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Rice Football 2025 Spring Practice Notebook 5: Slot School

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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 Abell, renowned for his offensive system, has engineered a scheme that is fascinating to watch, but sometimes hard to follow. That confusion often stems from the slot position and how many different ways it’s utilized in this offense.

More: Spring Practice Notebook 4 — QB Battle and Scrimmage Thoughts

This update dives into what that slot position does, how the Owls use it in the offense and which players are going to be lining up at that position in the fall.

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So…. what’s a slot?

No position has been more fascinating to follow this spring than the one most recently added to the Rice football depth chart: Slot. Coached by Austin Eisenhofer, nominally the Insider Wide Receivers coach according to the Rice football online roster, the slot position promises to bring plenty of flash and excitement to South Main.

“The slot position kind of does everything,” Eisenhofer explained. “A lot of blocking, a lot of pass catching, a lot of rushing the ball.”

That all-encompassing definition might even undersell the level of versatility the Owls require from this position. It’s not uncommon to see a slot player go out on a route on one play, take a sweep around one side on the next play, and then operate as the trailing man in an option run on the play after that. Their interchangeability with the running back position has been fascinating to watch.

In so many ways, this position is an amalgamation of so many skillsets into a true all-purpose offensive tool.

More: Latest Rice football recruiting offers

“We’re insider receivers and we do more skills of a receiver than anything else,” Eisenhofer said, “But at the end of the day it’s a lot of guys that in high school they were labeled as A-T-H. They can affect the game in so many ways. I think that’s fun for anyone.”

For some in the recruiting world, ATH or “Athlete” is a designation given to players with athletic ability, but no true position. It’s the “other” option for players talented enough to play at this level, but without a specified skillset at any singular spot. For this offense to take those “other” pieces and turn them into key cogs in this offensive system is amusing.

A few players like Cincinnati transfer Aaron Turner — brother of offensive assistant Eli Turner, who played for Abell at Davidson — knew what they were getting into when this position was assigned to them over the winter. The rest are truly starting from scratch, adjusting to so many different ways to get the football beyond the traditional throw and catch down field.

“They’ve taken to it probably quicker than I could have even expected,” Eisenhofer praised. “All they’re worried about is they want to be good. They want to learn it. They understand it’s a process.”

Climbing the depth chart

We’re still a ways from settling on any firm offensive depth chart, but there are a few faces that have risen through the ranks at this position during camp. The aforementioned Turner is the first name to mention. He was the first pass catcher Abell cited when discussing standout individuals following last Saturday’s scrimmage as Abell noted that Turner “seemed to be making plays every day.”

Given his familiarity with the coaching staff and how the Owls’ prioritized him in the portal, his ascension probably shouldn’t come as a surprise. He’s not the only player to stand out at this spot during the spring, though. Redshirt freshman Owen Carter has receiver as many, if not more reps with the starting group.

Roost Podcast: Breaking down the Rice baseball in-season hiring of David Pierce

A high school standout at Cy Fair, Carter’s presence was minimal on Saturday’s last fall, redshirting while appearing in two games. To say he’s taken a step forward since then and embraced this new-look offense would be an understatement. He’s been fun to watch and someone worth keeping an eye on moving forward.

It’ll be hard to determine how many “starting” wide receiver spots they’ll be, especially given how much this offense will vary from formation to formation, but Carter, Turner and Braylen Walker (playing the true wide receiver spot in this offense, not slot) have been by far the most common triumvirate on the field so far.

Odds and Ends

  • Not only does there appear a ways to go for settling on a starting five on the offensive line, positions remain fluid. There was a sequence of plays last week where I watched one lineman play go from guard, to the tackle spot on the opposite side to the other guard spot in the span of three plays. The intra-drive fluidity is likely a quirk of practice, but that doesn’t make it any less hard to terse out.
  • Quinton Jackson broke off a 65-yard touchdown run in Wednesday’s practice. The speed possessed by him and Taji Atkins, along with the depth at the running back position should make for an exciting year for the ground game.
  • There are no fullbacks in this offense in the traditional sense, but that doesn’t mean the Owls’ fullbacks have completely disappeared. Micah Barnett and Rhys Phillips have transitioned to tight end. Phillips missed a good chunk of last season, so it’s been fun to see him get in the mix at full speed.
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Rice Football 2025 Spring Practice Notebook 2: Unpacking the offense, QBs

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Two weeks of 2025 Rice Football spring practices are in the books. Here’s what we’ve learned about the offense and quarterbacks so far.

The new look Rice football offense has taken some getting used to, but the explosiveness with which they play and the vast array of weapons at their disposal has made for an exciting spring so far. Just a few practices into the spring, the scheme is starting to take shape as everyone learns on the go and gets their first live reps on the field.

This update dives deep into that offense, taking stock of the quarterback competition thus far and digging into the details of how plays are called, what the scheme will look like from week to week and more.

A true competition at quarterback

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Rice Football 2024 Special Teams Player of the Year: Quinton Jackson

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One record-setting return was only part of a tremendous season for Quinton Jackson, our 2024 Rice Football Special Teams Player of the Year.

Quinton Jackson set a program record when he returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown against UConn on October 26. The return was one of the most exciting moments in a wayward season for the Owls and contributed to Jackson being the runaway winner for our 2024 Rice Football Special Teams Player of the Year.

To accurately describe Jackson’s heroics, we must first start with Pete Alamar. Alamar was the Owls’ special teams coordinator that day who would soon after be promoted to interim head coach following the dismissal of head coach Mike Bloomgren. That news came the day following Jackson’s scamper that brought the team within a score of tying the game but would not be enough to salvage the win.

A 40-year veteran in the industry, Alamar had coached a lot of football before taking charge at South Main. His brief stint as the headman of the Owls’ program was a momentary departure from the world of special teams that have been his central focus for most of his career.

During that time, Alamar had the honor of coaching some of the best of the best ever to play teams.

He coached Desean Jackson at Cal and Dennis Northcutt at Arizona. Then he went on to coach Ty Montgomery and Christian McCaffrey at Stanford. This man was well acquainted with what excellence special teams play looks like. That’s what made his endorsement of Rice return man Quinton Jackson so impactful.

More: 2024 Rice Football Season Superlatives

“What he did was phenomenally cool,” Alamar said of Jackson’s big return.

“I’ve told the team, that cat, right there,” he said during that week’s media availability, pointing toward Jackson, “is as good as any kick returner I’ve had at hitting and getting. His first 25 is what makes him special because when he hits it, he hits it.”

Jackson “hit it” that day, but that play was one of 22 kick returns Jackson had during the season. Jackson averaged 26.8 yards per return, eighth nationally among all players. His 589 total return yards ranked fourth and his 49.1 kick return yards per game ranked fifth.

When you have a 4-8 season, not many players rank in the top 10 nationally in any metric. For Rice football, Jackson was the exception, earning AAC Special Teams Player of the Week following that return, the only weekly individual honor any Owl received from the conference this season.

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Jackson carried himself humbly when given the opportunity to react to the special moment. At the same time, he knew the play didn’t come about by accident. He credited the hours and hours of work put in by his protection unit and everything and everyone surrounding him that helped set up that moment.

At the end of the day, it was Jackson that had to made to make the play.

“I feel like I’ve been confident all year. It’s just waiting for my moment to happen.”

Jackson did his best best to absorb the moment and savor the memory he had helped create. Then it was time to move forward, to think about the next game and consider what more could be done to help the team find a way to win.

“You can’t let that get into your head, though. That’s just one,” Jackson remarked. “You can’t just be a one-hit wonder.”

Jackson’s return was the first Rice football kick return touchdown since 2012. Even if Jackson’s tally stops at one, he’ll have carved his names in the program’s record books forever.

** Photo Credit: Maria Lysaker **
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Rice Football tops South Florida on Senior Day

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Rice Football sent its seniors out on a high-note, sailing past South Florida in the Owls’ most uplifting win of the 2024 season.

Playing together for one last time, Rice Football ended its 2024 campaign victoriously. The typically slow starting squad scored a season-high 35 points against an FBS opponent and racked up a season-best 550 yards while snuffing out the South Florida offense until the game was out of reach. Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:

The offense awakens

The Rice football offense has been an adventure this season for a variety of reasons. Up and down quarterback play, a listless running game and an infuriating number of fruitless redzone possessions has left the Owls wanting on the scoreboard more games than not. Determined to rectify at least some of those frustrations with the scoreboard, the Rice offense brought the fireworks on Saturday afternoon.

Warner got the scoring started with a crisp 31-yard touchdown pass to Drayden Dickmann, his first collegiate touchdown grab. Quinton Jackson followed with a 12-yard run of his own. Then Tim Horn added three more points on a short field, courtesy of a fumble recovery on a short field. And that was all before the first quarter came to a close.

Rice had scored 34 points in the first quarter in seven AAC games this season before Saturday. They had 17 first quarter points against South Florida. After failing to surpass more than 29 points in a game against an FBS opponent this year, Rice dropped 27 points in the first half, highlighted by this gorgeous toss from Warner to Dean Connors which elevated the senior to the program leader for receiving yards by a running back.

It wasn’t just Connors with the big day. Warner delivered a season-best showing, his first 400-yard gain with the Owls. Matt Sykes topped 100 receiving yards for the first time in his career. Thai Bowman scored his first career touchdown. Across the board, this unit was finally clicking.

Had this caliber of offense shown up more frequently this season the year would have gone much differently. There’s no rewriting the past at this point, though. At least fans at Rice Stadium on Saturday were treated to a thrilling sendoff for the Owls’ Seniors.

The defense holds the line

A newfound productive offense combined with the Owls’ typically stout defense proved to be quite a potent combination. Rice allowed USF to march down the field on their first drive, ceding a 10-play 75-yard touchdown drive. USF would register 56 total yards for the rest of the first half. That’s a 7.5-yards-per-play clip followed by a quick drop to 3.1 yards per play.

USF quarterback Bryce Archie was able to complete a good chunk of his passes, connecting on 8-of-13 attempts in the first half, but outside of one long 42-yard completion down the sideline, everything was close to the line of scrimmage and quickly covered up by a swarming Rice secondary. Max Ahoia’s forced fumble was just one instance of a secondary that played with a noticeable level of intensity.

The Bulls would get another sustained scoring drive to start the second half but when it came to mounting sustained scoring drives in the middle of the action they never got into a groove. It seemed like every time they came close, a Rice defender showed up with a big play, including a masterful interception from Gabe Taylor midway through the third quarter.

The day featured two defensive takeaways and three sacks, including Andrew Awe’s first career sack in his final game. It was an emphatic finale for the veteran-led unit which has been the most reliable force on this team all season.

Special teams does just enough

Two missed field goals (from 41 and 39 yards, respectively) and a couple of penalties on kick returns kept it from being a banner day for the Rice football special teams, but the unit certainly held its own on a day when its counterparts on offense and defense delivered impressive performances of their own.

Kicker Tim Horn converted from 25 yards out on two separate occasions, but a kick that ricocheted off the post in the third quarter killed what had been a 100 percent red zone conversion rate on the day to that point, a rate the Owls have only finished with once in an AAC game this season.

Quinton Jackson had an explosive opening kickoff return called back via a block in the back. Then he did it again in the third quarter, with no flags this time. Christian Francisco fielded a low, bouncing kick and took it 45 yards back to USF territory. All told, it was a workable performance from the special teams unit and a decent way to end an up-and-down campaign from that group.

The end of an era

In the whirlwind that has consumed the last week, it’s been hard to fully appreciate how different Rice football is going to look in 2025. The coaching change plays a large role in that upcoming change, but the impact of the outgoing senior class will play a sizable role in those developments, too.

Rice honored those seniors before the game on Saturday, a feat which required half the field to do. So many different players poured four, five and some six years into building this program from the bottom to where it is today. They didn’t fully realize that expected apex, but their contributions were each significant

That totality sank in earlier this week when I sat down with Gabe Taylor, who fought back tears when asked to describe this game and this moment. “It means everything,” he said. “I would trade them for the world, this family. It’s so genuine. They’re awesome guys… They’re my family forever.”

They didn’t win them all, but after a rocky season, this family went out on a much-deserved high note.

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Upset bid comes up short for Rice Football at Memphis

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Rice football had its chances, but missed opportunities proved too much to overcome, as the Owls fell to Memphis in a one-score game on the road.

Another strong start. Another furious fourth quarter rally. Another loss. Rice football was left with another all too familiar sour taste following a road defeat at Memphis on Friday night, the Owls’ seventh loss of the season. The Owls hung around with the Tigers all night but ran out of time in the fourth quarter.

“There’s a certain recipe that we know we have to cook to win the game. At the end of the day, we didn’t cook the full recipe,” interim head coach Pete Alamar said. Here are a few immediate reactions from the game:

Turnovers (almost) set the tone

A Rice football defense that felt allergic to turnovers for much of the season seems to have found the takeaway button at the most opportune time. The Owls went six games against FBS opponents before they registered more than one turnover in a game and went without a turnover at all in four of those games.

The tide began to turn two weeks ago against UConn when Rice took the ball away twice, but couldn’t muster enough points on the arm of a backup quarterback. With EJ Warner back at the helm and the offense up and running again, Rice knocked off Navy with the help of two turnovers from the defense, one of which came on the Owls’ first defensive possession.

A similar series of events put Rice football in front on Friday night. Following a Rice drive that stalled out to start the game the defense quickly got Memphis into third and long in the shadow of their own endzone. Tigers’ quarterback Seth Henigan tried to force the ball into a tight window but Rice corner Sean Fresch was ready and won the battle for the ball.

Fresch probably could have had another takeaway on the ensuing possession but wasn’t able to corral a missile from Henigan that deflected off his hands. The defensive effort was the difference early, though, staking Rice to a 6-0 first quarter lead. That marked the fifth time in the Owls’ last six contests that the defense held their opponent scoreless in the first frame. For only the fourth time this season, Rice won the turnover battle. They held Henigan in check for most of the night. When you’re looking to mount an upset on the road, that’s how you have to start.

Red Zone Woes

On paper, the Rice offense matched the Owls’ strong defensive start, but no matter how efficient quarterback EJ Warner was between the 20s, the lack of finishing ability of the entire offensive unit allowed Memphis to stay in the game. Rice took over at the Memphis 20-yard line following the turnover but managed one first down before settling for a chip-shot field goal. In the next possession, the Owls drove 76 yards in 11 plays but petered out in the red zone again, kicking another field goal.

Scoring points in the red zone has been a problem for Rice this season, but the degree to which the Owls have been unable to capitalize on opportunities is staggering. Rice entered this game 132nd in the nation in red zone scoring percentage, getting points on just 68 percent of their drives that reach their opponent’s 25-yard line. Nationally, only Houston and UTEP are worse.

When you take away the chip shot field goals, which Rice settled for in each of their first two red zone drives on Friday, the numbers get even more discouraging. Rice was already dead last in the AAC entering this game with a 50 percent red zone touchdown percentage. That rate will fall to 47 percent after a 1-for-4 showing against Memphis.

“It’s the little things, not executing,” Warner pointed to after the game, emphasizing the impact of a misstep here or a yard too far there makes on plays in that are of the field.

The feeble field goal lead fell apart no sooner than it had been established with Memphis closing the half with three successive scoring drives, getting points on all three possessions in the second quarter. The Owls’ only saving grace to that point was a 27-yard strike from Warner to Matt Sykes. Apparently, that’s the Owls’ current solution to their red zone issues: score from outside the 25.

Add in a turnover on the two-yard line when Warner and Dean Connors couldn’t connect on an exchange and you get a disastrous performance from up close. It’s hard to win football games when you don’t take advantage of those kinds of opportunities. Especially with Memphis going 3-for-3 in the red zone, scoring touchdowns on each trip.

Excellent EJ Warner

Even with their red zone issues, it’s impossible to discuss the Owls’ overall offensive renaissance of late without giving credit to Warner. The Owls’ transfer signal caller ran a vastly different offense at Temple and frankly looked out of his depth in his first month and change of live game action at South Main. Head coach Mike Bloomgren, who was always quick to support his guys, went on the record on multiple occasions demanding more from Warner who just wasn’t fully in sync with the offense early on.

Warner’s uncertainty showcased itself in very few throws downfield and lots of checkdowns to Connors who, not coincidentally, became the all-time receptions leaders for a running back in Rice football history against Memphis on Friday night. When Warner did air it out, passes were off the mark. As a result, defenses played close to the line of scrimmage and dared Warner to beat them. For the most part, he didn’t.

In Warner’s first four games, he averaged 3.85 adjusted yards per attempt, a statistic that measures a quarterback’s efficiency on his attempts, incorporating touchdowns and interceptions. As a rough rule, anything below five is sub-par. Warner only passed that number once, and it came against the Owls’ lone FCS opponent.

From the Charlotte game on, Warner has steadily shown progress. It’s not just the counting stats — he’s throwing for 90 more yards per game since that mark. He led what probably should have been the go-ahead drive in the fourth against the 49ers, missed field goal aside, and delivered the actual game-winning play a week later against UTSA.

Warner’s adjusted yards per attempt since Charlotte is 6.37. He registered 6.36 AYA against Memphis, right on the new standard he’s set for himself in the second half of the season. For as often as Warner was the problem early this year, he’s transformed himself into the solution.

He came through again on a key fourth down in the red zone, giving Rice football a chance to win a game they probably hadn’t earned the right to still be in.

What’s next?

The Navy game gave this team and this fanbase a reason to kindle hope for one more week. For at least a few more days, there was a chance this team had found their groove and could thread the needle, winning out to salvage one of the most unexpected bowl berths this program has ever seen. While there’s still an outside chance this team could go bowling with a five-win APR exception, the traditional path to a six-win season is officially not in the cards.

Senior Izeya Floyd say the team isn’t preoccupied with possible ways to sneak into the postseason.

“We don’t even think about it like that,” he said. “That’s not what we play for. We play to go win these games because that’s what we do. That’s what we do four our seniors, including myself. We’re going to go try and win these games. We’re going to go win these games.”

With that reality sinking in for the first time, the Memphis game felt a lot like a fair synopsis of this season. Rice did a lot of things well against a team expected to finish near the top of the American Athletic Conference. The Owls were one score away — giving the ball away on the doorstep in heartbreaking fashion along the way. Yet the result was the same as it’s been all too often this season, a loss in a competitive game the Owls couldn’t find a way to finish.

With the storybook finish likely done, all that’s left is to win the next two. For the first time all year, this feels like a team capable of getting that done.

“We got two games left. Let’s go win two games,” Alamar said post game. “Let’s be 3-1 in the month of November and let’s be playing out best football in the last game of the season. Let’s continue to grow as a football team and keep playing. I told our team in the locker room, our goals haven’t changed, to go out and win every week.”

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