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Rice Football 2024 Defensive Newcomer: Charlie Looes

December 15, 2024 By Matthew Bartlett

An Ivy League pass rusher headed South for one last ride, defensive end Charlies Looes is our 2024 Rice Football Defensive Newcomer of the Year.

Expectations were high when Ivy League-leading sackman Charlie Looes made the decision to transfer from Dartmouth to South Main for his final season of collegiate eligibility. He made the most of his time in Texas, tying for the lead among all Owls’ defensive linemen in sacks on his way to earning honors as our 2024 Rice Football Defensive Newcomer of the Year.

Looes, like many before him, was limited by Ivy League eligibility restrictions which bar graduates from playing in the league. For graduates who still want to play college ball, they must go elsewhere. That opened a door for him to become the next in a growing pipeline of Rice football players who honed their craft in the Ivies before transferring south for their final season.

More: 2024 Rice Football Season Superlatives

Returns were positive early on as Looes seamlessly fit into the scheme and learned the defense during spring practices. “They’ve been bought in since we recruited them,” defensive line coach Cedric Calhoun said about Looes and fellow transfer Michael Daley from BYU, making it clear he was happy with what he’d seen from the newcomers thus far.

But when Coleman Coco’s waiver for another season was denied during the summer, the pressure on Looes to be productive started to ramp up. Coco, another Ivy League transfer, had led the Owls in sacks the prior season and was expected to compliment Looes on the line in 2024. Now that aspiration was squarely on Looes who did not disappoint.

In his second play in a Rice football uniform, Looes burst through the line and sacked Sam Houston quarterback Hunter Watson, killing the drive which led to a quick three-and-out. Rice wouldn’t win the game, but Looes would rack up another half sack and four total tackles in his debut.

“He didn’t make you wait long to learn his name if you didn’t already know it,” then head coach Mike Bloomgren remarked. “Really proud of Charlie stepping in there and doing that.”

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As injuries and shifting personnel around him ebbed and flowed, Looes kept working and finding ways to contribute. He would go on to lead the team in tackles for a loss (nine) and was the only player to both force a fumble and recover a fumble this season, he had two of the latter. He even had a pass breakup, too.

A finalist of the Bushnell Cup in his final season at Darthmouth, an award given annually to the league’s best defensive player, Looes was a bonafide plug-and-play disruptor in the defensive trenches during his time at Rice.

Often times it’s hard for a team to know exactly what they’re getting when they sign a player out of the Transfer Portal. Getting the kind of season they got from Looes is a deal worth taking every time. If you’re only getting a guy for one year he needs to show up and show out, something Looes did with flare.

Looes would bookend his season on South Main with a sack in his first and last game, playing a meaningful role in a Senior Day win that assuredly meant so much to him and a host of Rice football veterans that played their final game in the season finale against South Florida. Like those seniors, Looes did all he could to send this team out on a high note and his efforts were rewarded.

** Photo Credit: Maria Lysaker **
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Filed Under: Archive, Football Tagged With: Charlie Looes, postseason awards, Rice Football

Rice Football 2024: Charlotte Game Week Practice Report

September 26, 2024 By Matthew Bartlett

Rice football takes on Charlotte this week with eyes on a bounce-back win. Here’s what we learned from the Owls at practice this week.

It’s midseason and injuries are starting to take a toll on the Rice football roster. The Owls have made a lot of adjustments to counteract those personnel losses this week and keep tweaking the offense as they go. How much improvement can they make in a short window of time as they face a must-win game against Charlotte on Saturday.

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Filed Under: Archive, Football, Premium Tagged With: AJ Stephens, Aquantis Clemmons, Blaise Tita, Blake Boenisch, Brant Banks, Chad Lindberg, Charlie Looes, Chike Anigbogu, Colin Giffen, David Stickle, DeMone Green, Drew Devillier, Elroyal Morris, Ethan Onianwa, Izeya Floyd, Jojo Jean, Joseph Mu, Josh Pearcy, Lamont Narcisse, Marcus Williams, Michael Daley, Michael Larbie, Myron Morrison, Plae Wyatt, practice notes, Quinton Jackson, Rice Football, trace norfleet, Ty Morris, Weston Kropp

Rice Football 2024 Season Preview: Preseason Superlatives

August 24, 2024 By Matthew Bartlett

The 2024 Rice football season is right around the corner. Here’s the final forecast for player superlatives this fall.

There are high expectations for a host of individual Rice football players this season. The roster is deep and there appear to be playmakers at a variety of positions. Handing out superlatives is always a challenging exercise, but this year felt particularly difficult compared to years past. Here’s where I landed. Who did I miss? Which other players have breakout campaigns in 2024?

Rice Football Preseason Preview: Check out the rest of the series here.

This piece is part of our 2024 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. 

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Recent Posts

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Filed Under: Archive, Football, Premium Tagged With: 2024 Rice Football Season Preview, Charlie Looes, Dean Connors, DJ Arkansas, Drayden Dickmann, EJ Warner, John Long, Josh Pearcy, Rice Football, Taji Atkins, Thai Chiaokhiao-Bowman, Tim Horn, Ty Morris

Rice Football Depth Chart Questions and Stadium Notes: August 2024 Q&A

August 23, 2024 By Matthew Bartlett

The 2024 Rice Football season is around the corner. What does that mean for the depth chart and when are we getting news on the stadium front? Here’s the latest.

There’s a lot going on around South Main these days. Fall camp wrapped up last week and the 2024 Rice football season kicks off next week against Sam Houston on brand new turf that was utilized by the team for the first time on Friday morning. Could stadium news be coming soon? And what will the first depth chart of the season look like when it is officially released? This month’s Q&A focuses on those two topics.

Questions were edited briefly for clarity. Want to get your questions answered? Subscribe on Patreon for our monthly mailbag.

For those checking in for the first time, or those returning, a quick programming note. Special features like this are reserved for our subscribers. Have questions? You can get those answered in our monthly Q&As and get access to all practice notes, recruiting updates and features like this one when you subscribe on Patreon today.

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Q: Are we expecting any update on the plan for Rice Stadium in the near future?

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Recent Posts

  • Rice Baseball blows past PVAMU at home
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Filed Under: Archive, Football, Premium Tagged With: AJ Padgett, Alex Bacchetta, Bailey Fletcher, Blaise Tita, Blake Boenisch, Boden Groen, Brad Baur, Brant Banks, Braylen Walker, Chad Lindberg, Charlie Looes, Christian Francisco, Colby Connell, Conor Hunt, Daveon Hook, David Stickle, Dean Connors, DeMone Green, DJ Arkansas, Drayden Dickmann, Drew Devillier, EJ Warner, Elijah Mojarro, Elroyal Morris, Enoch Gota, Ephraim Dotson, Ethan Onianwa, Gabe Taylor, Geron Hargon, Graham Walker, Izeya Floyd, John Long, Jojo Jean, Josh Pearcy, Kobie Campbell, Lamont Narcisse, Marcus Williams, Matt Sykes, Max Ahoia, Micah Barnett, Michael Daley, Michael Larbie, Miguel Cedeno, Myron Morrison, Plae Wyatt, Quinton Jackson, Rawson MacNeill, Rice Football, Sean Fresch, Shawqi Itraish, Spencer Cassell, Taji Atkins, Thai Chiaokhiao-Bowman, Tim Horn, trace norfleet, Ty Morris, Tyson Flowers, Weston Kropp, wyatt freeman

2024 Rice Football Season Preview: Defensive Line

August 14, 2024 By Matthew Bartlett

Next up in our 2024 Rice Football Season Preview: defensive line. Here’s our breakdown of the Owls’ plans for the group this season.

The defensive line has been a solid unit since head coach Mike Bloomgren arrived. Rice football has fielded several all-conference caliber players in the trenches, building on the consistency of having the same position coach, Cedric Calhoun, and same defensive coordinator, Brian Smith, for that entire time period. Armed with that consistency and the right mix of home grown talent and impactful transfers, there are high expectations for the unit this fall.

Rice Football Preseason Preview: Check out the rest of the series here.

This piece is part of our 2024 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. 

Subscriber content. Please login to see the full post or visit our Patreon page.

Sorry! This part of content is hidden behind this box because it requires a higher contribution level ($10) at Patreon. Why not take this chance to increase your contribution?

** Photo credit Maria Lysaker **



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

Recent Posts

  • Rice Baseball blows past PVAMU at home
  • Rice Football Recruiting: WR David Kasemervisz commits to Owls
  • Hickson gem propels Rice Baseball to series win over Charlotte
  • Rice Football Recruiting: WR Artis Cole commits to Owls

Filed Under: Archive, Football, Premium Tagged With: 2024 Rice Football Season Preview, Alex Scherle, Blake Boenisch, Charlie Looes, Chibby Nwajuaku, Chris Clark, DeMone Green, Elroyal Morris, Izeya Floyd, Jordan Campbell, Joseph Mutombo, Josh Pearcy, Kenny Seymour, Michael Daley, Michael Larbie, Rice Football

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