The source for Rice sports news
Head Coach: Trent Dilfer
Record at School: 7-17 (2 Yr) | Career FBS Record 7-17 (2 Yr)
Offensive Coordinator: Alex Mortensen | Defensive Coordinator: Steve Russ
Roster churn has become a part of college sports as we know and Rice football is not immune to the ebb and flow of players coming in and out. The Owls have a higher retention rate than most, but there are still plenty of changes to address. With the 2024 season in the books, this page will serve as a running tracker regarding the roster for the upcoming season as it currently stands.
For reference, Rice football returned 91 players last year, 22 seniors/grads, 25 juniors, 26 sophomores and 18 redshirt freshmen.
Looking for the latest recruiting changes such as offers and new commitments? Subscribers can access the recruiting tracker here. Not a subscriber yet? Join here. Feel free to bookmark it and refer back to it from time to time as players announce their intentions throughout the offseason.
All roster changes are up to date as of Aug 4, 2025.
This piece is part of our 2025 Rice Football Season Preview. Get access to it, as well as all other preview posts such as positional breakdowns, depth chart and schedule analysis and more when you subscribe on Patreon today.
Fresh off the bye, Rice football rebounded with a double overtime win over UConn. We dig into how they got it done in this week’s episode of the Roost Podcast. The version of the Rice football team that took the field on Saturday against UConn looked revitalized and ready, absorbing UConn’s advances and hanging tough […]
Rice football hosts Memphis on Halloween in a nationally televised matchup. How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more. Both Rice football and Memphis posted thrilling come-from-behind wins in their most recent games. The Owls rallied to defeat UConn in double overtime, while the Tigers scored 17 unanswered fourth quarter points to beat South […]
UConn scored first. Rice Football scored last with running back Quinton Jackson clinching a walk-off win in double overtime to lift the Owls over the Huskies. A tale of two halves, plus a little extra, ended in a thrilling Rice football victory. The two teams combined to score 38 points in the first half, 10 […]
A dynamic local rusher is joining the 2026 Rice Football recruiting class. CE King running back Dionne Sims has committed to the Owls. Because the position is the engine that drives head coach Scott Abell’s gun-option offense, there’s a high bar to clear for prospective running backs that could have been targets for the 2026 […]
At roughly the midpoint of the season, Rice football has felt like a mixed bag of some good and some bad. The numbers reflect that uncertainty. The first Rice football bye week of the season doesn’t exactly bifurcate the season into two equal parts, but it does serve as a natural delineation between halves of […]
A revamped Rice football defense will have plenty of new faces, but the safety room will be more familiar to Owls’ fans than most. A mix of longtime contributors and returning starters, supplemented with key transfers, makes for a fascinating dynamic on the back end of the defense that will be tasked with keeping everything in front of them this season.
This piece is part of our 2025 Rice Football Season Preview. Get access to it, as well as all other preview posts such as positional breakdowns, depth chart and schedule analysis and more when you subscribe on Patreon today.
** Photo credit: Maria Lysaker **
Head Coach: Alex Golesh
Record at School: 14-12 (2 Yr) | Career FBS Record 14-12 (2 Yr)
Offensive Coordinator: Joel Gordon | Defensive Coordinator: Todd Orlando
Once again, the Rice football linebacker room is fully stocked with top-of-the-line talent hindered more by the lack of available starting positions than by a lack of athletes to fill those roles. Sorting out playing time will be the challenge here, but that’s exactly the kind of problem defensive coordinator Jon Kay would prefer to have.
This piece is part of our 2025 Rice Football Season Preview. Get access to it, as well as all other preview posts such as positional breakdowns, depth chart and schedule analysis and more when you subscribe on Patreon today.
** Photo credit: Maria Lysaker **