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The Roost Podcast | Ep. 23 – Rice Football 2020 National Signing Day

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National Signing Day has come and hone and the 2020 Rice Football recruiting class is mostly complete. Carter and Matthew break down the newest signees.

The majority of the 2020 Rice Football recruiting class was signed during the Early Signing Period. We broke down how they fit with the current roster in our prior podcast (Ep. 22). Since then, Rice has added four new names to the fold and several other odds and ends off the field have come to light. There truly is no offseason. Stay tuned to the 2020 class and other important happenings below.

You can always find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, Give a listen to Episode 23.

Episode 23 Notes

  • Housekeeping — Thank you to all who filled out our postseason survey. Your feedback is extremely valuable and will help us improve both the podcast and the site.
  • National Signing Day — Rice football added four players on National Signing Day: kicker Collin Riccitelli, linebacker Jaren Banks, corner Lamont Narcisse and safety Gabe Taylor. We break down how they fit with the Owls and what to expect from each of them in 2020 and beyond.
  • Rankings Talk —  The 2020 Rice Football recruiting class is the highest-rated class in program history. What does that really mean and will it matter for the Owls when it’s time to take the field in the fall?
  • Spring Practices Near — Spring practices begin at the end of February with the Rice football spring game slated for Friday, April 3. A few storylines to follow during camp. More than anything, it’s encouraging that the Owls will have a full roster to work with this spring.

Where can you find us?

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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Rice Baseball: Players chart course for Matt Bragga’s squad in Year 2

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There are high hopes for Rice baseball in 2020. Those expectations rest on the Owls’ players who will set the course for coach Matt Bragga’s second season.

The arrival of February has always brought joy to Rice baseball head coach Matt Bragga. No, it’s not Cupid, flowers or cheesy cards that make Bragga excited. February has always meant it’s finally time for baseball.

After an offseason that feels like it stretched on forever, Bragga and his blue and gray-clad ballplayers will take the field at Reckling Park on Valentine’s Day. Trading a nice quiet dinner with his wife for a ballpark full of boisterous fans is nothing new for Bragga. It’s become part of the all-encompassing responsibilities of leading a college baseball team.

More: Previewing the Owls’ starting lineup and defense

Leading Rice baseball, like leading every program Bragga has ever been responsible for, starts with letting go. Last week Bragga handed the reigns to his Iron Group, a collection of seniors and select juniors that Bragga trusts to be the catalyst for the team’s efforts this season.

Some coaches call it a leadership council. Others call it a steering group. Bragga has always labeled it an Iron Group, with purpose. Proverbs 27:17, the Bible verse from which the name originates, says “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.” Bragga believes he can guide and teach, but the onus rests on his players to make each other better every day. To sharpen each other.

“You want your guys to have ownership,” Bragga said, “It’s their team.”

That group met and set the goals for the upcoming 2020 Rice baseball season. Bragga said letting his players own that moment “makes [the goals] more real” than having them mandated from above.

Asked how big is too big or how small is too small, Bragga said if they put Omaha on the board “I’m in. If that’s what they say the goal is, and I hope they do because I think every college program should [aspire to reach the College World Series.”

More: Previewing the Owls’ pitching staff

On a more micro level, the team will focus on being what Bragga calls “five units strong”. To win any given game against any given opponent, Rice needs to have strong infield play, strong outfield play, strong catching, strong pitching and strong offense. That’s what the message from the top will be and has been from the moment Bragga arrived on campus. Having big goals is a good thing, but this team has been trained not to get caught up in the big picture and sacrifice the day-to-day steps it takes to get there.

“We can beat anybody if we go beat the game of baseball, “Bragga said. “Because there’s enough talent in that room to do that. That task starts Friday against the University of Texas. It’s not going to be easy, but as the old saying goes, that’s why they play the game. The Iron Group has set the course. Now it’s time to play ball.

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Rice Basketball 2020: Tiebreaker scenarios prior to C-USA pod play

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Rice basketball has their eyes set on a Conference USA Championship Tournament berth. Here’s what it would take to secure a spot.

The Conference USA Basketball Tournament pits the top 12 of 14 conference teams in a four-day event. An automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament is the grand prize. Rice basketball is playing their best down the stretch and hoping for a shot in Frisco. The Owls have to get there first before they can entertain any ideas of cutting down nets.

The easy way

Conference USA introduced the pod system last season in hopes of earning the league an at large bid. That hasn’t materialized yet, but it has added a bit more intrigue to the final month of the season. Teams 1 through 5, 6 through 10 and 11 through 14 face off against each other.

The top two brackets have the distinction of guaranteed spots in the conference tournament. The top two teams of the bottom pod get in whereas the bottom two are the only programs left at home. Here’s a snapshot of the current standings and projected finishes.

Rice basketball is mathematically alive for the middle pod, but it’s complicated. Any loss would eliminate them from the middle pod and land them in the bottom pod. Here’s the path t0 the middle.

Currently sitting at 4-8 in conference play, Rice would need to win out, beating Old Dominion and Charlotte. That would put their record at 6-8. From there, Rice would need two of the following four things to happen to make the middle pod:

  1. UAB loses at least once (vs MTSU, at MTSU) dropping their record to 6-8 or worse. (Rice has the head to head victory)
  2. UTEP loses at least once (vs Marshall, vs WKU) dropping their record to 5-9 of worse
  3. UTSA loses twice (vs Marshall, vs WKU) dropping their record to 5-9
  4. Old Dominion loses twice (at Rice, at North Texas) dropping their record to 6-8 (Rice would have the head to head victory)

Marshall or FAU finishing 6-8 wouldn’t help Rice. Both programs own head to head wins over the Owls.

The hard way

If Rice is seeded in the bottom pod they’ll have to finish in the top two of that four team grouping. They’ve already beaten Middle Tennessee, so they’d most likely need to conjure a reprisal of that performance and find another win or two along the way. It’s possible but more challenging than an autobid.

Rooting guide

Rice basketball fans need to root for these outcomes, in order of importance by day.

Midweek (Thursday games)

  • Rice beats Old Dominion
  • Middle Tennessee beats UAB (Wednesday)
  • WKU beats UTEP
  • Marshall beats UTSA
  • FAU beats Southern Miss

Saturday games

  • Rice beats Charlotte
  • North Texas beats Old Dominion
  • Middle Tennessee beats UAB
  • Marshall beats UTEP
  • WKU beats UTSA

There are a few more complicated scenarios that could allow Rice to sneak in. We’ll have an update on where things stand entering the weekend. The first step is a win Thursday against Old Dominion. If Rice can’t achieve that, the rest of these combinations are void.

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Rice Women’s Basketball 2020: Owls dispatch MTSU for 30th straight C-USA win

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In a rematch of last season’s Conference USA Championship Game, Rice women’s basketball beat Middle Tennessee with relative ease.

For the 30th time in as many tries, Rice women’s basketball won a conference game. The Owls’ most recent victory, a 77-60 win over Middle Tennessee at Tudor Fieldhouse on Saturday served as the most recent reminder of this team’s dominance.

Rice had dispatched of every C-USA opponent they’d faced this season, but they had yet to play either Old Dominion or Middle Tennessee, the two programs still in striking distance of the Owls’ in the conference standings. Facing their toughest test of the season, Rice verified their supremacy with their trademark level of suffocating defensive intensity.

Middle Tennessee made two of their first 15 shots and nine of their first 32. The Lady Raiders entered with a 40% shooting percentage on the season. Rice held them to 33.8% shooting while knocking down 47.3% of their own shots.

Winning conference games is hard. Rice women’s basketball has made it seem easy. And beating one of the conference’s better teams by nearly 20 points only underscores the expectations the Owls are putting on themselves. Perfection isn’t the goal — the NCAA Tournament is — but the more Rice wins the closer they get to achieving that greater aspiration.

Final Stats

Player of the Game – Erica Ogwumike

The impressiveness of Rice women’s basketball leading scorer Erica Ogwumike continues to be understated. On Saturday she tallied a double-double at halftime. That would have been her 10th consecutive double-double had she not been subbed out with nine rebounds when Rice had a commanding lead over UAB their last time out.

Ogwumike finished with ## points and ## rebounds. Her presence on the court gives Rice a chance to win every possession, something few teams in college basketball can say of any one individual.

Up Next

Rice women’s basketball will hit the road for their next two contests. On Thursday, Feb. 13 they’ll face Old Dominion in arguably their most important C-USA game of the season to this point. That game is scheduled to tip off at 5:30 p.m. Saturday they’ll head to Charlotte for a 3:00 p.m. game. Both are scheduled to be broadcast on ESPN+.

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Rice Football Recruiting: 2020 National Signing Day Recap

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The 2020 Rice Football Recruiting class included two National Signing Day splashes. Here’s where the Owls stand with the class mostly complete.

Rice added four newly committed players on National Signing Day. JUCO linebacker Jaren Banks and Stanford kicker Collin Riccitelli, both of whom committed earlier in the week, made their decisions official as did two newcomers in the secondary.

Early Wednesday morning, Rice signed Gulliver Prep defensive back Gabe Taylor, the highest-rated player in program history. Later in the day, they added corner Lamont Narcisse, another Top 10 player the school has ever signed.

Several walk ons who have yet to be officially announced will be added to the 2020 Rice Football Recruiting class as well. Many won’t be expected to be significant onfield contributors anytime soon, but it’s worth remembering that center Issac Klarkowski and corner Tre’shon Devones each walked on last season and started multiple games for the Owls.

The New Signees

Taylor and Narcisse give Rice a rather impressive haul in the secondary. That pair, along with previously signed Sean Fresch, Jordan Dunbar and Plae Wyatt, should serve as much-needed reinforcements on the back end of the defense.

More: Breaking down the Rice Football recruiting 2020 defensive signees (UPDATED)

The Owls did a much better job of keeping balls in front of them in 2019, but still ranked 13th in C-USA in passing defense, allowing 241.9 yards per game. A sturdy safety corps manned by George Nyakwol, Naeem Smith and Prudy Calderon provides a strong base. Finding corners who can win on their own seems to be the missing ingredient. Hopefully one or both of Taylor and Narcisse can rise to the occasion.

Star-studded

247 Sports is the most unanimously accepted measuring stick among recruiting services. A star rating from their service isn’t infallible, but it’s a great guide on a macro level. By that standard, the 2020 Rice Football recruiting class is the highest-rated in program history. Better still, four of the top 13 commits to ever sign with the program will be on campus this fall.

No. 1. DB Gabe Taylor
No. 6 ATH Jake Bailey
No. 7 CB Lamont Narcisse
No. 12 ATH Sean Fresch

Taylor, Narcisse and Fresch weren’t outliers, rather they were part of a larger group of extremely talented players.

Room to Improve

The 2020 Rice Football recruiting class is the No. 9 class in Conference USA. That’s a step up from the No. 11 class in 2019 and from No. 12 in 2018, but not the gigantic leap many were expecting. When the Early Signing Period was approaching in December, Rice had a top-two class and we were talking about the makings of what could become the best class in school history.

The decline in rankings is linked more to the number of signees than anything else. The Owls have signed 21 scholarship players so far. On Wednesday, Bloomgren detailed they would not fill the full 25. The recruiting services weight the quality as well as the quantity of players in signing classes.

More: Breaking down the Rice Football recruiting 2020 offense and special teams signees (UPDATED)

Of the C-USA programs with 20 or fewer high school and JUCO signees like Rice, the Owls’ rank third. If Rice were to sign 25 players eligible for the 247 ratings, they would assuredly finish within the Top 5, at worst. But gaming the rankings aren’t of interest to the Rice coaching staff, nor should they be. They have bigger fish to fry.

So what’s next?

What Rice lacks in this class was a singular top-end super-star to put them over the top. It would be nice to see Rice land a Power 5 transfer with top-end talent and a track record of success at the Division 1 level. The Owls are looking at some skill position players on offense right now and are optimistic they’ll be able to sign one before summer workouts get underway. That would put a bow on a great 2020 recruiting cycle.

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