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Rice Football Recruiting: Dartmouth DE Charlie Looes commits to Owls

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The 2024 Rice Football recruiting class added an impact player in the defensive trenches. Dartmouth defensive end Charlie Looes has committed to the Owls.

The Early Signing Period arrived with a bang for the 2024 Rice Football recruiting class in addition to eight high school additions, the Owls also received a boost from the Transfer Portal at multiple spots. One such boost comes along the defensive line where Dartmouth transfer Chalie Looes has committed to the Owls.

Looes was a finalist for the Ivy League’s Bushnell Cup, given annually to the league’s best defensive player following a year in which he led the Ivy League in sacks, quarterback hits and total pressures. Primarily an edge rusher, Looes is expected to come in and play that role at Rice.

In his introductory press conference about the class, head coach Mike Bloomgren made the comparison to Coleman Coco, who came in from an academic school in the Northeast and became an integral part of the Rice defense from day one.

One of five transfers in the class so far, Looes is the only defensive lineman. The Owls have a full roster at the position, but given Looes’ production and potential, taking one more impact player in the trenches seems like an absolute must.

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The length and quickness jump out immediately when you turn on the tape. Looes can get to the quarterback. As any defensive coach would be quick to tell you, accumulating pass rushers is always a good idea. Adding Looes to the fold gives this defense yet another weapon at its disposal.

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Rice Football Recruiting: Harvard OL Spencer Cassell commits to Owls

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The 2024 Rice Football recruiting class added an impact player in the offensive trenches. Harvard offensive lineman Spencer Cassell has committed to the Owls.

The Early Signing Period arrived with a bang for the 2024 Rice Football recruiting class in addition to eight high school additions, the Owls also received a boost from the Transfer Portal at multiple spots. One such boost comes along the offensive line where Harvard transfer Spencer Cassell has committed to the Owls.

Cassell was highly sought after in the portal, receiving scholarship offers from Buffalo, Arkansas State, Marshall, North Texas, App State, Georgia State, Old Dominion, UMass and others. Amidst all the interest, Rice was able to close, securing the services of the second-team All-Ivy offensive lineman. Bloomgren is optimistic Cassell will have two years to play at Rice, pending a medical redshirt.

Cassell played tackle at Harvard and said he’s willing to play “wherever I can help the team” in the offensive trenches at Rice. The plan, as of now, is for him to get started at guard in the spring and see where things go from there.

One of five transfers in the class so far, Cassell is the third offensive lineman. High school signees Lane Jeffcoast and Luke Miller made their commitments official Wednesday morning.

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A former high school tight end, Cassell does appear pretty quick on his feet for a 6-foot-6, 282-pound man. He told The Roost he loves to pull and be a lead blocker on runs and screens, something the Owls have utilized heavily in their offense in recent years. That quickness and power is evident when you turn on his film. Cassell is a great addition for the Owls.

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Small but mighty, 2024 Rice Football Recruiting Class another historic haul

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For the fourth time in the past five years, head coach Mike Bloomgren has inked the highest-rated Rice football recruiting class in program history.

The 2024 Rice football recruiting class only contained eight high school signees, but what the Owls gave up in quantity they got tenfold in quality. This small class boasts the highest rating in program history.

“We got stronger today,” head coach Mike Bloomgren said, later adding, “I think our recruiting staff crushed it.”

Internet recruiting rankings have been around since roughly 2003, making the 2024 class the 22nd in the modern rankings era. Bloomgren has now been the head coach at Rice through six of those complete cycles, excluding the 2018 cycle in which he was hired in December. He owns six of the top eight classes in program history.

In addition to Bloomgren’s six complete cycles, spanning the 2019 class to the 2023 class, only the 2010 and the 2013 classes rank in the top eight in school history. At the time, Bloomgren’s 2020 class was the best-ever Rice had signed. He then topped that haul with the best class in program history in 2022, 2023 and now once again in 2024.

Since he arrived, every recruiting class Bloomgren has signed has been a top-five class in program history at the time pen was put to paper. Four of them have been No. 1 overall.

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* Blue represents top five classes in program history

On aggregate, Rice is listed as the No. 12 class (out of 13) in the AAC. However, it’s important to remember those rankings are cumulative and they don’t include transfers, like high-profile quarterback addition EJ Warner.

Every player you sign is assigned a point value. If you sign 38 recruits (and counting) like North Texas, you’re going to have more points and rank higher than a school that signs eight. But more doesn’t always mean better.

Additionally, Rice finds itself in an interesting predicament. They haven’t had an exodus of outgoing players. The outgoing senior class that is ineligible to return is small and only one scholarship has been opened through announced departures (Jordan Dunbar). They can’t sign 25 players. There simply aren’t enough scholarships to go around.

“It’s hard to say we’re going to sign a high school kid that’s going to be better than Josh Pearcy if he decides to come back,” Bloomgren half-joked, half-explained just how the Owls have arrived in such an interesting position.

The Owls’ low ranking on aggregate reflects the reality of the Owls’ strong roster, an accumulation of top class in program history, in addition to a remarkable retention rate not seen anywhere else in college football.

“I think it’s going to be hard to evaluate it as we once did when we all signed 20 to 25 kids and [had] somewhat of a level playing field because when you look at ratings, you’re looking at some [of the full picture], We’re not going to win that when signing eight,” Bloomgren said. “If we had 12 people go into the portal like most teams then we’d have a much bigger class and a much higher rank, you would assume. I’m personally glad we don’t.”

Rather than vaulting up the recruiting charts through unprecedented amounts of roster turnover, Rice is building its roster one brick at a time. And just like the recruiting rankings have steadily ticked upward, so have the wins on the field.

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Rice Football Recruiting: 2024 Early Signing Period Live Blog

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The majority of the 2024 Rice Football Recruiting class will become signees during the Early Signing Period. Follow all the action here.

It’s a smaller group, but the 2024 Rice Football recruiting class should still pack a pretty hefty punch. Rice has a balanced collection of talented high school players and a few handpicked transfer additions to supplement a roster that did not lose a single active player to the Portal this offseason. That’s part of the reason for the small class. There are only so many spots to go around.

This live tracker will follow all the latest news and updates throughout the day, with some notes along the way on the class as it is finalized. If you’re not a subscriber yet, here’s your chance.

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Which newcomers will make sizable impacts as soon as they arrive on campus like JT Daniels, Coleman Coco and others did this past fall? This class has plenty of talent that could find its way to the field soon.

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Now, let’s dig into the latest from the Early Signing Period, below.

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Rice Football Recruiting: BYU LB Michael Daley commits to Owls

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The 2024 Rice Football recruiting class scooped up a veteran addition on defense. BYU linebacker Michael Daley has committed to the Owls.

A day removed from adding some firepower on the offensive side of the ball, the 2024 Rice football recruiting class picked up its first defensive addition from the transfer portal. The Owls have picked up a commitment from former BYU linebacker / defensive end Michael Daley, who will play rush end when he arrives at South Main.

Formerly a three-star recruit at the time he committed to BYU as a member of the 2019 class, Daley is a Houston native who was played sparingly during his time with the Cougars, appearing in five games in 2023 after missing the entire 2022 season with an injury. He’s excited for the opportunity to get back onto the field in earnest at South Main.

“I knew there was something special there,” Daley told The Roost about his impressions of Rice football following his visit. “I know I want to be a part of a team that plays for each other week in and week out.”

Daley is the third transfer commitment Rice has received in the past week leading up to the Early Signing Period. Former Penn State punter Alex Vacchetta and Bucknell running back Coleman Bennett are also joining the Owls this offseason.

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There isn’t a lot of film on Daley from his collegiate tape, mostly operating as a depth piece while at BYU. He has a good frame (6-foot-3, 225 pounds) and should slide in well to a room that might be able to return several key pieces. If not, having some veterans in the fold like Daley should give the room a boost in the spring as the younger players get their feet wet and Daley has his chance to show what he brings to the table.

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