and all of our partner podcasts on Apple, Spotify and wherever you get your podcasts.

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

Recent Posts