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BREAKING: Rice Football vs Lamar canceled

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Rice football won’t open its season against Lamar after all. The two programs have agreed to cancel their game.

The Southland Conference announced the cancelation of its 2020 fall football season last week, leaving the possibility for non-conference play up to each member institution. At that time, Rice was the only remaining opponent on the Lamar schedule. That game has since been canceled.

In a release from the university, Lamar announced the decision: “Lamar University and Rice have agreed to cancel their football game, which was originally scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 26, in Houston.”

On July 30, Rice football lost its first game. The SEC’s decision to move to a conference-only scheduled put an end to a scheduled matchup with LSU. Rice then made the move to delay games against Houston and Army, buying themselves three more weeks of runway before their season began.

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The cancellation of the Lamar contest leaves Rice without any non-conference games on their schedule. Rice Athletic Director Joe Karlgaard indicated the door was still open for Rice to add a non-conference game to their schedule if the logistics made sense. That additional opponent would almost certainly be Army or Houston.

Rice currently has an open date on October 17. Army’s previously scheduled game against Eastern Michigan was canceled, making the Black Knights available that weekend. Houston is scheduled to take on BYU in Provo, UT on that Friday, October 16th.

There’s plenty of time between now and October. Rice has football games to play before they have to act on the possibility of filling that open week. For the time being, Rice has eight conference games on the schedule and that’s it.

Rice football is now tentatively set to open the 2020 season on the road at Marshall on October 3. The Owls’ home opener would be the week later against UAB on October 10.

Whether there is football this fall or not, there’s going to be plenty to process as everyone works to find a new equilibrium in college sports. Stay current on those updates and following the always-active recruiting cycle by subscribing to The Roost on Patreon today.

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Rice Football: Breaking down the impact of the Tyrae Thornton transfer

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Rice Football starting corner Tyrae Thornton has entered the Transfer Portal. How will his absence impact the Owls in 2020 and beyond?

It’s been an unusual offseason in more ways than one for Rice football, but unexpected attrition has not been a problem for the Owls so far. Rice lost linebacker Anthony Ekpe to transfer, but his starting job had already been overtaken by Kenneth Orji. Like there is with every team, the roster went through a bit more churn, but on the whole, Rice wasn’t losing anyone they hadn’t previously anticipated losing.

Then starting corner Tyrae Thornton entered the Transfer Portal this week. Prior to Thornton’s decision, the most notable departure of the summer was the loss of scout team quarterback Parker Towns. He was omitted from the preseason roster released in early August. Thornton was expected to line up opposite Tre’shon Devones. Now Rice will have to adjust.

The Depth Chart Impact

Corner and the interior of the defensive line were thin spots on the roster prior to Thornton’s announcement. Planning for a two-deep without him is doable, but the margin for error (or injury) beyond that is dicey.

Andrew Bird stands to benefit with the largest increase in playing time right away. His size (6-foot-1, 181 pounds) sets him apart from the rest of the unit. He also has the benefit of being one of the more experienced returners.

I also think Jason White is going to get some more time on the outside. He started against Southern Miss last year and held his own. Don’t let his smaller stature (5-foot-8, 158 pounds) fool you. He’ll be in the mix and could have a slight edge in coverage over Bird. This would be an excellent battle to watch in fall camp had Rice started it yet.

Being able to utilize Blaze Alldredge more in coverage will be another added wrinkle to keep an eye on. Beyond those more seasoned commodities, Rice could turn to a freshman for key minutes.

Devones proved he was the most talented man for the job and won a starting job midway through last season. I wouldn’t bet against the younger contingent with guys like Sean Fresch, Lamont Narcisse and Jordan Dunbar. We’ll learn a lot about how this position will play out if/when fall camp begins.

The Roster Impact

The continuity Rice football had built this season cannot be understated. Southern Miss saw five players opt out of the 2020 season this week. Defensive end Jacques Turner, linebacker Racheem Boothe and receiver Jaylond Adams will all not play this season. Turner and Boothe have entered the Transfer Portal.

FAU, Western Kentucky, Marshall have all lost expected starting quarterback during the offseason. A slew of other programs have seen marquee players leave for one reason or another.

It’s foolish to write off the departure of Thornton as “no big deal”. Losing a starting-caliber player at any position this close to the start of the season is a tough pill to swallow.

For better or worse, it sets Rice up to hit the restart at the position a year in advance. A redshirt junior, Thornton wasn’t going to be in the long term plans for this defense. He very well might have kept the starting job had he returned next season as well, but there’s no promises he would have held off the wave of incoming players.

At best, Thornton’s absence allows for an early transition and Rice is forced only to deal with the growing pains of a younger player. At worst, the Owls’ secondary will be exposed from a weak link uncovered in the final weeks before the games begin. I lean closer toward the former.

The loss is real, but Rice is going to be okay in the long run, particularly if the season is delayed or canceled and Thronton’s replacements get an extended audition and practice in the scheme with the first team.

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Rice Football: Corner Tyrae Thornton enters Transfer Portal

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Rice Football will have to deal with some attrition in the secondary. Cornerback Tyrae Thornton has entered the Transfer Portal.

The projected two-deep for the Rice football defense looked pretty stout for Rice football entering the 2020 season. The Owls expected to return 20 of their top 22 players. That included 10 starters and 10 backups, losing only defensive tackle Myles Adams (to graduation) and linebacker Anthony Ekpe (to transfer).

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Read more on what the depth chart looks like behind Thornton in the 2020 Rice Football Season Preview.

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Rice Football: 2021 Safety Marcus Williams commits to Owls

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The 2021 Rice Football recruiting class has added another piece to their future secondary, picking up a commitment from safety Marcus Williams.

Two weeks after adding their first safety commit, the 2021 Rice Football recruiting classed doubled their depth at the position. Joshua Williams committed on the last day of July. The newest addition is Hoover, Alabama safety Marcus Williams (unrelated).

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Williams picked Rice over several in-state schools like South Alabama and Troy and more than a dozen other offers. The Owls beat out Kansas and fellow Conference USA schools like Middle Tennessee and Charlotte for his services. He also held offers from Arkansas State, Harvard and Navy.

The addition of Williams will help solidify a 2021 defense that already includes seven commitments. Rice now has a pair of commitments on the defensive line, two at safety and three at linebacker. The offense has four commitments. The class as a whole ranks fourth in Conference USA and 92nd nationally.

If current trends hold, this class is on track to challenge the 2020 class as the highest rated in program history. Neither Marcus or Joshua Williams has been rated by 247 Sports at this time.

More: 2021 Rice Football Recruiting Tracker

Williams can do a lot of different things on the field and was dominant from the outside linebacker position. His athleticism combined with his comfortability in space makes him an ideal candidate for the Viper safety spot in the Rice defense.

A quick look at his highlights below will give you a flavor for how many things the Owls will be able to do with Williams when he suits up in Blue and Gray. He can attack the ballcarrier and position himself for the big play in coverage. His surehandedness in the open field is something no collegiate defense should take for granted.

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The Roost Podcast | Ep. 46 – 2020 Rice Football Defense Preview

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The 2020 Rice Football season has is still scheduled to be played at some point this fall. In this week’s show, the Roost Podcast breaks down the Owls’ defense.

The Extended Offseason hits the defense in the second half of our Rice football team preview this week. We hit the offense last week, spending 90 minutes on pure football for the first time in months. This time Carter and Matthew talk through the entire defense, focusing on potential breakout players, reasons for concern and what they’re paying attention to on this side of the ball.

You can always find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, give a listen to Episode 46.


Episode 46 Notes

  • Housekeeping — We hit on some takeaways from spring practice in this episode. You can find previous (and future) practice reports and all our recruiting updates on our Premium page, reserved for our Patreon subscribers. Make sure you hit the button and subscribe so you don’t miss what’s happening behind the scenes. As always, thanks to all of you who have followed the show on Twitter and left a review on iTunes. It’s quick, but it makes a difference.

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  • Rice/COVID-19 Updates — There was a lot to cover this week. Rice football has delayed its season until September 26. One Conference USA member has canceled the season and four conferences have shut things down until the spring, at the earliest.
  • Rice football defense preview — Carter and Matthew walk through each position:
    • Defensive line: The depth is a question mark, but getting a full season (of some kind) with a healthy front four should make last season’s production the floor. More pressure is a must.
    • Linebacker: Blaze Alldredge is a stud. Antonio Montero is great too. This one-two punch is among the best in the conference and the strongest positional starters on the team.
    • Safety: Rice has depth, experience and talent at the safety spot. George Nyakwol, Naeem Smith, Treshawn Chamberlain and Prudy Calderon are going to hold things down on the back end again.
    • Corner: The corners took big strides last season with their one-on-one coverage. Tre’shon Devones having a full season as the No. 1 with experience opposite him. Tyrae Thronton is one of the elder statesmen of the secondary who made big strides last fall.

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Download and subscribe to The Roost Podcast on any of your favorite podcast providers. The show is available on iTunes, GooglePlay, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn and PodBean. Please consider leaving a review wherever you listen.

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