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The Roost’s 2021 Rice Football Season Superlatives

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The Roost’s 2021 Rice Football Season Superlatives exist to honor exceptional Owls who made a difference on the field this season. Here’s the complete list.

There were many individual performances worth recognizing in the 2021 Rice Football season. In addition to the more traditional awards below, make sure to check out The Roosties, our third annual award show from The Roost Podcast, which features a different angle of honors. From our favorite plays to the players that surprised us the most, we cover some of the more creative superlatives on the show.

Offensive Newcomer of the Year — WR Cedric Patterson | Full Story

Excerpt: “Unstoppable. That’s what it started to feel like when Patterson hauled in a pass with grass in front of him. The speed was always evident, but his maturation as a student of the game who knew where he was supposed to be and how to best execute his responsibility on any given play began to set him apart.”

Defensive Newcomer of the Year — CB Jordan Dunbar | Full Story 

Excerpt: “When the season arrived, it was Dunbar’s turn to shine. And for as much respect as he received during the weeks prior to the season, the young cover man delivered. He was named the starter for the Rice football season opener against Arkansas and lined up opposite future first-round NFL Draft selection Treylon Burks. And Dunbar held his own.”

Rising Star — RB Ari Broussard | Full Story 

Excerpt: “From walk-on, to ‘ol reliable, Ari Broussard exemplified a feel-good story, but made sure the heartwarming moments were filled with plenty of productivity. He earned his spot on offense and made the most of it.”

Sp. Teams Players of the Year  — KR Juma Otoviano, PR Sean Fresch | Full Story 

Excerpt: “Traditionally, The Roost’s Rice Football Special Teams Player of the Year has been reserved for one standout. Jack Fox, Garrett Grammer and Charlie Mendes were previous honorees. This year, we’ve expanded the award to recognize two individuals, Sean Fresch and Juma Otoviano, who each provided game-changing sparks that set Rice up for success and led to Rice wins.”

Offensive Player of the Year — RB Jordan Myers | Full Story

Excerpt: “By the time he hung up his cleats, Myers had graduated from being labeled as simply a utility player. He was someone Rice could count — and did count on — in the most crucial moments. Myers was the man handed the football on fourth and short and asked to find a yard. More often than not, he did.”

Defensive Player of the Year — DT Elijah Garcia | Full Story

Excerpt: “His play spoke for itself, but Garcia did a fair amount of talking, too. Although he wasn’t named one of the team captains during the preseason, Garcia was the man asked to take the mic frequently during postgame press conferences. On those hard nights, he showed composure and poise. He was a leader, on and off the field.”

Team MVP — WR Jake Bailey | Full Story

Excerpt: “Big might be the perfect word to describe the size at which Bailey played. Standing 5-foot-10, there were only five players on the roster with a listed height shorter than Bailey. Yet Bailey never let that stop him. If anything, his stature aided his quickness and made him just that more difficult to bring down in the open field.”

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Rice Football 2021 Offensive Newcomer of the Year: Cedric Patterson

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Cedric Patterson became a big-play machine for Rice football down the stretch, securing the award for 2021 Offensive Newcomer of the Year.

Two days after the Early Signing Period opened last December, Rice football added one last piece to its wintertime haul: Cedric Patterson. The New Mexico transfer and Crosby, Tx native was coming back to the Lone Star state after seeing sparing usage out West.

He entered what appeared to be a crowded Rice receiving room, somewhat tempering early expectations. The athletic profile was intriguing. The highlight plays were there. How quickly would Patterson be assimilated into the offense? That was the question at hand.

Patterson took full advantage of spring ball, doing all he could to master the complicated Rice offense. He was tucked behind the likes of Bradley Rozner, Jake Bailey and August Pitre on the depth chart, but he wasn’t going unnoticed. Rozner praised his speed during fall media days, calling Patterson “a vertical threat that can stop on a dime.” It turns out, Rozner was right.

After catching four passes in his first three games with Rice, Patterson took the top off the Texas Southern on a 73-yard bomb on the Owls’ first play from scrimmage. Patterson hadn’t recorded 73 yards in a collegiate game coming into that Saturday.

Patterson was oozing confidence following his breakout game. “I feel like everything’s starting to click now,” he said of the offense as a whole. “We’ve been learning and practicing and grinding in these first three weeks and now we’ve got everything in order. We’re finding our identity and who we are. The sky’s the limit.”

The Roost Podcast: Third Annual Edition of The Roostie’s Rice Football Awards

There would be one more hiccup, but excluding a shutout on the road against UTSA and a mere 21-point outing against Western Kentucky, the Rice offense would amass at least 24 points in seven of their final nine games. And Patterson’s eruption against Texas Southern proved to just a sliver of the impact he would bring to the offense as the season progressed.

Patterson took a reverse 38-yards for a touchdown the following week against Southern Miss. He scored touchdowns in four of the Owls’ final five games, including the game-winning score against Louisiana Tech, his second trip to the endzone that afternoon. By season’s end, Patterson had more touchdowns than any Rice Owl not named Jordan Myers.

Through it all, he kept a quiet, humble demeanor as he worked to improve his game. It was in the days leading up to the finale against Louisiana Tech that he told the assembled media at a midweek press conference that he was “really trying to just know the playbook like I know my own name,” reasoning that “when you can go out there and play fast and play confidence, you’re pretty much unstoppable.”

Unstoppable. That’s what it started to feel like when Patterson hauled in a pass with grass in front of him. The speed was always evident, but his maturation as a student of the game who knew where he was supposed to be and how to best execute his responsibility on any given play began to set him apart.

When Jake Bailey went down against UTEP and Myers was banged up down the stretch, it was Patterson asked to be the guy who carried the passing game. And despite being tasked with catching passes from a myriad of different quarterbacks, Patterson was able to grab the proverbial baton and run with it.

Patterson embraced every moment. “We knew it was going to be on us,” he said of the receiving corps when the Owls entered the fourth quarter facing a double-digit deficit. “We don’t want it to be easy,” he continued. “We like it being exciting. It was fun, a test of our character, a test of our will. This is what we work for.”

As if it wasn’t obvious enough that Patterson welcomed the pressure. Patterson would close out his discussion of adversity like this: “We eat that for breakfast.”

Big moments. Big plays. All smiles. Cedric Patterson inked his name onto the Rice football depth chart and more than earned this year’s honors as the 2021 Rice Football Offensive Newcomer of the Year.

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What’s next? Joe Karlgaard talks Rice Football, Mike Bloomgren and the future

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Rice Athletic director Joe Karlgaard sat down with The Roost to discuss Mike Bloomgren, the 2021 Rice football season and the future of the Owls’ program.

It’s almost impossible to distill the 2021 Rice football season down to a single storyline, topic or number. For better or worse, the year was more complicated and unpredictable than many of the Owls’ faithful would have wished. The program found itself at a 4-8 record after the dust settled, prompting questions and a very real amount of soul searching.

What happened to a team that had bowl aspirations four months prior? And deeper still, will this team find its way again? Is Mike Bloomgren the right man for Rice football moving forward, and if so, why?

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There will be a much-too-long offseason to address those concerns. But before we get too far removed from the campaign in question, some immediate answers seemed prudent.

In an effort to get a clear snapshot of where the program is right now and why Rice fans should have faith in its future, I spent an hour with Rice Athletics Director Joe Karlgaard. What follows are some notes from our conversation, hopefully shedding some light on the program and digging into some of the hard questions it is understandably facing after an underwhelming season.

Hear from Karlgaard below, and stay tuned to The Roost for important recruiting updates regarding the Early Signing Period, postseason superlatives and more.

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The Roost’s 2021 Rice Football coverage postseason survey

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The 2021 Rice Football season has come to an end and we’d like to know how we did. Respond for a chance to win a $10 Amazon gift card.

At its best, the Rice football season delivered unforgettable moments. The Owls upset UAB on the road and came from behind to beat Louisiana Tech in the season finale. But with those highs, came crushing lows, multiple overtime defeats and two shutout losses.

The Roost was here through it all, and we’re committed to making sure our coverage improves, regardless of what happens for the Owls on the field. We’ve just released The Roosties, our third annual postseason award show. More 2021 season superlatives are on the way, as well as Early Signing Period coverage and a host of other sports — basketball, baseball and beyond.

But before we get there, one last look at Rice football and this past fall. Please consider filling out the brief 10 question survey below. Tell us what you liked and what we can do better. As a small thanks, we’re giving out a $10 Amazon gift card to one lucky respondent. Your candor is appreciated. The Roost wouldn’t be what it was without our growing community.

This site, podcast and future projects are all self-funded. If you’ve enjoyed The Roost, please consider subscribing on Patreon or making a one-time donation here.

For a direct link to the survey, click here. The Password is Rice2021.

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The Roost Podcast | Ep 103 – The Roostie’s 2021 Rice Football Awards

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Another Rice football season is in the books, which means it’s time to give out The Roosties, our third annual awards for top players, moments and games.

Stay tuned to the site through the month of December as we release our more traditional Rice football postseason awards. If you’re looking for the Team MVP, the offensive newcomer of the year, things like that — they’re coming.

But first, we’re going a bit off script and handing out our third annual edition of The Roosties. These awards celebrate (and mourn) the less conventional aspects of the season. From the one play we just want back to the player that we did not see coming, we’ll cover all the ins and outs of the season and more on this fresh spin on postseason awards.

You can find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, give a listen to Episode 103.

Episode Notes

  • Housekeeping
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    • Please support us on Patreon. Be the first to get the inside scoop on what’s going on with Rice football and stick around for even further analysis. That includes updates from fall camp, practices and more.
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  • The Roosties – The third annual edition of our Rice football postseason award shows, The Roosties highlight some of our favorite players, moments and stories from the 2021 season. Tune in for the following awards:
    • Favorite Play
    • Player You Were Most Wrong About
    • Most Improved Unit
    • Play/Game You Most Want to Redo
    • Player You’ll Miss the Most
    • Out of Nowhere Star
    • Most Valuable Transfer
    • Most Head Scratching Moment
    • Most Dominant Game
    • Player You’re Most Looking Forward to in 2020

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