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Rice Football 2024 Iron Man: Josh Pearcy

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A fixture of the Rice football defense for half a decade, Josh Pearcy defined what it meant to be the 2025 Rice Football Iron Man.

Hearing terms like “sixth-year senior” is more common than ever. Often players that reach that point of their collegiate careers have been in school for that long, but need to ramp up their production over the years. Those with such expensive bios rarely have the production that mirrors the long road trodden. Rice football defensive stalwart Josh Pearcy is that exception.

Pearcy took the field for the last time against South Florida on Senior Day, which was technically his third Senior Day since signing with the Owls in December 2018. When he checked into the game shortly thereafter he set the all-time program record for games played, 57. He shares that designation with teammate Chike Anigbogu, a longtime special teams leader and defensive contributor.

More: 2024 Rice Football Season Superlatives

The distinction that makes Pearcy’s run so impressive is how impactful he was along the way. He wasn’t accruing empty appearances, he was impacting the game every time he took the field, particularly in his four complete seasons on South Main.

Pearcy leaves Rice in the Top 10 all-time in tackles for a loss (8th) and sacks (5th), especially impressive totals when considering he played special teams during his four-game redshirt in 2019 and played in just five games in the Owls’ shortened 2020 season. Pearcy wasn’t just an average player who played in a lot of games and racked up stats. He reached those totals in essentially four years.

That would have been enough in itself, to leave Rice football with a couple marks in the record books and good memories along the way. Part of what made Pearcy special, though, was his commitment to becoming a better player.

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“I just wanted to be able to do as much as I can for this team and be coached and learned more about the entire defense,” Pearcy said this spring, explaining his next developmental goal for himself.

Initially an edge player tasked with putting his hand in the dirt and rushing the passer, Pearcy slowly worked further and further off the ball as his career progressed. By the time the 2024 season arrived, Pearcy was playing much more a hybrid outside linebacker role while still finishing tied for second on the team in sacks.

Pearcy has NFL aspirations, something that led to him expressing an interest in showcasing his versatility as a defender. “He’s been more productive,” defensive coordinator Brian Smith said of the move. “We’ve kind of moved him around and played more linebacker off the ball.”

Having a chess piece like Pearcy is a defensive coordinator’s dream. As the secondary waded through injuries and players rotated in and out, Pearcy could be positioned in so many different places on any given play giving Smith options as he worked to get the best defense on the field that he could.

The Rice football defense finished the regular season fourth in scoring and third in yardage allowed against conference opponents. The Owls don’t get there without Iron Man Josh Pearcy, a mainstay on South Main that made everyone better around him.

** Photo Credit: Maria Lysaker **
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Rice Football Recruiting: OL Sean Sullivan commits to Owls

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The Ivy League pipeline is paying dividends for the 2025 Rice Football Recruiting picks. Yale transfer offensive lineman Sean Sullivan has committed to the Owls.

Over the years Rice Football recruiting has reaped the benefits of Ivy League rules which restrict graduate students from participating in sports. That’s left many high academic football players searching for the right fit for their final season of college football. This time, it’s a Yale product making his way to South Main. Former Yale Bulldog offensive lineman Sean Sullivan has committed to the Owls.

Sullivan credited the vision of head coach Scott Abell with his decision to head to Houston. “Coach Abell is awesome and has been in this situation before, as a first year head coach,” Sullivan told The Roost. “I think he’s got a really good vision of how to succeed in this conference.”

Sullivan is a veteran in the trenches who has played up and down the line, everywhere but center. That versatility will come in handy as head coach Scott Abell and his staff look to piece together the strongest front five they can this coming season. For the time being, Sullivan says he expects to play tackle.

The fifth transfer in this cycle so far, Sullivan joins UTSA kicker Chase Allen, JUCO defensive backs Jerrick Harper and Jo Chavez and former Cincinnati wide receiver Aaron Turner.

With so many moving parts along the offensive line and the departures of many veteran players, landing someone with the experience of Sullivan was crucial for this class. Sullivan appears ready to step into those big shoes. “I’m excited for the opportunity and ready to get to work,” he told The Roost.

Premium: Rice Football Recruiting Offer and Commitment Tracker

Being able to move people and (quickly) move yourself is crucial for offensive linemen Abell’s offensive scheme and Sullivan certainly flashes those traits on film.

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Rice Basketball: 2024-2025 Midseason State of the Program

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It’s been an encouraging start for Rice Basketball in their first season under head coach Rob Lanier. Here’s where the Owls stand as American Conference play begins.

Already 2-0 in league play, Rice basketball is riding high in their first season under the leadership of head coach Rob Lanier. The Owls have played largely competitive basketball games and gotten off to a strong start under their new head man.

For those checking in for the first time, or those returning, a quick programming note. Special features like this are reserved for our subscribers. Have questions? You can get those answered in our monthly Q&As and get access to all practice notes, recruiting updates and features like this one when you subscribe on Patreon today.

Can they keep it up? That’s the crucial question facing this squad as they pass the midpoint of the season. Here’s where the Owls stand at the halfway point, a few important milestones and notes from the journey to this point and a recalibration of expectations for the rest of the way.

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Rice Football 2024 Offensive Player of the Year: Matt Sykes

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The last man standing in the wide receiver room this season, Matt Sykes is our 2024 Rice Football Offensive Player of the Year.

A year removed from a one-catch season, Matt Sykes was expected to enter the fall as, at best, the fourth option in the Owls’ passing game. Instead, he became the go-to guy and the somewhat surprising 2024 Rice Football Offensive Player of the Year.

The journey from a second-string receiver to the Owls’ No. 1 downfield target was almost meteoric and came almost as much by necessity as by ability. Even still, Sykes had to seize the opportunity and make the most of it, and reality that proved more and more necessary as the injuries around him began to snowball.

Between the spring and the start of fall camp, Landon Ransom suffered an injury that would keep him out for the season. Florida transfer Thai Bowman made it one practice in camp before a lower-body injury sidelined him for the better portion of two months. Even still, Sykes was far from a lock to be the starting outside “X” receiver until Rawson MacNeill went down at the end of camp.

By the time Rice football opened its 2024 season it was Sykes — who had one Rice reception to his name at that point — who had emerged as the must trustworthy receiver for new starting quarterback EJ Warner.

More: 2024 Rice Football Season Superlatives

Sykes led the team in receiving in their opening game against Sam Houston. He caught his first touchdown with the Owls the following week against Texas Southern. Then, after a quiet two-catch game against Houston, Sykes took off in earnest, hauling in six or more passes in seven of the Owls’ final nine games.

Sykes’ emergence right around the start of conference play coincided with a meaningful step forward in the team’s offensive production. It was also around this time it became clear no more reinforcements were on their way. Bowman would be the only receiver expected to make a return during the year and even his reinsertion into the lineup was far from a sure thing.

The task of reinvigorating the offense fell to the few healthy weapons left in the passing game, Sykes at the forefront among then once again when tight end Boden Groen suffered an injury that would keep him out for the remainder of the year, another dose of bad news in a receiving corps that was running out of bodies.

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The SOS was answered emphatically by Sykes who delivered a walk-off touchdown reception against UTSA, one of 52 receptions he registered against AAC opponents, the most by any pass catcher in the conference by seven grabs. He averaged 78.9 yards per game in league play, finally surpassing the century mark in his final game, a 118-yard performance against South Florida on Senior Day.

Sykes wasn’t as flashy as Luke McCaffrey and he didn’t post the absurd touchdown tallies that Bradley Rozner did a few years prior. But he was consistent, reliably answering the call and helping a wounded offensive move the ball when all other external factors seemed to be against them. He was rewarded with AAC Honorable Mention status for his efforts, underappreciating just how impactful he was for this team.

Meant to be a reserve, Sykes led Rice football in receptions, yards and receiving touchdowns. He more than doubled the production of the next most active receiver alongside him, emerging from obscurity when his teammates needed him most. Dean Connors was the engine that made this offense go, but Sykes was the conductor that kept it on the tracks.

** Photo Credit: Maria Lysaker **
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Rice Athletics: Top 10 Moments from 2024

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2024 was filled with highs and lows for Rice Athletics. The Roost picked out 10 moments that stood out the most along the way.

10. Rice basketball defeats Memphis

It was a season of mixed results, but the high points were worth savoring for Rice basketball this year. Head coach Scott Pera’s team earned perhaps their most memorable win of his tenure on January 31, upsetting Memphis on the road.

9. Rice Football defeats Navy under interim coach Pete Alamar

Days removed from the dismissal of head coach Mike Bloomgren and following the second-longest rain delay in college football history, Rice football stunned the AAC by knocking off Navy, which had previously been undefeated in league play.

8. Soccer posts dominant home season

Rice soccer bounced back from a down season in 2023 in tremendous fashion, nearly completely an undefeated season at home before falling on Senior Day 1-0 to Charlotte. Nevertheless, a dominant 10-1-1 record at home was impressive after the squad went winless at Holloway Field the year prior.

7. Lots of new beginnings

This year, Rice introduced new coaches (Rob Lanier – basketball, Scott Abell – football) and new sports. The women’s diving team returned for the first time since 1991 and the Owls announced the coming addition of the women’s golf team which will debut in 2026.

6. Parker Smith drafted by hometown Houston Astros

A Houston native and multi-year Friday night ace for Rice Baseball, Parker Smith was a fourth round selection of the Houston Astros in July, the highest an Owl has been drafted since Trei Cruz went in the third round in 2020.

5. A two-fer of Tennis successes

Divna Ratkovic won the AAC women’s individual championship right at home, clinching the victory on campus at the George R. Brown Tennis Center. The men’s team didn’t take home the AAC crown, but they did clinch their first trip since 2017 to the NCAA Championship as a team.

4. Genny Volpe posts 400th career win

If it feels like Volpe has been leading Rice Volleyball to successful seasons year after year for quite some time, that’s because she has. Volpe earned career win number 400 this season when the team beat Tulane in their AAC opener. All 400 of those wins have come at Rice.

3. Two podiums for Women’s Track and Field at NCAA Championships

Tara Simpson-Sullivan took home second and Mckyla Van der Westhuizen placed third in their respective events, hammer throw and javelin, at the 2024 NCAA D1 Outdoor Championships. Simpson-Sullivan broke her own school record and AAC record in the process while Van der Westhuizen delivered a personal best to reach the podium.

2. Luke McCaffrey drafted 100th overall

With the final pick of the third round, the Washington Commanders selected Rice football wide receiver Luke McCaffrey. McCaffrey became first Rice player drafted since Christian Covington in 2015 and the highest Owl drafted since Phillip Gains went in the third round to the Chiefs in 2014.

1. Rice women’s basketball wins AAC, makes NCAA Tournament

Following a tough stretch in February, 10-Seed Rice Women’s Basketball caught fire in March, running through the AAC Tournament on their way to the programs first ever AAC Tournament Championship. That earned them a trip to the NCAA Tournament, where they gave 3-Seed LSU all they could handle before falling on the road.

Honorable Mentions…

How about you? Which of these moments from Rice Athletics did you enjoy the most? Cutting this down to 10 was challenging. Which Rice Athletics events should be added to the list?

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