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Rice Football: Will there be one quarterback in 2019?

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As the 2019 Rice Football season approaches there remains one unspoken pressing question. Can the Owls ride one quarterback this year?

A rotten combination of poor performance, bad luck and injuries through the Rice football quarterback room into chaos for most of the 2018 season. The players themselves were as calm and collected as possible, but the lack of clarity at the position as a whole did the team no favors as they tried to win football games.

More: Mobility key for Owls quarterbacks in 2019

Three different quarterbacks started games for the Owls last season. Vanderbilt grad transfer Shawn Stankavage got the first shot, starting the first seven games until he was injured in the Owls loss to UAB. Evan Marshman, who took over in the second half of the UAB game, didn’t make it through his start the following week either. He went down against FIU, opening up the door to Wiley Green.

Green led the way for the next two games, losses to North Texas and UTEP. Stankavage returned, effectively allowing Green to keep his redshirt as the veteran started the final two road games of the year against Louisiana Tech and LSU. Finally, Green capped off the season with a win at home over Old Dominion.

Confusing? That’s because Rice changed starting quarterbacks four times in the final six weeks of the season before ultimately landing back on Green.

Green will battle for the starting job in 2019 with incoming Harvard grad transfer Tom Stewart. (Read more about that battle and what to expect from each player in the fall in our 2019 Rice Football Season Preview). Regardless of who wins the job, sticking with one guy would be a much-needed change of pace. Barring injuries, the Owls look to be on the right track.

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2019 Rice Football Season Preview by The Roost

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The staff of The Roost is pleased to announce the release of the 2019 Rice Football Season Preview, a 143-page digital magazine detailing everything you could imagine about the Owls’ upcoming season.

This preview is the culmination of months of research, interviews and analysis. Consider it your one-stop-shop as you prepare for the Owls’ 2019 season.

Available as a downloadable PDF for on-the-go access, this preview contains the following:

1. A breakdown of every position group on the team

Who are the favorites to start entering fall camp? What sort of production should you expect from returning starters? Which of the incoming transfer players should make their mark the quickest? Answers to all of those questions are included, as well as notes on every single player on the 102-man roster.

2. An exclusive interview with head coach Mike Bloomgren

We sat down with coach to get his honest evaluation of where the Rice football program is right now and how he views the progress the team is making as they approach 2019. He’s sticking to a process, one which he remains confident will bring success to South Main.

3. Previews of each 2019 opponent and all 14 CUSA Teams

Supported by local beat writers and experts who cover each team, this section has a wealth of knowledge about every CUSA Team and all the Owls’ 2019 opponents.

Rice fans will want to familiarize themselves with the teams they’ll be facing this year. Get to know which players each squad will have to replace, which newcomers could make noise in 2019 and what outstanding questions those in the know have about their respective squads.

4. A complete 2019 Conference USA Football Preview

Available separately to purchase, everyone who purchases the 2019 Rice Football Season Preview will also get The Roost’s 2019 Conference USA Football Preview. We made our picks for preseason honors, top games to watch in 2019 and a closer look at how every team in the conference stacks up.

Don’t need any more convincing? Get a copy for yourself today

Buy Now

 

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Rice Football Stat Pack: Mobile quarterbacks a must for Owls

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Moving the ball on the ground is crucial to the success of the Rice football offense. That goes for the quarterbacks, too.

Five different quarterbacks saw action for Rice football in 2019. No matter who was under center, it was clear this offense valued a quarterback who was able to move in the pocket and make plays with his feet. Versatility and options are extremely important. Keeping the defense honest and forcing them to account for all 11 players on the field gives the offense an added advantage.

Bloomgren confirmed the need for that advantage on offense throughout the season, saying more than once he was counting on his passers to steal two or three first downs on the ground each game. That expectation proved true. As a unit, the Rice quarterback position accounted for 300 yards rushing (before sacks), an average of 3.66 yards per carry.

Evan Marshman is the most mobile and, unsurprisingly, led the Owls quarterbacks with a 5.39 yards per carry average. Although Shawn Stankavage and Wiley Green aren’t generally viewed as running threats, both averaged more than three yards per carry. Rice doesn’t need track stars in shotgun, but having statuesque figures isn’t conducive to how this offense wants to operate.

Green and Marshman had two rushing scores apiece. Those four quarterback rushing touchdowns tied Austin Walter for the team lead. When the quarterback position is challenging the most productive running back in rushing production their importance in the offense can’t be dismissed.

Neither Green or grad transfer Tom Stewart are dual-threat guys — at least not on the same plane as incoming freshman quarterback Jovoni Johnson. Still, whoever wins the starting job will add a rushing component to the offense. That’s what the job requires.

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Football: Quarterback depth gives Owls options in 2019

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A year removed from starting a rotation of unproven passers, Rice football has a quarterback room with plenty of depth entering 2019.

Wiley Green was the scout team quarterback during fall camp last season. By the time the Owls played their final game, he was the starting quarterback. The reasons for Green’s ascent are two-fold. First, he’s really good at football. Second, the depth chart ahead of him became a MASH unit by season’s end.

Shawn Stankavage and Evan Marshman both suffered multi-week injuries. Jackson Tyner and Parker Towns had work to do in other areas. That propelled Green, a player whom the coaches still had complete trust in despite his standing on the depth chart, into the starting role.

He’ll be the frontrunner for the job entering 2019, but he’ll have company. Harvard transfer Tom Stewart has a live arm and didn’t come in to sit. Marshman will be back and healthy, as will Towns. And last year alone is proof that incoming freshman Jovoni Johnson could play his way to the top spot if the right circumstances arise.

More: Takeaways from Blue – Gray Spring Game

Ideally, Johnson gets at least one year in the system under his belt before playing meaningful snaps at Rice. Even still, the combination of Green, Stewart and Marshman gives Rice three starting caliber players who’ve played meaningful college football games. Entering last fall the Owls really only had one proven passer, Tyner, and he wasn’t able to win the job. It’s not too much of an overstatement to say Rice has more than doubled their depth at quarterback in one offseason.

Green, Marshman and Towns got their feet wet this spring. Now it’s time for each of them to hit the books and learn this offense inside and out. If they can master the mental aspect of the game the results will be felt in tangible ways this fall.

Having lots of quarterbacks doesn’t win you games. Head coach Mike Bloomgren found that out the hard way in 2018. But having multiple quarterbacks who have played “big-time college football”, as Bloomgren is known to say, could be the difference in multiple close finishes. The pecking order isn’t set, but the depth at the quarterback position is better than ever.

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Rice Football: 5 predictions following end of spring practices

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With spring practices in the books, Rice football begins to look ahead at the 2019 season in earnest. Here are five predictions for the Owls this fall.

1. QB1 will be Wiley Green

Mike Bloomgren has options, but none of them look better than Wiley Green right now. The sophomore signal caller had a bit of a slow spring, but so did his offensive line and most of his pass catchers. As the offense progresses his natural talent will come through and he’ll be named the starting quarterback, quite possibly much sooner than Bloomgren made an official statement on the matter last season.

2. The tight ends double their production in 2019

Jordan Myers and Jaeger Bull combined for a pedestrian 20 receptions for 267 yards and two touchdowns last season. That was the totality of the production contributed from the tight end position, something which should change drastically this coming fall. A host of tight ends saw significant run this spring including fresh faces like Jonathan Sanchez, Brendan Suckley and Robert French. Those three, plus Myers and Bull simply must blow the top off last year’s numbers.

3. Blaze Alldredge leads the team in tackles

This one seems like a no-brainer. After watching the entire linebacking corps fly around the field this spring the favorites to lead the team in tackles have to be Antonio Montero and Blaze Alldredge. I flipped a coin.

4. At least one of the starting specialists aren’t on campus yet

The absence of Jack Fox and Haden Tobola was notable this spring. The kicking game got off to a slow start and remained inconsistent during spring ball. A few guys had a crack at the placekicking job, but not did enough to put themselves ahead of the pack. That bodes well for incoming kicker Zach Hoban, who blasted a 60-yard field goal from the star in Dallas Cowboy Stadium following an event this winter.

The starting punting job will be a battle between Chris Barnes and incoming TCU transfer Adam Nunez. Barnes has been solid this spring, and it’s no guarantee he gives up the job. Nunez wasn’t brought in to ride the pine, though. That’s a battle that will take place in fall camp.

5. Rice isn’t done with the Transfer Portal

Depth was a major hurdle for the Owls this spring. Practices were cut short because there weren’t enough guys able to go and those who were still moving around had been worked to the brink of exhaustion. The depth will get better when the bulk of the 2019 recruiting class arrives this summer, but there is still room for a capable veteran or two to balance out what is already an extremely young nucleus.

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