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The Roost Podcast | Ep 113 – ’22 North Texas Preview with Matthew Brune

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It’s preseason preview time at The Roost Podcast and we get things started this week with a look at North Texas football with Matthew Brune of 247 Sports.

North Texas football had a wild ride last season, winning five in a row to reach bowl eligibility after a disastrous 1-6 start. Matthew Brune of 247 Sports joins The Roost Podcast this week to talk about the Mean Green, from their 2021 campaign to what we should expect from the program this coming season. This is the first of many team previews of the offseason.

You can find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, give a listen to Episode 113.

Episode Notes

Announcements

The 2022 Conference USA Football Season Preview will be released on Wednesday, June. Get it for free as well as all preseason Rice football content when you subscribe to The Roost on Patreon. It’s that easy! You can get more information here.

Housekeeping

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Interview — North Texas football with Matthew Brune

  • Unpacking a crowded quarterback room
  • Who will emerge as true playmakers in the North Texas offense
  • Thoughts on the running game and how balanced the offense will be this season
  • Replacing the Murphy brothers on defense
  • Taking stock of the secondary
  • What’s next for Seth Littrell at North Texas?
  • The Lightning Round!

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.

Subscribe on Patreon for exclusive Rice football recruiting updates, practice notes and more.

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Rice Baseball: 2022 MLB Owls update – June 15

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The 2022 MLB season is underway and Rice baseball alums are busy on the mound and at the plate. Here’s the latest from the MLB Owls.

Anthony Rendon – Los Angeles Angels

Rendon went on the injured list on May 28 but was reinstated this week. He reached base in each of his first three games back, including a double in a win against the Mets on Saturday. Unfortunately, he injured his wrist in the game and left in the fifth inning. He’s “day to day“.

Through June 15 Rendon is hitting .228 with 15 extra-base hits, 23 walks and 32 strikeouts. His OPS is .707 and he’s collected 24 RBI.

J.T. Chargois – Tampa Bay Rays

Chargois remains on the 60-day Injured List and won’t be available for the Rays until mid-July at the earliest. He’s made one appearance with the team so far this season.

Through June 15, Chargois has a 0.00 ERA with a 0.000 WHIP. He’s averaging 13.5 strikeouts per nine innings.

Tyler Duffey – Minnesota Twins

Duffey made one appearance this week, allowing one run in two innings of work against the Rays on Sunday.

Through June 15, Duffey has a 6.38 ERA with a 1.500 WHIP. He’s averaging 9.0 strikeouts per nine innings.

Lucas Luetge – New York Yankees

Luetge saw action in two games this week, combing to throw 3.1 scoreless innings in relief outings against the Twins (Thursday) and Cubs (Saturday).

Through June 1, Luetge has a 4.15 ERA with a 1.327 WHIP. He’s averaging 7.3 strikeouts per nine innings.

Glenn Otto – Texas Rangers

Otto was scratched from his start last week, instead landing on the COVID-related injury list. His last appearance was on June 4.

Through June 15, Otto has a 4.24 ERA with a 1.364 WHIP. He’s averaging 7.4 strikeouts per nine innings.

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Rice Football Recruiting: Safety Jamarie Wiggins commits to Owls

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More help is coming on the back end. The 2023 Rice Football recruiting class has added a commitment from Connally (TX) safety Jamarie Wiggins.

The summer has been kind to the 2023 Rice Football recruiting class. Every few weeks, Rice adds another player to its growing list of commitments. Now their first safety of the class has locked in his pledge. After receiving an offer from Rice last month, Connally (TX) safety Jamarie Wiggins has committed to the Owls.

Wiggins picks Rice over a short, but impressive list of offers: West Virginia, Boston College, SMU, Colorado State, and Tulsa. Winning battles against Power 5 opponents is something the Owls have done on occasion in years past. Now the newly revamped recruiting staff can add Wiggins’ to their growing resume of contending with bigger schools, inside and outside the state.

The addition of Wiggins continues a recent run of defensive players. Rice opened the month of May with a commitment from offensive lineman Patrick Valent, their fifth consecutive commitment from the offensive trenches in a row and their sixth offensive player in the class. Since, Rice had added three defensive pledges, all from the secondary. Wiggins joins corners Jamarion Clark and AJ Stephens in the defensive backfield.

Premium: Rice Football Recruiting Offer and Commitment Tracker

For Wiggins, the film speaks for itself. The football finds him. Above all of his athletic traits, that innate ability to find the football and take it away from the other team is invaluable. Then, of course, he also adds the size and quickness to turn one impact play into an even bigger plus for the defense. He’s a physical player who has a nose for the ball. He’ll fit right in at South Main.

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Update from The Roost – Conference USA Football Season Preview coming soon

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Coming Soon: The Roost’s 2022 Conference USA Season Preview will be released on Wednesday, June 29th.

In years past, The Roost has offered two Preseason Preview digital magazines: one geared directly toward Rice football and another tailored to fans of all Conference USA teams. Starting this year, The Roost will be releasing one Conference USA Football Season Preview in lieu of the split offering.

The Preview will go on sale Wednesday, June 29th.

For Conference USA fans, nothing about your experience will change. You’ll still be able to purchase the preview from the site directly and it will have a similar look and feel to recent editions, with a few nuggets tucked in this year on the topic of conference realignment and the incoming members of the conference.

For Rice fans, this decision was made to streamline your access to Rice football content — and we’re not cutting anything. All position previews, individual superlatives and features that had been previously included in the Season Preview will be shared directly on Patreon over the next several weeks.

There’s now no need to purchase an additional Rice-specific preview. Simply pick up a copy of the conference preview (it’s cheaper than the Rice preview has been in the past!) and get everything else included in your Patreon subscription to The Roost.

Not a patron yet? Take advantage of this perk:

All first-time patrons on the Starting Lineup Tier that subscribe this summer (June 1 –> July 31) will receive a copy of the 2022 Conference USA Season Preview for FREE.

In addition to the season preview content you’ve come to expect, patrons all receive access to fall camp reports, practice notebooks, Q&As, recruiting analysis and more.

Become a Patron!

Interested? Take a look at these unlocked posts to get a feel for what content you’ll be getting access to:

Rice Football, Practice Report

Rice Football 2025 Spring Practice Notebook 5: Slot School

Posted: April 6, 2025

There’s been a lot to learn with this new-look Rice Football offense during spring practices, including the introduction of a new position: slot. Keeping track of where players are lining up and where they go after the snap has been an adventure in the new offense Rice football is installing this spring. Head coach Scott […]

Rice Football Recruiting, Rice Football

Rice Football Recruiting: Breaking Down the 2025 Signees – Defense

Posted: February 7, 2025

The 2025 Rice Football Recruiting class includes several hand-picked impact players on defense and special teams. Here’s how those sides of the ball stacks up. The 2025 Rice football recruiting class began with 12 signees during the Early Signing Period, the first recruiting haul for new head coach Scott Abell. That group has since been […]

Rice Football, Rice Football, Opponents, Tulane

2024 Rice Football Opponent Season Preview: Tulane

Posted: July 31, 2024

Under the leadership of a new head coach, Tulane aims to continue their winning ways. What can Rice Football expect from the Green Wave in 2024? Head Coach: Jon SumrallRecord at School: 0-0 (1 Yr) | Career FBS Record 23-4 (2 Yr)Offensive Coordinator: Joe Craddock | Defensive Coordinator: Greg Gasparato Jon Sumrall went 23-4 at […]

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2024 Rice Football Season Preview: Running Back

Posted: July 10, 2024

Next up in our 2024 Rice Football Season Preview: running back. Here’s our breakdown of the Owls’ plans for the group this season. Rice football has a bonafide star in the running back room, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to be a one-man show in the Owls’ backfield this fall. How will the coaching […]

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Official: Rice Athletics to join AAC on July 1, 2023

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UPDATE: On Wednesday, June 15 Rice officially announced it will join the AAC on July 1, 2023.

— Friday, June 10 —

The AAC announced the formal exit of Houston, Cincinnati and UCF opening the door for Rice Athletics to move into the conference in 2023.

The AAC brought college football realignment back to the forefront of the national narrative on Friday morning when they announced Houston, Cincinnati and UCF would be leaving the conference to join the Big XII on July 1, 2023. That move directly impacts Rice, enabling the Owls to move into those vacated seats in the AAC soon.

So, what’s next?

Rice Athletic Director Joe Karlgaard released this statement on Friday afternoon:

“The agreement reached between the American Athletic Conference and its three departing members allows us to formally begin the process of joining the American in the near future. We remain proud members of Conference USA for the 2022-23 academic year, and anticipate releasing more information on our transition to the American in the near future.”

While that statement doesn’t explicitly mention any transition dates, sources confirm to The Roost the intention remains for Rice to join the AAC in 2023, following the conclusion of the 2022-23 academic year which Karlgaard mentions in the release above.

Roost Pod: AAC introductions with Fear The Wave

That timeline is further corroborated by several of the fellow soon-to-be-former Conference USA members which will be making the move with the Owls. Charlotte came out almost immediately following the news, issuing a declaration of their intent to join the AAC in 2023.

FAU followed suit as did UTSA. Like Rice, North Texas and UAB and each released more general statements of their intent to make the move “soon”. Per Brett McMurphy, each of the six schools must inform Conference USA of their intention to leave for the AAC by Wednesday, June 15.

The next steps seem like a formality at this point, but it remains good news for Rice, regardless. This week Rice will formalize its intention to leave Conference USA and join the American.

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