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As The Roost Podcast prepares to embark on its second season as a member of the Dave Campbell’s Texas Football Podcast Network, I joined the big show this week to preview the 2025 Rice Football Season. From the hiring of head coach Scott Abell to the spring and expectations for the fall ahead, we covered a lot of ground on the show.
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.
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Davion Hickson was an outstanding pitcher across two seasons with Rice baseball, finding success as a closer and then a Friday night starter. Those effort did not go unnoticed as Hickson was selected in the fifth round of the 2025 MLB Draft by the Houston Astros on Monday. He became the highest Owl drafted since Trei Cruz went in the third round to the Detroit Tigers in 2020 and a sixth top-five round selection for the program in the past six years.
Hickson was the most reliable arm the Owls fielded over the last two seasons, leading Rice in innings (73.0), strikeouts (90), ERA (3.82) and opponent batting average (.220) as a starter this past spring. He’s is the sixth Rice player drafted by the Dodgers and the first since Jeremy Rathjen (11th round) and Matthew Reckling (14th) were selected by Los Angeles in 2012.
Update: Reliever Garrett Stratton joined Hickson among MLB Draft selections, going to the Mets in the 20th Round
| Player | Draft Year | Team | Round |
| Davion Hickson | 2025 | Dogers | 5 |
| Garrett Stratton | 2025 | Mets | 20 |
| Parker Smith | 2024 | Astros | 4 |
| Justin Long | 2023 | Braves | 7 |
| Hayden Durke | 2023 | Diamondbacks | 13 |
| Matthew Linskey | 2023 | Diamondbacks | 16 |
| Roel Garcia | 2022 | Rays | 14 |
| Trei Cruz | 2020 | Tigers | 3 |
| Matt Canterino | 2019 | Twins | 2 |
| Evan Kravetz | 2019 | Reds | 5 |
| Garrett Gayle | 2019 | Astros | 12 |
| Roel Garcia | 2019 | Blue Jays | 27 |
| Trei Cruz | 2019 | Nationals | 37 |
| Addison Moss | 2019 | Rays | 37 |
| Ford Proctor | 2018 | Rays | 3 |
| Ricky Salinas | 2018 | Reds | 25 |
| Cody Staab | 2018 | Marines | 30 |
| Glenn Otto | 2017 | Yankees | 5 |
| Dane Myers | 2017 | Tigers | 6 |
| Tristan Gray | 2017 | Pirates | 13 |
| Jon Duplantier | 2016 | Diamondbacks | 3 |
| Blake Fox | 2016 | Brewers | 10 |
| Jordan Stephens | 2015 | White Sox | 5 |
| Leon Byrd | 2015 | Rangers | 10 |
| Kevin McCanna | 2015 | Astros | 13 |
| Austin Orewiler | 2015 | Reds | 14 |
| Matt Ditman | 2015 | Roayls | 16 |
| John Clay Reeves | 2015 | Nationals | 20 |
| John Williamson | 2015 | Cubs | 23 |
The 2026 Rice Football recruiting class isn’t slowing down as it continues to stockpile talent throughout the summer. While June was particularly busy, the Owls have made two crucial additions to their group in July, most recently adding this key protector in the trenches. Euless Trinity offensive lineman Leyonte Chandler has committed to the Owls.
Chandler’s services were tightly contested with more than a dozen programs vying for his services including San Diego State, UTSA, Navy, North Texas, Texas State, Arkansas State and New Mexico, among others. Given a myriad of choices, Chandler picked South Main.
“I can tell coach Abell wants to win and the program is like a family,” Chandler told The Roost. “I feel like they will develop me to be the best version of myself.”
Chandler joins Sinton HS product Clay Mitchell as the Owls’ pair of offensive line commitments in the class, so far. They’ll block for newly committed quarterback Ayden Wilhelm, who made his pledge just days before Chandler.
The 6-foot-5, 285-pound Chandler gets low and moves people, aspect of his game that jump out as soon as you turn on the tape. When asked about his game, Chandler pointed to his hand usage to engage defenders and active feet. He’s a physical presence in the trenches and should be a great building block for the Owls up front for years to come.
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Head Coach: Zach Kittley
Record at School: 0-0 (1 Yr) | Career FBS Record 0-0 (1 Yr)
Offensive Coordinator: Zach Kittley | Defensive Coordinator: Brett Dewhurst