An intra-city addition to the 2026 Rice Football recruiting class has locked in his pledge. Former Houston and Tulane linebacker Jesus Machado has committed to the Owls.
There were a handful of positions of emphasis for the 2026 Rice Football recruiting class when the Transfer Portal opened in early January. Linebacker wasn’t a key need, but there was always going to be room if the right fit arose. The Owls found just that player, and he wasn’t far from campus. Former Houston linebacker Jesus Machado has committed to the Owls.
Machado was a star player for current Houston coach Willie Fritz while both were at Tulane. That was before Machado suffered an ACL injury that caused him to miss the entirety of the 2024 season with the Green Wave. He then followed his former coach to Houston and redshirted in 2025, appearing in four games.
The first linebacker in the fold, Machado is the 12th addition from the Transfer Portal since it opened on January 2 and one of seven additions on the defense, which to this point, has been heavily skewed toward the secondary. Rice hasn’t added anyone on either side of the trenches yet, but that’s something that could change quickly in the days ahead.
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At his best, Machado has already proven himself to be a fringe all-conference caliber player, finishing second-team all-AAC in 2023. Rice football is betting the rangy, ball-hawking linebacker they saw on tape during the 2023 season will be ready to make an appearance, two seasons removed from a serious injury. If it does, this is could be a steal of a signing for the folks on South Main.
