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Mailbag: Transfers, recruits and a quarterback battle

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Rice football enters the offseason with momentum on the recruiting trail and plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the future.

Q: How badly did our season damage recruiting?

Honestly, not much at all. Nobody likes to lose, but the poor record is a selling point in itself. Mike Bloomgren and the coaching staff aren’t selling the same thing Nick Saban is selling at Alabama. The Owls’ pitch centers moreso on playing time and building the program from the ground up. It’s messy, sure, but it puts the onus on the player to be the difference maker and the Owls are after a lot of difference-making type players.

Just take a look back at the UTEP game. Rice lost what was expected to be their best chance at a conference win and fell to 1-9 on the season. Josh Landrum and Kirk Lockhart committed that weekend. Hunter Henry called and committed a few days later.

You’d be hard pressed to find a lower point of the 2018 season and Rice landed three recruits, one of which had never set foot on campus. If that’s not a testament to the caliber of recruiters Bloomgren has assembled on this staff, I don’t know what is.

Now the interesting part comes with the 2019 season. If this staff can recruit at a high level with two wins what will they be able to do with more? Building upon the groundwork laid in 2018 is going to be huge. The results next season will play a far greater role than this season, which was essentially year zero for Bloomgren and his staff.

Q: What 2019 recruit are you most excited about?

Can I pick more than one? Yes? Alright. On offense, I’m going to go with one of the newest additions — receiver Bradley Rozner. He led JUCO in receiving touchdowns last season with 13 scores in 9 games. Rice pass catchers tallied 13 receiving touchdowns in 13 games last season. He’s not a burner, but he should provide a complimentary piece on the outside and his sure hands will help the Owls a lot on third down.

On defense, I’m excited to see linebacker Garrett Braden in action. He’s not the biggest guy, but he just makes tackles. Tackling in space was an issue for the defense at times this season. That’s why you saw a guy like Antonio Montero, all 6-foot of him, crack the starting lineup and stay there. Braden is slightly taller than Montero at 6-foot-2 and plays with the same “no-quit” motor.

Q: Are the players transferring out being forced out by Bloomgren or are they transferring out on their own accord?

I talked with coaches and players and from everything I can see the partings have been peaceable. It’s no secret this team is in the midst of a youth movement. Four upperclassmen started the Owls’ regular season finale against Old Dominion: Sam Pierce, Graysen Schantz, Roe Wilkins and Zach Abercrumbia. The remainder of the starters were young guys who rose above their junior and senior counterparts on the depth chart last season.

Jackson Tyner, Emmanuel Esukpa, Justin Bickham and Houston Robert are the four grad transfers that have been announced. I wouldn’t have expected any of those four to be starters next season, and depending on the play of the incoming 2019 recruiting class, a few of them might not have cracked the two-deep by midseason. Given those circumstances, it seems to make the most sense for everyone to move on. They get the chance to play and Rice gets more room to bring in new talent.

Bloomgren never minced words during the season. He mentioned on multiple occasions the senior class and the freshman class was the strongest classes on this team. These early transfers are in line with that assessment.

Q: Do you think Wiley Green will have any competition at QB heading into the offseason?

Mike Bloomgren saw enough between Jackson Tyner and Shawn Stankavage during fall camp to have a pretty solid idea who was going to be his starter entering the year. It took him less than a half of live game exposure for him to solidify this decision, but he still let the competition play out. I don’t think you see much different of an approach in 2019.

The starting job figures to come down to either Wiley Green or Evan Marshman. Both guys had some good moments this season and while Green has the higher upside as a passer, he probably didn’t do enough in four appearances this season to lock the job down entering fall camp.

Marshman and Green will battle it out this spring and into the fall, but unlike last year, Bloomgren will have enough exposure with his passers to have a decision in place before the start of the year. Competition is a good thing, and it will make both guys better. That’s especially true with younger players, but don’t be surprised if Bloomgren calls it an open competition at any point this offseason.

If I were projecting right now, Wiley Green is your QB1 with Marshman as the backup.

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Offensive lineman Hunter Jones commits to Owls

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The 2019 Rice football recruiting staff added another key member to its offensive line haul with the commitment of offensive lineman Hunter Jones.

More: Complete list of 2019 Rice football commits after the early signing period

Winning the battle in the trenches has been the priority for Mike Bloomgren and his staff since he arrived in South Main. Establishing a culture of “Intellectual Brutality” plays hand in hand with Bloomgren’s background as an offensive line coach and run game coordinator at Stanford.

The offensive line started to gel at the tail end of the 2018 season and further reinforcements are on the way. Rice went out of state to secure the commitment of 2019 offensive lineman Hunter Jones from Stockton, CA. He joins fellow 2019 offensive lineman commit Regan Riddle, who made his pledge to the Owls in June.

Jones picked the Owls over offers from Hawaii, Fordham, and Utah State. Edging out a few Division 1 programs that had strong seasons in 2018 is a good sign for Rice, who has found a way to continue to draw in talent without the onfield results the coaching staff would like. They’ve now added two commitments since the season ended and more should follow.

Standing 6-foot-3 and tipping the scales at 270 pounds, Jones is a bit undersized compared to the lineman on the Owls’ roster right now. A few months in Hans Straub’s strength and conditioning program will have him in the mix with a relatively young line which will have spots available next season. Several true freshmen made starts on the line in 2018, a clear sign the door is open for Jones to make an impact soon.

Jones’ commitment brings the current total up to 13 commitments for the 2019 class. That means the Owls are more than likely about halfway done with their second class under Mike Bloomgren with the early signing period set to begin on December 19.

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Wide receiver Bradley Rozner commits to Owls

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The 2019 Rice football recruiting class keeps growing. The latest addition comes in the form of playmaking JUCO wide receiver Bradley Rozner.

More: Complete list of 2019 Rice football commits after the early signing period

On the same evening the Owls landed a commitment from defensive back Josh Landrum the Rice offense picked up a weapon of their own. Wide receiver Bradley Rozner has committed to the Owls. Rice beat out offers from Incarnate Word and HBU to earn Rozner’s commitment.

Rozner is the third pass catcher in the Owls’ 2019 class which includes wide receiver Zane Knipe and tight end Jack Bradley. He’s the first junior college player of the class and likely would be expected to contribute a meaningful role quickly.

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Originally a product of Needville High School, Rozner will join the Owls this winter from Cisco Junior College. While there he racked up 616 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns in the span of nine games this season. His 13 touchdowns led all NJCAA players. Strong stat lines can put anyone on the map, but it’s Rozner’s play that drew an offer from Rice.

The 6-foot-4, 180-pound wideout ran circles around his JUCO competition but what stands out the most are his hands. He attacks the ball in the air and has a knack for turning 50/50 jump balls into 80/20 tosses. D’Angelo Ellis was thrust into that role later in the 2018 season, but Rozner’s size makes him a natural fit for that assignment in 2019.

Rozner paired with Aaron Cephus and Brendan Harmon will give the Owls three big-bodied receivers 6-foot-4 or taller next season. The fade to Cephus became a go-to play in the redzone, and adding another physical wideout on the other side will make the offense that much better and more difficult to defend.

As much as Rice wants to be a run-dominant offense, they’re going to need pass catchers who can make the big plays when it matters. Rozner makes plays.

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Cornerback Josh Landrum commits to Owls

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The 2019 Rice football recruiting class picked up a big addition in the secondary with the commitment of Cedar Hill corner Josh Landrum.

More: Complete list of 2019 Rice football commits after the early signing period

Josh Landrum and teammate Kirk Lockhart played their high school ball together at Cedar Hill. Next year they’ll share the same field in college. Landrum and Lockhart, who made their pledges to head coach Mike Bloomgren and the Owls over Homecoming weekend, have now both announced their commitments to Rice.

Rice beat out offers from Air Force, Delta State, Georgetown and others to secure Landrum’s commitment. At the time of his commitment, eight other programs had offered the talented defensive back. The Owls won the race.

He was able to step foot on campus on game day against UTEP and take in the facilities, speak with the staff and interact with some of the Owls many recruits who were in for the weekend. It was a big weekend for the Owls, who picked up 2019 safety Hunter Henry as well.

Brandon Douglas-Dotson and Justin Bickham have played the majority of the reps at corner for the Owls in 2018. Both are upperclassmen, Douglas-Dotson being in his final year of eligibility, with little in the way of experienced players behind them. Strengthening this unit will be a priority of the 2019 class and Landrum is an excellent start.

Landrum stands 6-foot, 165-pounds. 247 Sports tabs him as a 2-star recruit and a top 300 corner in the nation.

The accolades are nice, but what’s most important to the Owls is how he fits on the field with this secondary. He provides a skillset Rice desperately needs on the outside, a lockdown corner that can play on an island and win one-on-one battles — something that’s absolutely critical in Brian Smith’s defensive scheme.

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Defensive back Kirk Lockhart commits to Owls

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The 2019 Rice football recruiting class continues to pick up steam, this time with the commitment of Cedar Hill defensive back Kirk Lockhart.

More: Complete list of 2019 Rice football commits after the early signing period

As the early signing period approaches the only thing better than one commitment is two. Safety Hunter Henry made his pledge Sunday. The Owls got another commit on Monday. Rice doesn’t intend to fill every spot in their 2019 recruiting class by mid-December, but getting some key pieces in early will go a long way toward building momentum for the stretch run into National Signing Day.

The latest addition to the 2019 Rice football recruiting class was Cedar Hill safety Kirk Lockhart from Cedar Hill High School. His teammate, defensive back Josh Landrum is also on the Owls radar.

Rice had 10 members in their 2019 class before Lockhart made his commitment. That number now sits at 11 meaning the Owls are likely about halfway through a haul that could be rather sizable for head coach Mike Bloomgren’s first complete class after taking over the job last winter.

Lockhart had offers from East Texas Baptist and Carroll College. His offer list isn’t very long, a fact that is somewhat surprising giving the intensity and aggression he plays with on the defensive side of the ball. He flies to the ball quickly and makes tackles — something that Owls’ fans have learned not to take for granted this season.

The 5-foot-10, 180-pound safety plays like he was shot out of a cannon. He knows where the ball is at all times and puts himself in position to make a play, whether that’s in the air or taking a player to the ground himself.

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