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Rice Football Recruiting 2020 Commitment Tracker

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The 2020 Rice football recruiting class is beginning to take shape. Here’s where the class currently stands with live updates with each commitment.

2020 Class Positional Breakdowns – Offense and Special Teams | Defense
Player Pos. Hometown / School Commit Date Signed?
Andrew Awe LB Mansfield, Tx 2/3/2020  —
Jaren Banks LB NM Military Inst.(JUCO) 2/3/2020  Yes
Kobie Campbell RB Missouri City, TX 4/9/2019  Yes
Caleb Chappelle WR The Woodlands, TX 2/2/2020  —
Mike Collins* QB TCU (Grad) 12/17/2019  Yes
Jonah Doddridge DB Southlake, TX 2/2/2020  —
Jordan Dunbar CB Tarrytown, NY 6/22/2019  Yes
Terreance Ellis LB Pearland, TX 1/22/2020  —
Sean Fresch CB Austin, TX 6/29/2019  Yes
Khalan Griffin RB Tyler, TX 5/2/2019  Yes
Michael Haack WR El Paso, TX 12/28/2019  —
Geron Hargon  LB Shreveport, LA 6/22/2019  Yes
Van Heitmann DL Houston, TX 2/5/2020  —
Brian Hibbard FB Baton Rouge, LA 4/11/2019  —
Caleb James DL Houston, TX 2/5/2020  —
Nate Kamper TE Fort Hood, TX 4/3/2019  Yes
Cole Latos DE Allen, TX 6/24/2019  Yes
Mike Leone OL Princeton, NJ 12/16/2019  Yes
Payton Lovell OL Trophy Club, TX 2/1/2020  —
Andrew Mason WR Spring Hill, TN 6/11/2019  Yes
TJ McMahon* QB Cerritos (JUCO) 12/9/2019  Yes
Christian McStravick WR Boston College (Transfer) 5/5/2020 Yes
Lamont Narcisse CB Calabasas, CA 2/5/2020  Yes
Braedon Nutter OL Tomball, TX 3/23/2019  Yes
Trey Phillippi OL Montgomery, TX 6/14/2019  Yes
Collin Riccitelli K Stanford (Grad) 2/2/2020  Yes
Jalen Reeves DE Hollywood, FL 9/22/2019  Yes
Adam Sheriff* OL Butler (JUCO) 12/15/2019  Yes
Charlie Stone OL Austin, TX 2/4/2020  —
Gabe Taylor CB Miami, FL 2/5/2020  Yes
Casey Tawa WR West Linn, OR 12/28/2019  —
Jovaun Woolford* OL Colgate (Grad) 12/10/2019  Yes
Plae Wyatt S McKinney, TX 2/28/2019  Yes

*Denotes an early enrollee

This is the latest verbally committed players for the Rice Football 2020 recruiting classes. The list will be updated to reflect the Owls’ current commitments as information comes in. More information on the 2019 Rice Football recruiting class is available here.

Each profile was written at the time of the commitment. Some secondary details may have changed, but player information and analysis remains relevant. As available, each profile will include relevant highlights and news regarding each recruit.

Important dates to know

The early signing period takes place from December 18 to December 20. The Owls signed a large portion of their 2019 class early and expect to do the same in 2020. Recruits who don’t sign will wait until National Signing Day which falls on the first Wednesday of February.

What if this list doesn’t match a major recruiting service?

Recruiting services such as 247 and Rivals typically prioritize the highest-rated players. It’s not uncommon for 2-star and even 3-star players to not be accounted for immediately. The delay could become even more significant following 247’s changes to their recruiting model for the coming 2019 year. Players won’t be considered for their composite ranking until they get a ranking by 247 themselves. The list above includes walk ons.

All football recruiting updates are maintained on our recruiting page. More timely updates can be found by following The Roost on Twitter and Facebook. Have questions? Reach out on either of those platforms, post in The Aviary, or shoot us a message using the contact form.

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Rice Football: Offensive lineman Brady Feeney commits to Owls

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The 2020 Rice Football recruiting class picked up another huge addition with the commitment of offensive lineman Brady Feeney.

Winning in the trenches has been the standard from the first day Mike Bloomgren arrived on campus. It’s no surprise then that he’s building on a strong 2019 class of big men in the trenches with a second impactful offensive lineman in the 2010 class.

A day after landing a commitment from Tomball offensive lineman Braedon Nutter, Rice doubled down up front. St. Louis, MO offensive lineman Brady Feeney has committed to the Owls. 247 Sports rates him as the No. 56 guard in the nation, but he has the power and foot skills to play either tackle position. It’s well within the realm of possibility that he forces his way into the starting lineup across from Clay Servin.

Athletically Feeney is everything you’d want in an offensive lineman. Standing 6-foot-5 and 270 pounds, he measures up well with everyone currently on the Rice roster. For someone of that size, he can move with balance and push defenders around, almost at will.

There will be some technical aspects of his game to clean up as he assimilates into the Owls’ scheme, but as a pure prospect, there’s a ton to like about Feeney’s game. He was one of the high priority guys from the start of Rice’s 2020 push. Getting a commitment from him in the spring is icing on the cake.

His commitment brings the 2020 class up to three, all three-star rated recruits, all in the running to be some of the highest rated commitments Rice has seen in the past five years. A strong senior season from Feeney could propel him even higher.

No matter where the rankings fall, Feeney is another high-talent, instant impact player who will make a difference at South Main quickly.

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Rice Football: Offensive lineman Braedon Nutter commits to Owls

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The 2020 Rice football recruiting class has gotten off to a great start with Braedon Nutter joining safety Plae Wyatt as the initial members of the Owls’ next class.

Big things are happening at South Main. As Rice begins to grow the third recruiting class of the Mike Bloomgren era the word seems to have gotten out. High-caliber players from around the state are flocking to Houston. Offensive lineman Braedon Nutter was the latest to buy in to the vision, committing to play his college ball for the Rice Owls.

Nutter is a perception-changing commitment for Rice. The program had finished near the bottom of the conference in recruiting over the last several years prior to Bloomgren’s arrival. But with two highly regarded in state commitments already, things are changing.

At the time of his commitment, the 6-foot-3, 287-pound lineman held offers from Houston, Tulsa, UAB, Air Force, Army, a host of Ivy League schools and Colorado. He has more than a dozen offers under his belt, but Rice has won the battle for his services.

A two-way player in high school, Nutter is being slotted in on the offensive side of the ball. He’s been pegged as a center, but could move down the line or back to defense depending on need. A mauler in the trenches, Nutter is as physical as they come. He embodies everything about the culture of Intellectual Brutality that Bloomgren is seeking to build at Rice.

There aren’t many programs in Conference USA beating out Pac-12 programs for recruits. And if the trajectory of the Owls’ first two commitments continues, he might not be the last. Let’s just say the future is as bright as it’s been in a while at South Main. Watch Nutter’s film for yourself. He’s not going to get moved out of the way very often. He’ll be the one lowering the shoulder and delivering a big blow.

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Owls raise the ceiling and the floor with 2019 recruiting class

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National Signing Day marked the completion of the 2019 Rice Football recruiting class. The new Owls will be met with both excitement and expectation.

Mike Bloomgren stood in front of a microphone on National Signing Day and couldn’t help but smile when he talked about the 2019 Rice football recruiting class. He has to smile. He has to give those cliched axioms. “We have addressed everything we wanted to,” he said. “We’re a year better everywhere.”

But for this team, and this recruiting class, Bloomgren’s words were much more than platitudes. That’s because the 2019 class marked a significant change. It marked the official tipping point between Year 0 and the heart of the Mike Bloomgren era.

The second-year head coach isn’t an excuse maker. He carries himself with a humble confidence, celebrating the good times and vowing to push his staff and his team through the bad. And now this team is his team.

“Two-thirds of the team are guys that we brought in,” Bloomgren acknowledged “[the 2018 and 2019 signing classes] knew the expectation when they walked in the door.” For a man who has preached Process in his first year at South Main, the rubber is beginning to meet the road.

It’s no secret Bloomgren inherited a blank slate. The roster and the direction of the Rice football program were handed to him by athletic director Joe Karlgaard when the first-time head coach was hired away from Stanford following the 2017 season. Bloomgren crafted a plan and set it in motion.

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A lot has transpired since. Rice opened their 2018 season against Prairie View. After winning that game in thrilling fashion, the Owls put up strong performances in the next two games against Houston and Hawaii, both losses. Both defeats highlighted some glaring issues with the roster Bloomgren inherited — it wasn’t fast enough, strong enough or deep enough, not by a longshot.

In the weeks that followed Rice would win just one more game. Injuries ravaged the quarterback room and finding consistent performers on the defensive side of the ball was a weekly challenge. Freshmen, several recruited by Bloomgren in his first signing class at Rice, became stars.

Prudy Calderon and Antonio Montero built names for themselves on defense. Wiley Green, Cole Garcia and Juma Otoviano paved the way for the Owls’ climactic send-off win over Old Dominion. Despite the two-win record, there were pieces. There just needed to be more of them.

Bloomgren cut to the chase. “We need to raise the ceiling of talent on both sides of the ball all across this program, but we’ve also got to raise the floor.” He said, “We’re doing that right now.” The turnover on the roster has been hard to miss. Rice started six upperclassmen against Old Dominion — two of those will return to the roster in 2019: safety George Nyakwol and defensive tackle Myles Adams.

I love that we actually have competition. The way it’s supposed to be in college football.Mike Bloomgren

With the youth movement comes both challenge and opportunity. The incoming class has proof the team is going to start whoever earns each spot on Saturday. They’ll be competing for jobs out of the gate, something that can and must push the incumbents to work harder. “I love that we actually have competition. The way it’s supposed to be in college football,” remarked Bloomgren.

Competition. Process. Results. The wheels set in motion more than a year ago will continue to turn as the newest Owls make their way to campus, some in the spring, others in the summer. No matter when they arrive, they’ll each be asked to push themselves and this program further and harder than ever before. For Bloomgren and his staff, the future is now.

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Offensive lineman Justin Gooseberry commits to Owls

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Rice football picked up a commitment from another big transfer target, landing former Ouachita Baptist offensive lineman Justin Gooseberry.

Getting bigger and stronger on the offensive line was a priority once again for Rice this offseason. Ouachita Baptist transfer Justin Gooseberry fits that bill and has committed to play his final year of eligibility at South Main. The 6-foot-4, 250-pound offensive lineman joins Regan Riddle (6-foot-1, 284 pounds), Hunter Jones (6-foot-3, 270 pounds), Nick Leverett (6-foot-4, 312 pounds) and Brian Chaffin (6-foot-2, 275 pounds). That’s a lot of size.

For as long as Mike Bloomgren is at the helm, the ethos of Rice football will aspire to be built on hard-nosed running and defense. Getting to that point is a process; one that Rice is further along today than they were at this point last year. Taking the next step on that road requires a dominant offensive line. Gooseberry can play a critical role in making that hope a reality.

Gooseberry played his college ball at Ouachita Baptist, a DII school in Arkansas. The 6-foot-4, 250-pound offensive lineman was a fixture on the Tigers’ offensive line in 2018 and was tabbed an All-American by multiple media outlets including the  Division II Conference Commissioners Association and the American Football Coaches Association.

More: Cole Garcia named The Roost’s 2018 Offensive Rookie of the Year

Adding Gooseberry to fellow grad transfers Nick Leverett and Brian Chaffin as well as Shea Baker, Clay Servin and Cole Garcia will makeup a formidable offensive line. It will also give the coaching staff the develop the younger guys at their own pace, rather than have to thrust players into the fire — something that became all-too prevalent in 2018.

Mike Bloomgren is doubling down on the offensive line and Gooseberry will be a welcomed addition.

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