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Rice Football 2020: Transfer portal and roster notes

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The Transfer Portal has made itself a part of the 2020 Rice football offseason. Who’s on their way out and who could be on their way to Houston?

Suspensions and outgoing players

Aaron Cephus was suspended for the entirety of the 2019 season. After the season, multiple sources told me he was a longshot to return to the program. He has since put his name into the Transfer Portal alongside corner D’Angelo Ellis, who had also been suspended. Ellis was suspended after appearing in two games this season. In four years at Rice, he never appeared in more than seven games, battling through injuries and more recent off the field issues. He was not expected to be a significant contributor in 2020.

The newest entrant, kicker Zach Hoban, handled kickoffs for the Owls last season. He did not attempt any kicks.

It’s possible we could see another name or two added to the list of outgoing players, but the players most likely to be added to that list did not see much, if any playing time in 2019. Rush end Anthony Ekpe and offensive lineman Uzoma Osuji, both of which put their name in the portal earlier this winter, are likely the biggest hits Rice will see via transfers to their depth this offseason. Any other potential departures aren’t expected to be significant.

Rice football players currently in the Transfer Portal
  • WR Aaron Cephus
  • LB Anthony Ekpe
  • DB D’Angelo Ellis
  • PK Zach Hoban
  • OL Uzoma Osuji

Potential Transfer Targets

The transfer market is going to heat up for Rice over the next several weeks. The Owls have been in contact with a host of potential instant-impact players, including several who started at the Power 5 level. There’s a decent chance that could include some from the exodus of Stanford players. More than a dozen from Mike Bloomgren’s former school are currently in the Transfer Portal.

Look for potential reinforcements at running back, offensive line, defensive line and place kicker. Rice is losing starters in all of those spots. The Owls would also be interested in another outside wide receiver with height to pair opposite Brad Rozner, especially given the status of Aaron Cephus. That would depend on how many 6-foot-5, D1-caliber receivers are available — there won’t be many.

More: Owls extend 10 new offers at 2021 Junior Day

It’s worth noting the timetable for any potential new arrivals. National Signing Day is Wednesday, Feb. 5 but by no means is that the deadline to have the entire class complete. The portal has extended the recruiting cycle into the spring and early summer. Rice needs their class finalized by the time summer workouts begin in June. The Owls won’t delay getting potential transfers in, but they won’t force-fit anyone to reach a “complete” class by signing day.

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Rice Football Recruiting: 2020 Linebacker Terreance Ellis commits to Owls

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With National Signing Day fast approaching, Shadow Creek linebacker Terreance Ellis is the newest member of the 2020 Rice football recruiting class.

The 2021 Rice football recruiting class was the center of attention last weekend. The Owls handed out nearly a dozen offers to prospective juniors who won’t be eligible to sign before December of this year and won’t play college football for at least another 20 months. That future wasn’t the only focus for the Rice staff, though. They also keyed in on some 2020 targets. One of those was Shadow Creek edge rusher Terreance Ellis.

Standing at 6-foot-1 and tipping the scales at 201 pounds, Eliis probably profiles more like a linebacker than a defensive lineman in college. Wherever he lines up, Rice is going to use him to get pressure.

Ellis was part of a state championship team this past season, continuing a tradition of winners the Rice staff has targeted as they rebuild this program. He’ll pair nicely with linebacker Geron Hargon and edge rusher Jalen Reeves, rounding out an impressive collection of havoc makers in the middle.

Class Tracker: Updated list of 2020 Rice Football commits

Houston Baptist and Northwestern State were the only other schools to offer Ellis before Rice swooped in this weekend but he did have a preferred walk-on offer from Baylor as well. Once he set foot on campus it didn’t take him long to make a decision.

Ellis is a versatile pass rusher with the ability to make plays on the ball. He spent a lot of time with his hand in the dirt this past season, powering through blockers on his way to the backfield. His arsenal includes more than brute force. Open field tackling is a requirement at the next level and Ellis has shown he has the burst and the follow-through to succeed in space.

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Rice Football Recruiting: Flurry of offers go out at 2021 Junior Day

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Several new offers were handed out over the weekend to prospective members of the 2021 Rice Football recruiting class. Here’s a rundown of Junior Day.

Entering the weekend, the offer list for the 2021 Rice Football recruiting class was extremely short:

Wyatt Begeal – QB – Cibolo Steele (TX)
Mason Tharp – TE – Klein (TX)
DJ Arkansas – LB – Denton Ryan (TX)
Bryce McMorris – DB – Bridgeland (TX)

The Owls expanded that shortlist to 14 names, offering these additional 10 players.

Jordon Vaughn – RB – Manvel (TX)
Bryson Reeves – WR – St. Francis (CA)
De’Kedrick Sterns – OL – Del Valle (TX)
Jacoby Jackson – OL – Mansfield Summit (TX)
Davis McKenna – OL – Marist (GA)
Remington Strickland – OL – Fort Bend Christian Academy (TX)
Aidan Siano – LB – Prosper (TX)
Kenny Seymour – LB – Fort Bend Marshall (TX)
Placide Djungu-Sungu – Saf – Arlington Martin (TX)
Trevor Woods – Saf – Katy Taylor (TX)

The crop of offensive line offers is an important place to start. Rice needs to get depth up front and they’re looking to make sure that depth has plenty of upside. Each of the four offers has prototypical size with room to grow: Jacoby Jackson is 6-foot-5.5, 306 pounds, Davis KcKenna is 6-foot-5, 275 pounds, Remington Strickland is 6-foot-3, 294 pounds and De’Kedrick Sterns is 6-foot-4, 250 pounds.

Jordan Vaugh is extremely versatile and could slot in several places. Rice likes him at running back. Bryson Reeves has much-needed size (6-foot-3, 185 pounds) at the wide receiver position. Rice was the first to offer both of those guys, and first on six of their 10 offers over the weekend. They’ve developed a proven track record of identifying talent rather and they stuck too that this weekend.

On defense, Rice absolutely loves this group of linebackers offers. Kenny Seymour and Aidan Siano, along with DJ Arkansas, all look like potential game changers at the position. Seymour is built like a truck and plays downhill. Siano has a nose for the football and great pursuit.

Woods and Djunu-Sungu round out the new offers in the secondary. Both are potential safety prospects who would be excellent fits in Brian Smith’s defense.

At this point last year, Rice had handed out a few offers for their 2020 class, prioritizing their first wave of selections. Plae Wyatt was the first to jump on board, committing to Rice at the end of February. The groundwork Rice laid this weekend was significant. Don’t be surprised if the Owls’ first commitment of the 2021 Rice Football recruiting class was in this wave.

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Rice Football Recruiting: Owls add pair of wide receivers to 2020 class

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The 2020 Rice Football recruiting class added a pair of talented wide receivers, picking up commitments from Michael Haack and Casey Tawa.

Entering the final weeks of the current cycle, there was room for a few additional pass catchers in the 2020 Rice Football recruiting class. While some were still traveling to and from their holiday festivities, the Owls were making moves.

Andrew Mason was the only true wide receiver that signed in December, making that one of the positions the Owls were looking to deepen over the next several weeks. On Saturday Rice tripled their wide receiver depth with two new additions. Both players have the potential to be key contributors for Rice.

Michael Haack

Michael Haack came onto the radar earlier this summer after the Owls’ staff spotted him on the camp circuit. He followed that up with an impressive senior year, hauling in 14 touchdowns and shredding defense after defense. The El Paso native had a breakout senior season, finishing first-team all-district and was his all-star game MVP.

It’s worth noting Rice plucked Haack out of UTEP’s backyard. Rather than suiting up for a Conference USA opponent, he’ll don the blue and grey next season. That’s a win on top of a win for Rice.

Casey Tawa

Haack would have made for a nice Christmas present for this class on his own, but Rice doubled down on Saturday, adding out of state playmaker Casey Tawa. Tawa’s brother plays baseball at Stanford and the Oregon native has a tremendous interest in the Stanford-like dedication instilled by Mike Bloomgren and his coaching staff.

On the field, Tawa’s production speaks for itself. He led the state of Oregon with 18 touchdown receptions this season. His acceleration after the catch is superb.

 

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Rice Football Recruiting: 2020 Early Signing Period Roundup

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The 2020 Rice Football recruiting class had an eventful December. Here’s an overview of The Roost’s coverage of the Owls’ newest additions.

The New Year will bring another flurry of activity for the 2020 Rice Football recruiting class. The Owls have another half dozen or so spots to hand out in the class, earmarking several of them for high-profile graduate transfers. Before we look ahead, don’t miss the impressive haul already in the fold. Here’s a rundown of the big week.

Five players committed to Rice in December:

In total, Rice signed 17 players during the early signing period. 11 of those were on offense, with the remaining six on defense. Only two commits, DL Jamal Marshall and FB Brian Hibbard remain unsigned. Both are expected to sign in February.

We broke down several angles of this class, from the 10,000-foot view to position by position analysis. On the macro perspective, here are five takeaways from the 2020 class as it currently stands. Rice addressed their biggest needs and won some impressive head to head battles on their way to constructing what could be a program-altering class.

More specifically, here’s a snapshot of the defensive haul and of the commits on the offensive side of the ball.

If you’re traveling over the holidays, and you’ve already read through the written analysis, make sure you give The Roost Podcast a listen. Carter and I worked through the impact of the incoming players, honing in on how each player would fit at Rice among others at their position.

The Roost Podcast | Ep. 22 – Rice Football Early Signing Period

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