Scott Abell has officially been named the next Rice Football head coach and while he’s new to the job, he doesn’t feel like he’s starting over.
Donning a cowboy hat for the first time, a gift from an enthusiastic supporter, newly appointed Rice football head coach Scott Abell never allowed his confident demeanor to waiver during his introductory press conference on Wednesday afternoon. While he’s new to the state, the Owls headman has an understanding of the program he’s inheriting. In his eyes, he’s seen this rodeo before.
“This is my strength. I’ve witnessed this,” he said. “I’ve walked this walk for seven years.”
Rice hired Abell from Davidson, a high-academic institution in North Carolina with a striking number of similarities to Rice. Like Rice, Davidson competes in what Abell called “a league that wasn’t like us,” in the midst of other institutions which didn’t face the same academic hurdles.
“He has a proven track record of success at multiple places where it has historically been difficult to win. He is a program builder who has established and maintained a winning culture at every step of his illustrious career,” Athletic Director Tommy McClelland said during his introductory remarks.
“This is my strength.
I’ve witnessed this.
I’ve walked this walk.”
Davidson, like Rice, had also been a place where it was historically hard to win. Both programs sit below .500 all-time in their football records. Abell left Davidson as the winningest coach in program history, pushing his winning clip past .600 with room to spare. He knows what it’s like to win at a place that’s hard to win.
And given those constraints, Abell’s operated under the assumption that places like that have to look at things from a different vantage point.
“You can’t do what everyone else does. You have to do something a little unique and you have to be specific about it,” he said. “And that’s really what we’ll bring here, offensively. It gets a lot of people involved. It’s exciting to watch. We typically score a lot of points. That’s not the goal. The goal is to win football games. And the offense will allow us to control aspects of the game that way.”
Roost Pod: Rice Football hires Scott Abell as its next head coach
Abell was speaking about his offensive scheme, a gun option system that draws influence from the triple option, zone read and run-pass option concepts that have grown and developed in the sport over time. It’s fast-paced, explosive and has allowed his teams to lead Division I in rushing “virtually every year,” a mark Abell quickly corrected to be six of the previous seven seasons.
His next task will be doing performing that resuscitation for Rice football. McClelland, the man who has tasked Abell with this work, has full confidence that Abell can indeed do it again.
“Winning is not easy. It does not matter where you are, it is hard,” McClelland said. “Winning consistently and at multiple places and at multiple levels is not a fluke.”
And so a new chapter in Rice football history begins. When Abell arrived at Davidson, the Wildcats hadn’t beaten a Division I opponent in almost five years. The cupboard isn’t quite that bare at South Main and thus, the expectations are elevated, albeit fairly reasonable.
Abell expects his team will “play high caliber football” in Year One. “I expect us to win football games. And as we get into the season we’re gonna challenge to compete at the top of our conference,” he said.”
Become a Patron!Those games are more than nine months away. First, Abell has to build a staff, sign a recruiting class and do so many other things to ensure Rice football begins his tenure on the right foot. The good news for Abell? He doesn’t feel like he’s starting from scratch.
“I know the roadmap. I’ve seen this happen,” Abell said. “We’ve been able to dream and accomplish things where really people didn’t think it was possible.”
“Knowing that I understood that road map. Understanding the uniqueness that comes with Rice football, where we fit in our conference. I just thought it was an ideal fit for Scott Abell.”
