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Rice Football 2020 Practice Notes: Post MTSU presser, changes and injuries

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Rice football returned to the practice field this week determined to put the MTSU game behind them. Here’s where things stand headed into Week 9.

The season is back in full swing and we’ve got a full slate of Rice football updates on deck for everyone this week. I’ll include a few snippets from today’s press conference here as well as updates from practice on Monday.

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Press conference notes and quotes

“Last week’s game obviously didn’t go the way we wanted it to. There’s no denying that. We didn’t get the result we wanted and we’re in a results-oriented business. The hard part about that is I look at it, and I thought our kids played incredibly hard from the start of the game, through overtime, through both overtimes. But as we said, the outcome wasn’t what we wanted. There’s a lot of things we need to clean up between game one and game two so that we don’t feel that way again. And that’s exactly what we’re trying to do. We’re committed to doing that.” –  Coach Mike Bloomgren

“I think what hurt us most on the defensive end is when we got a little more passive … that’s just the wrong mentality for us to have. That’s not who we are. We’re aggressive. We’re dominant. And just taking our foot off the gas pedal at all, is just not who we are.” – LB Blaze Alldredge

Looking back at it, we left way too many points on the board. The game should never have been that close. We should never have been in the position to need to score a last second touchdown, and that falls on me. But, talking to the offensive line, and the running backs and the receivers and everybody, we all know that we left too many points on the board, and we just got to get fixed.” – QB Mike Collins

What to look for this week from practice

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Rice Football 2020: Middle Tennessee Depth chart released

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The first official depth chart of the 2020 Rice Football season has been released. Given the injuries and uncertainties, there’s a lot to unpack.

We’ve reach the end of fall camp and the beginning of Week 1 prep for Rice football. On Monday the Owls released their first depth chart for the 2020 season. Some positions aligned perfectly with expectations: Mike Collins is the QB1. Others provided more intrigue.

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Typically the weekly depth chart doesn’t come out until Tuesday when Rice will hold its weekly press conferences. Those came out a bit earlier than expected this week with everything going virtual. To that end, subscribers will want to stay tuned to practice reports later this week to see who will be in and out when game day arrives.

Don’t forget to put your entry in for the 2020 pick’em challenge

Here’s how Rice football will line up against Middle Tennessee

Rice Football depth chart

Expected results

Mike Collins is the Owls starting quarterback

This was never really in doubt during fall camp. Head coach Mike Bloomgren made it official last week. Now it’s been published in ink with no OR designation. Mike Collins will be the guy against Middle Tennessee. The third string man, if it had been listed, would have been Wiley Green, who started the Owls’ opener last season. That’s a pretty solid quarterback room after a few years of flux.

Surprises

Fullback

Brendan Suckley hasn’t been spotted so far during camp, so I wasn’t expecting him to be on the depth chart against Middle Tennessee. Brian Hibbard, who had taken reps in his place, was out last week as well. That left Jerry Johnson working with the ones. The move to insert Jaeger Bull is a surprise to be sure, but his skillset as a blocker and h-back type players makes the move a reasonable one.

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Buy Now: The Roost’s 2020 Rice Football Season Preview and C-USA Preview

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The Roost is pleased to announce the release of the 2020 Rice Football Season Preview and the Conference USA Football Season Preview. These digital magazines are the one-stop-shop for every Rice and Conference USA Fan.

Buy Rice Preview
Buy C-USA Preview

The 2020 Rice Football Season Preview

This 160-page publication details everything you could imagine about Rice Football. It includes insight on the entire Rice roster as well with commentary on all 110 players on the active roster. From there the scope widens to breakdowns of every Conference USA team and all four of the Owls’ non-conference opponents. Each profile was compiled with the help from local experts who cover that beat on a daily basis with timely transfer information and any available spring updates.

As one Rice administrator dubbed it:
it’s the bible for Rice Football fans.

Get answers to questions like “Who has the leg up in the Rice quarterback battle?” or “Which incoming players could make the biggest impact?” or “Who are the top returning players Rice will face in Conference USA?”

This year’s edition included a feature story based on an interview with Athletic Director Joe Karlgaard. In the piece, we discuss how he evaluates head coach Mike Bloomgren’s coaching tenure.

The 2020 Conference USA Football Season Preview

The complete contents of the Conference USA Preview are contained within the Rice Preview. This 72-page guide includes everything Conference USA fans need to know for the upcoming season. Every team in the conference has a four-page profile. These profiles including coaching notes, pressing questions and the major storylines each squad faces this season. It also includes roster breakdowns with profiles on the biggest incoming and outgoing players.

No preview would be complete without the numbers, and this one has those in bunches. Each team section includes Conference USA metrics, returning production notes and analysis as well as stat lines for every returning player. There’s also a more detailed review of the conference’s top returning players for each major statistic. And it’s all at your fingertips rather than a dozen google searches away.

The Conference USA Preview omits the Rice-specific content like the position and player breakdowns, rising stars and more. Most Rice fans would prefer the Rice Preview whereas fans of other C-USA schools might prefer this version.

What are people saying about the Previews?

Don’t just take our word for it. Here’s what people are saying:

  • “The Roost’s C-USA preview has been an indispensable resource for me as I make my preparations for this season.”
  • “I just spent 30 minutes going through it, but barely skimmed the surface. It’s a great way to learn the new players.
  • “I don’t know any preview that could be more detailed than that.”
  • “This is worth spending the money on. Best you will get for CUSA”
  • “I liked everything.”

Want more?

You can always find additional Rice Football and Conference USA Football content on the website. If you enjoy the Preview and want to get further involved, consider supporting us on Patreon or check out The Roost Shop. Our subscribers get exclusive content ranging from recruiting and practice updates to special analysis. For starters, they got a copy of the Preview for free!

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Rice Football: 2020 Spring practice closing thoughts

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Rice Football snuck in six spring practices before they were canceled by Conference USA. Here are a few things we learned and questions still unanswered.

My notebook is an organized mess every time Rice football practice is underway. I have notes from each session I attend. Those range from individual moments that impressed me to far-reaching questions that I’ve yet to reach a conclusion. Sometimes coaches or players can shed light on my queries, other times they’re left to ruminate until next session, next week, or longer.

More: Erica Ogwumike talks end of season, Rice career on The Roost Podcast

Rice is fortunate they got to practice at all. Several Conference USA teams called off all sessions before they ever stepped foot on the field. There are a lot of question marks scribbled in the pages from the Owls’ six spring practice sessions. In this case, some clarity is better than none.

Depth Charts

I hesitate to put out defined depth charts, especially from spring ball. Players are cycling in and out, some are learning new positions. The alignment of the team on any one play varies tremendously. Starters are easier to determine. Backups are … well, an exercise best guessing. With that caveat, take these words as being scribed in pencil.

Rice Football First Team Offense

QB | Collins OR Johnson
RB | Otoviano
WR | Trammell, Rozner, Pitre
TE | Myers
OL | Servin (LT), Garcia OR Sheriff (LG), Klarkowski (C), Baker (RG), Woolford (RT)

Rice Football Second Team Offense

QB | McMahon
RB | Montgomery OR King
WR | Knipe, Bailey, Palmer
TE | Bull OR Bradley
OL | Ferraro (LT), Riddle (LG), Baker (C), Floyd (RG), Peterson (RT)

Offensive depth chart notes

I hate OR designations, but I really do believe there are several open spots on the offense right now. Quarterback is the most obvious. If Rice football had to play tomorrow, I’d bet Mike Collins is the guy, but it’s close. That’s not to say he stole the show this spring — he and JoVoni Johnson were both solid — but I like Collins’ combination of size and elusiveness. I’m still looking to see who can make more consistent plays downfield between those two. The more accurate passer could win the job in fall camp.

Cam Montgomery looks really good. Really good. Rice had a deep backfield last year and Montgomery fumbled away some of his opportunities, leaving him buried on the bench. He’s probably the fastest player on the team right now (or at least in the top five). He’ll be the third down and pass catching back. There’s plenty of room for Jawan King to carve out a role as well.

Not much changed on the pass catching front outside of some good plays from sophomore tight end Jack Bradley. He was on a very short list of true freshman that played every game. They’d like to see him more involved this year. August Pitre had a great showing, too. He was much more aggressive in the air, fighting for the football and winning one-one-one matchups.

On the offensive line, it’s encouraging to see Izeya Floyd running with the twos. So far, the transition seems to be going well. Klarkowski as the starting center surprised me a bit, but I attribute that more to the need for answers at guard. If someone emerges there, Baker more than likely moves back to center. JoVaun Woolford is an impressive human being. If he adds another 15 to 20 pounds this offseason he’s going to be a huge asset at the tackle spot.

Rice Football First Team Defense

DL | Schuman, Hubbard, Carrol, Orji
LB | Alldredge, Montero
CB | Devones, Thornton
Saf | Smith, Nyakwol, Chamberlain

Rice Football Second Team Defense

DL | Doddridge, Enechukwu, Garcia, Page
LB | Morrison, Grammer
CB | Bird, White
Saf | Calderon, Lockhart, Richardson

Defensive depth chart notes

The defense looks pretty cookie cutter from how Rice football ended last season. De’Braylon Carroll will slide up into a starting spot replacing the departing Myles Adams. Kenneth Orji will become the full-time man at rush end with Anthony Ekpe gone. The rest of the first team is essentially unchanged.

Myron Morrison has entrenched himself as a rotation player at linebacker. The coaches love his work ethic and he made several big plays this spring. He and Garrett Grammer will back up Antonio Montero and Blaze Alldredge.

There’s a pretty clear delineation from the first and second teams in the secondary, but the top 10 guys are solid. Rice is bringing in some talented playmakers in the secondary, but this shouldn’t be a situation where anyone is forced to play early from necessity. They’ll have to earn it, which they very well might do.

The defensive line is a spot to monitor. I loved what I saw from Kebreyun Page, and Ikenna Enechukwu has been steadily improving from last season until now. I’m not sure about the defensive end spot. Joshua Pearcy and Jacob Doddridge both took some time there during the spring.

Special Teams

There are a few certainties on special teams.

  1. Austin Trammell will be the punt returner
  2. Stanford transfer Collin Riccitelli will be the place kicker
  3. Charlie Mendes will be the punter
  4. Cam Riddle will be the long snapper

There really won’t be any competition whatsoever at those four spots. That leaves kickoffs and the holder as the only real question marks. Those auditions will continue into the fall.

Unanswered questions

1. Who is going to be the starting quarterback?

Collins and Johnson separated themselves this spring, but neither “seized the job” as coach Bloomgren has often wished of his quarterbacks. They’re both great on the ground with Collins getting a slight edge because of his size. Johnson may not be injury prone, but he’s slimmer and did get forced out of his start against Marshall last year with an injury. I still think we could have one guy before the season opener, but don’t expect the competition closed before a week or two of fall camp.

2. Which offense will Rice run?

The way Rice lined up against Army was night and day different from how they played against Middle Tennessee. Bloomgren will stick to his guns and run the football, but he’s not going to discount the success they found through the air. The offensive line might be the key determinant in how Rice attacks on offense. But we still don’t know how that unit will be pieced together quite yet.

3. Where are the gaps that incoming players need to fill?

In previous springs, it’s been fairly evident where the team needs an impact player. Given the little sample size this time, it’s hard to know which of the incoming signing class is going to have the clearest path to playing time.

I have a hunch someone is going to emerge from the running backs. Kobie Campbell and Khalan Griffin are special talents that could impact the game on special teams or as offensive weapons. On defense, I want to see what happens in the secondary. Can someone like Lamont Narcisse work his way onto the field? That might depend on a few factors. On both sides of the ball, we’ll have to wait and see what happens in the fall.

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Rice Football Film Room 2019: UTEP Review

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Rice football finished out the season on a three-game winning streak, making for an exciting finale in our 2019 film room series.

Hey y’all! Welcome back to the final Rice Football Film Room of the 2019 season. We’ll highlight one play to Austin Trammell that I just enjoyed, and two plays by redshirt freshmen that show how bright the future is for the Rice offense.

Texas Flood

Setup

About midway through the third quarter, Rice is down 16–14. The Owls have the ball 1st & 10 at the UTEP 34. They’re in 12 personnel from the shotgun: Aston Walter is the back, Jaeger Bull is the inline TE to the left, Jordan Myers is at H-back to the right, and Trammell and Bradley Rozner are wide to the right with Trammell in the slot. UTEP’s in a 3-3-5 look with one deep safety on defense.

The Play

Rice goes max protect, keeping 7 guys (the OL, Walter, and Bull) in to protect. That’s more than enough, because UTEP drops all the linebackers and DBs, leaving only the three DL to rush. Eight in coverage vs three guys running routes should make things easy on UTEP in coverage here.

Rice is running a route combination commonly referred to as a Flood concept, which involves running three routes of different depths all to the same side of the field. The idea is to stretch the defense vertically, and it’s particularly effective against a zone coverage like this one (which appears to be a variation on Cover 3). For the QB, the reads go high to low: first the go route from the outside receiver; next the out route from the slot; and finally the flat route from (in this case) the H-back.

Here, the outside corner sinks into his deep zone and stays over the top of Rozner, taking that read away. So Stewart’s next read is Trammell, who runs a double move, faking a post route before breaking back into a deep out. Both inside DBs to that side are preoccupied watching Myers in the flat (the apex guy falls over, but Trammell is long past him by the time that happens), and the deep safety is in no position to get over in time to defend an out route. So Austin finds a nice open spot in the zone, and the ball should go to him

Stewart does a great job of reading this play. He’s got the ball out right as Trammell is breaking back toward the sideline. His ball placement isn’t perfect; ideally you’d lead Trammell to the sideline with this throw. But Trammell shows fantastic body control, smoothly turning back to the ball and then continuing the spin to carry himself upfield without ever really breaking stride. Nothing special about this play. Just a well-run concept, a good read by Stewart, and a great play by Trammell.

The Need for Speed

Setup

Having kicked a field goal on the prior possession, Rice has the lead 17-16 and has the ball 1st & 10 at its own 48. The Owls are in 11 personnel, with Walter next to Stewart in the shotgun. Rozner is the X receiver to the boundary, and Trammell, Myers, and true freshman speedster Zane Knipe are in a bunch trips set, tight to the formation. UTEP is again in a 3-3-5 type look with a single deep safety.

The Play

Rice shows play action. Stewart fakes a handoff and Myers comes across the formation to sell split zone action. But ultimately we again end up with three rushers against seven blockers, though this time, with Myers charged with coming all the way across to block the edge rusher, the rush nearly gets home anyway. Walter helps out, though, and the two of them divert the rusher upfield in time for Stewart to step up and make the throw.

I can’t get a full picture of this concept since the camera doesn’t go wide enough, but it looks like Stewart’s first read may have been Trammell, because he looks that way for a while before coming back to Knipe. Here, since Rozner was the only receiver to the boundary, his go route completely clears out his side of the field.

With Knipe darting across the field on a dig route, he ends up wide open, with nobody even in his ZIP code by the time the ball arrives. The throw’s a bit late, but we can forgive Tom for that, because it’s not easy to get the ball out in time for a guy with Knipe’s raw speed. In any case, the placement’s a little better, and Zane turns it smoothly upfield for a big gain. The gif cuts off there (sorry, it was long already), but Knipe nearly manages to stiff arm the safety and get to the end zone. An offseason in the weight room might just fix that!

JoVoni on the Rise

Setup

Just one play later, Rice has it 2nd & Goal at the 8. The Owls are in a shotgun 12 personnel look, with Rozner and Trammell wide, Myers and Bull both inline to the left, and JoVoni Johnson and Walter in the backfield. UTEP responds with what’s basically a nine-man box and man coverage on the two receivers.

The Play

I picked this one because it’s the first of Johnson’s two TD runs and they were both the same play: QB power. This is exactly the same blocking scheme as the numerous big plays we’ve seen Rice get from that 22 personnel power toss play, but by having the QB carry the ball, the RB act as lead blocker, and subbing in another receiver, we now have one less guy in the box for the same number of blockers.

And y’all this one is blocked perfectly. From Myers inward, the TEs and OL completely wall off the defense inside, and there are basically two guys who can make the play. One gets erased by Shea Baker, the pulling guard. The other is expertly cut blocked by Walter. Johnson waltzes into the end zone.

Two plays by two freshmen who, eligibility-wise, will still be freshmen next year. Big things are coming for this Rice offense.

And finally, I just wanted to thank y’all for sticking with me and this column for the year. It’s been a blast doing it, and the work I’ve put in has made me a smarter football fan. I hope y’all have enjoyed it as well.

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