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Rice Football Recruiting: DT VJ Bronson commits to Owls

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Reinforcements to the 2025 Rice football recruiting class continue to pour in. North Texas defensive tackle VJ Bronson has committed to the Owls.

Gathering depth in the interior of the defensive trenches was a must-do following the conclusion of spring practices. The 2025 Rice Football recruiting class found its answer up front in a veteran transfer from within the AAC. Former North Texas defensive tackle VJ Bronson has committed to the Owls.

Bronson has taken a long road to get to South Main, beginning his college career at Lamar in 2021 before transferring to Arkansas State for a pair of seasons. He then transferred to North Texas where he redshirted in 2023 before appearing in five games for the Mean Green a season ago.

“I’m someone who’s been through a lot and learned to appreciate every chance to suit up,” Bronson told The Roost. “I don’t take any of this for granted. I’m locked in, ready to work, and I’m coming to Rice to leave it all on the field. Whatever it takes to help this team win.”

After entering the portal, Bronson received offers from Southern Miss, Kent State, UConn and others before shutting down his time in the portal and choosing to commit to Rice.

“It wasn’t just about football,” Bronson said. “It was about being in an environment that would challenge me to grow as a man, and that’s what made the decision clear for me.”

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There’s not a lot to go from as far as recent game film goes for Bronson, but the highlights that are out there show a bigger man (6-foot-3, 320 pounds) that is relatively quick on his feet. Bronson himself pointed toward that aspect of his game as an advantage. “I know how to use my size the right way,” he mentioned. “I try to be someone the team can count on to handle the dirty work and do it right.”

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Rice Football Recruiting: RB LJ Johnson commits to Owls

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The first Rice football recruiting addition of the spring portal window comes from just north of town. SMU running back LJ Johnson has committed to the Owls.

From the moment the spring Transfer Portal window opened, the buzz surrounding Rice football recruiting a veteran running back for the Owls’ run-heavy scheme was everywhere. The Owls brought in several backs, eventually landing on an in-state transfer. Former Texas A&M and SMU running back LJ Johnson has committed to the Owls.

A four-star recruit out of Cy Fair High School in Cypress, TX, Johnson committed to Texas A&M over Alabama, Texas, Georgia, Ohio State and the full gamut of big names in the sport. He was used sparingly in two seasons with the Aggies before transferring to SMU where he played a larger role in two seasons with the Mustangs.

Johnson ran for 879 yards on 182 carries, averaging 4.8 yards per carry over 24 games. He scored nine touchdowns. While Rice and SMU shared the AAC together, he carried the ball 15 times for 73 yards in one game at Rice Stadium against the Owls, also racking up three receptions for 26 yards through the air.

This addition gives the Owls a rather stout running back room, which returns the versatile Quinton Jackson, exciting redshirt freshman Taji Atkins with Daelen Alexander, and a pair of exciting freshmen in the fold. A veteran with big-game experience, Johnson balances out a younger room that has less tread on the tires. At 5-foot-10 and 219 pounds, he’s also the stockiest back on the roster.

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Johnson has been a complimentary piece and performed well, but when given the chance to shine, he’s showcased some impressive athletic traits. He has a decisive first step like seen on the highlight below and has proven himself durable. In a brief stint as the workhorse for SMU in 2023, Johnson carried the ball 56 times for 294 yards, scoring twice in a three-game stint against Rice, North Texas and Memphis.

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Rice Football Recruiting: OL Clay Mitchell commits to Owls

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The second pledge of the 2026 Rice Football recruiting class is on the board. Offensive lineman Clay Mitchell has committed to the Owls.

The beginnings of the 2026 Rice Football recruiting class are taking shape. With one pledge already in the fold, the Owls hosted a whole flock of recruits during the Blue and Gray weekend, landing at least one commit thus far. Offensive lineman Clay Mitchell has committed to the Owls.

Mitchell had offers from UTEP, where current Rice football Director of Player Personnel Chad Johnson came from prior to arriving at South Main, as well the services academies and Georgia State. For Mitchell, it was the presence of head coach Scott Abell and his culture that made the difference.

“Coach Abell also is very easy to talk to and makes me and my family feel like we are a part of his own family,” Mitchell told The Roost, later adding that “Coach Abell is known for turning around programs and I am all in to help make that happen.”

Mitchell joins Sulphur (OK) tight end Colten Cole as the initial members of the 2026 class, which has seen dozens of offers extended to targets in the last few week, many of which were on campus this past weekend.

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When it comes to the tape, Mitchell’s prowess in the trenches sticks out. He told The Roost he prides himself in his run blocking and his “ability to dominate at the line of scrimmage and make people want to quit.” The physicality sticks out and should make him an exciting piece to watch in the trenches when he arrives on South Main.

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Rice Football Recruiting: TE Colten Cole commits to Owls

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The first pledge of the 2026 Rice Football recruiting class is on the board. Tight end Colten Cole has committed to the Owls.

The first recruiting cycle for head coach Scott Abell and his staff was a blur, working to retain commitments, add transfers and scout out the right high school additions to the offensive and defensive schemes. The 2026 Rice Football recruiting class represents this staff’s first traditional class. Now, the Owls have their first member of that group. Tight end Colten Cole has committed to the Owls.

For Cole, the decision didn’t take long. Rice was the first FBS offer for Cole and he made the decision to commit within days of it being extended. “They made me feel at home right away by getting to know me personally,” Cole told The Roost. “They all have a positive and enthusiastic mindset when it comes to coaching.”

On the field, Cole is particularly intrigued by how Rice uses the tight end position. “Rice uses their tight ends all over the field,” Cole said. “They are in-line some, but flexed out at receiver some as well.”

We’ve heard so much about the varied looks and different ways Abell’s offense will employ to get the upper hand on defenses. Having that excitement translate from the building to the fans to the rest of this next wave of recruiting is equally infectious.

“I’m just thankful for the opportunity,” Cole said. “I can’t wait to get down in Owl country!”

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The versatility Cole displays on film sticks out immediately. He has experience lining up in the backfield as well as on the line in a more traditional tight end capacity. He’s a willing blocker who isn’t afraid to drop his shoulder and run through someone. Add in his presence on the defensive line and you get a rather robust player the Owls should be able to utilize to great effect in their highly adaptative scheme.

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Rice Football Recruiting: Breaking Down the 2025 Signees – Defense

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The 2025 Rice Football Recruiting class includes several hand-picked impact players on defense and special teams. Here’s how those sides of the ball stacks up.

The 2025 Rice football recruiting class began with 12 signees during the Early Signing Period, the first recruiting haul for new head coach Scott Abell. That group has since been supplemented by a wave of transfers and an additional round of high school signees on National Signing Day. Of those players, 22 are current high school seniors, and 13 play on the defensive side of the ball as well as one specialist.

“It’s an exciting time for me,” Abell said upon welcoming his first signees in December. “These are my very first recruits that I have the opportunity to welcome here to Rice. I just can’t imagine anything better.”

When it came time to put a bow on that class in February, Abell remained just as emphatic. “Attracting the right recruits here, the right people [is] imperative. It’s the most important thing we do,” he said while introducing the class. “That means Year 1, the first opportunity to do that, it becomes incredibly important that we get make sure that we get the people part of that right.”

We’ve gone position by position breaking down each of those new people, dissecting how these Owls will help the program on the field.

* Denotes players who enrolled early in January

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Defensive Line (5) – Rob Rooks*, Braden Bays, Luca Akirtava, Dillan Botts*, DeReyon Jenkins

One of the most athletic members of the class, Rob Rooks was the lone defensive signee in the trenches in December. A former two-way player who was named all-league on both sides of the ball as a junior, Rooks’ focus on South Main will be getting to the quarterback, something he excelled in during his high school career. “He moves well,” Abell said of the 6-foot-1, 261-pound Rooks, “he’s got great size.”

The Rooks’ addition was the tip of the iceberg at a spot head coach Abell was emphatic about getting more bodies. “I think winning football in the trenches is the most important thing,” Abell said. “And we will focus on that year in and year out and that shows up in this recruiting class.”

The Owls picked a pledge from defensive tackle Dillan Botts from Mary Hardin-Baylor in January, adding him to the fold in time for the spring semester. Weeks later they signed Luca Akirtava and Braden Bays, a pair of talented and versatile high school additions who each bring a long list of accolades with them to South Main,

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Bays racked up 60 tackles for a loss in his high school career, finishing with 10 sacks his senior season. Akirtava was the 5-5A District 1 Defensive MVP this past season, racking up seven sacks and 12 quarterback hurries.

In addition to those additions, Rice also signed edge player DeReyon Jenkins, rounding out one of the most extensive National Signing Day hauls for the team at any position. Also a powerlifter in high school, Jenkins brings more than 200 career tackles to South Main.

Defensive lineman Ejike Adele was not formally introduced because he has not officially enrolled, but the former Bushnell Cup winner as the best defensive player in the Ivy League is set to join Rice football after his graduation from Dartmouth this spring.

Linebacker (2) – Ty Thames, CJ Witten

Jon Kay is going to have his work cut out for him in a good way this spring. In addition to being named the defensive coordinator during the offseason and assuming addition responsibilities, he has a linebacker room stacked with talent and flush with new faces.

The Owls will lose a few key leaders at the position to graduation but already have a promising young core in the middle of the field. And that’s before adding Ty Thames and CJ Witten to the room.

Both Thames and Witten have something in common which Abell made sure to call out in his comments during his introductory remarks about the class on Wednesday, both are still playing in their respective high school playoffs.

“As we begin this new era, we want to surround the program with kids who are used to competing at a high level,” Abell said, “Certainly this class speaks to that.”

Witten is the son of former All-Pro tight end Jason Witten, his current coach for Liberty Christian in Westlake, Texas.

Corner (3) – Jerrick Harper*, Omari Porter*, Ahran Ogbor

Abell wasn’t as explicit about the need for reinforcements in the secondary, but Rice brought in more transfers on the back end of the defense than anywhere else this offseason, grabbing from three different areas to supplement rooms that lost a lot of players to graduation and the Transfer Portal.

As far as transfers go, both Omari Porter from Stanford and JUCO signee Jerrick Harper have already enrolled and will participate in spring ball. Porter has experience at safety and corner, giving him a level of versatility that’s always been necessary of players in this defensive scheme. The plan as of now is to play him at corner, a position where he spent most of his time with the Cardinal.

More: Breaking down the Offensive signees in the 2025 Rice Football recruiting class

Unlike Porter, Harper and Ahran Ogbor will have more than one year to make their mark on South Main. Harper was a standout corner at the junior college level whereas Ogbor comes to Rice as one of the most productive two-way players the Owls have signed in some time.

Ogbor was an All-District 6A selection at a quarterback and running back this season in addition to playing defense, where he broke up four passes and was credited with 15 tackles. At 6-foot, 203 pounds he has the requisite frame and speed to excel as an outside corner at the collegiate level once he’s fully transitioned to the defensive side of the ball.

Ogbor’s addition lines up with one of the other key aspects Abell stressed with this signing class: speed.

“When you look at the athletes that we were able to attract here, the common thread is speed,” Abell said. I think it’s important to put players on the field who can run at all levels on both sides and I think we did a great of doing that.”

Safety (3) – Michael Amey III*, Jo Chavez*, Max Lofy*

“Versatile” was the word Abell used to describe Michael Amey III, something Rice fans familiar with the defensive scheme the Owls have run under Brian Smith know all too well. Being able to move around the formation and play multiple different spots is crucial for this scheme and with Smith officially being retained as the Owls’ defensive coordinator, keeping Amey in the fold was a crucial development.

Amey arrives at South Main with 10 interceptions during his high school career. The Owls hope to leverage that propensity toward taking away the football to their advantage in the years to come. He’ll be joined by Jo Chavez and Max Lofy, a pair of Transfer Portal additions who enrolled this semester.

Chavez comes to Rice from the junior college level while Lofy is a fifth-year player from Wisconsin. Lofy was mentioned by name a couple of times in Abell’s introductory remarks about the class, appearing to be someone Abell was particularly excited about getting to campus.

More: Biggest Roster Questions for Rice Football Entering the Spring

As for Chavez, he’s already been listed as a VIPER on the Rice roster, presumably setting him to compete for the backup role behind returning veteran Plae Wyatt at the position.

Altogether, that’s two graduates, two junior college players and two high school additions in the secondary alone. Rice returns two starters there, Max Ahoia and Plae Wyatt, but the odds suggest at least a few of these new faces will have to be heavily involved this season if this defense is going to continue to operate at a high level. This will be a group to watch this spring.

Specialists (1) – Chase Allen (Kicker)*

With Tim Horn departing, Rice football was in search of a kicker to compete with Enoch Gota this coming season. They landed on Alabama and UTSA transfer Chase Allen. While with the Roadrunners, Allen led the AAC in field-goal percentage (13-of-15, 87 percent) and ranked Top 15 in the country during the 2023 season.

Allen was replaced in 2024 after a 4-for-9 start, oddly enough attempting one his final kicks of the season against the Owls at Rice Stadium in October; it was no good.

Getting someone with Allen’s experience who has been extremely productive at the position previously is huge for the Owls who have struggled for several years when it comes to field goal accuracy. Getting him back to his 2023 form would be a huge boost for the Rice special teams.

** This piece has been updated to reflect new signees as of 2/5/2025 **
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