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Rice Athletics: Top 10 Moments from 2021

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2021 was filled with highs and lows for Rice Athletics. The Roost picked out 10 moments that stood out the most along the way.

10. Rice Basketball goes on C-USA Tournament run

For the first time since 2007, Rice basketball won multiple games in the Conference USA Tournament. The Owls beat Southern Miss and knocked off Marshall before falling to UAB. After sneaking into the tournament as the sixth seed in the West, Rice put their best foot forward when it counted the most, building momentum as the team heads into the 2021-2022 season.

9. Owls shine at Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics

The realm of collegiate athletics wasn’t the only area where Rice impressed. The Owls also faired well on one of the world’s greatest stages: the Olympics. Ariana Ince competed in the Tokyo Olympics in the javelin throw. Soon after, Ahalya Lettenberger took home a silver medal in the Paralympic Games.

8. Rice Women’s basketball wins WNIT

It feels like forever ago at this point, but Rice Women’s Basketball marched through the WNIT in March, thumping Ole Miss to win the program’s first-ever WNIT Championship. The roster has changed dramatically since then, but the accomplishments of Tina Langley, Nancy Mulkey and Co. will not be forgotten.

7. Rice Football signs another Top 5 recruiting class

Recruiting has been one of the brightest spots for Rice football under head coach Mike Bloomgren and the most recent 2022 recruiting class appears to be no exception. The Owls took home a Top 5 class in Conference USA and the No. 2 rated class in program history. Each of the last three classes currently ranks in the Top 5 highest-rated classes in school history. More recruiting notes here.

6. Grace Forbes wins C-USA Female Track, XC Athlete of the Year

While track and field might not draw the same spotlight as other collegiate sports, it’s hard not to be transfixed by the level of dominance Grace Forbes has displayed in her young Rice career. Forbes was named C-USA Female Track Athlete of the Year and C-USA Cross Country Athlete of the Year. From start to end, she was the best of the best.

5. Rice baseball hires Jose Cruz Jr. as next head coach

Rice elected to make a change at the top of the baseball program following the 2021 season and athletic director Joe Karlgaard made a splash with the hiring of former Rice great Jose Cruz Jr. Cruz has already made notable additions on the transfer front and increased the visibility of the program within the city and on social media. The 2022 season can’t come soon enough.

4. Rice Soccer upsets WVU in NCAA Tournament

Making the NCAA Tournament is an accomplishment. Winning a game is another. Rice soccer went beyond both bars in their spring season, knocking off 5-seed West Virginia in route to the first Sweet 16 appearance by a Conference USA school since 2011 and tying the program record for wins a season with 14.

3. Rice Volleyball makes NCAA Tournament, twice!

Rice arrived in Omaha in mid-April but had their first NCAA Tournament appearance of the year ended by COVID-19 cases within the program. Undeterred, they bounced back and earned another NCAA bid in their traditional fall season. Finally given the opportunity to compete, Rice beat San Diego in the first round before falling to Texas in the second round.

2. Rice football beats UAB

For the second consecutive season, Rice football won a game as a three-touchdown underdog on the road. In 2020, Marshall was the victim a dominant defensive performance by the Owls. This time around, UAB was caught in the crosshairs of what was indisputably the most complete performance by all phases in the 2021 season with team-favorite Wiley Green at the helm.

1. Rice Athletics accepts AAC invite

The giant of conference realignment awoke during the summer when Texas and Oklahoma announced moves to the SEC. That decision sent ripple effects across college athletics all the way to Houston, Tx where Rice Athletics was invited to join the American Athletic Conference. The Owls don’t have a date when the move becomes official yet, but the announcement itself is a massive moment in Rice Athletics history.

Honorable Mentions…

How about you? Which of these moments from Rice Athletics did you enjoy the most? Cutting this down to 10 was challenging. Which Rice Athletics events should be added to the list?

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Rice Football 2021 Team MVP: Jake Bailey

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The glue guy for a revamped offensive attack, Jake Bailey’s consistency and big-play ability led to him being named our 2021 Rice Football Team MVP.

There are countless ways to determine what “most valuable player” actually means. Raw numbers tell one story. Anecdotes and narrative can tell another. Then there’s that feeling on one’s gut. The kind one gets when you just know that one particular player contributes more to his team than one can distill down into one statistic or any singular storyline. For Rice football in 2021, the answer to all of those questions was Jake Bailey.

In modern football, MVP honors seemingly always default to quarterbacks. Rice had four different signal-callers appear in crucial moments this season. Wiley Green won the biggest game. Jake Constantine won the most. Luke McCaffrey and TJ McMahon accounted for perhaps the most improbable comeback.

But the only unifying factor among those four passers was the constant churn. In large part because of injuries, no one player in that room consistently put the team on his back every single week and found ways to will them to victories. Jake Bailey did.

Despite being knocked out of the UTEP game in the second half and missing the finale against Louisiana Tech entirely, Bailey still led all Rice pass-catchers in receiving yardage. He scored twice and had on remarkable endzone grab that would have been a touchdown called back by a questionable penalty. The raw numbers were good, really good.

When those catches game were perhaps even more important. Bailey led all Rice players in third-down receptions (17) and third-down receiving yards (209). He caught five passes on fourth down. All five moved the sticks, including a diving 36-yard stretch on a scramble from Constantine to help Rice mount a fourth-quarter comeback bid.

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It probably shouldn’t be surprising Bailey became the focal point of the Rice offense. Head coach Mike Bloomgren noted Bailey was “becoming somebody the quarterbacks trust completely” in the early portions of fall camp, adding that Bailey was the kind of player that was always “finding a way to get open.”

There was a period of time when the Jake-to-Jake connection between Constantine and Bailey was the most productive dynamic on the entire roster. With Constantine at the controls and the pocket wavering, he’d often roll out and immediately fix his eyes on Bailey, who was seemingly always ready to make a play and move the sticks.

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That almost innate connection is part of what Bailey so effective on the gridiron. “It was never scripted,” Bailey said of one such schoolyard play. “There’s no formula for it, but it’s always great when it can work out and be something big.”

Big might be the perfect word to describe the size at which Bailey played. Standing 5-foot-10, there were only five players on the roster with a listed height shorter than Bailey. Yet Bailey never let that stop him. If anything, his stature aided his quickness and made him just that more difficult to bring down in the open field.

Bailey is one of the most dynamic playmakers Rice football has at its disposal, and the talented wideout still has two more seasons of eligibility remaining. As a redshirt sophomore, he’s taken home our Rice Football Team MVP honors. The rise of Jake Bailey might only be beginning. Those are some lofty expectations, but Bailey says he’s ready to embrace them.

“When there’s pressure in the situation that means you’re doing something important. That means you’re doing something where people have to look at you, expect from you. It’s always a great place to be. I think pressure is a privilege,” he said. Here’s to seeing where that pressure leads him in 2022 and beyond.

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Rice Football 2021: NFL Owls Week 16 Stats Update

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Rice Football is well represented on 2021 NFL rosters. Here’s the latest from the NFL Owls in action in Week 16.

There are former Rice football players scattered across the NFL. Stay tuned each week for their game results and notables from each player.

Team NFL Owl(s) Week 16 Result Week 17
LA Chargers Christian Covington (DL) at Houston L, 41-29 vs Denver
Denver Calvin Anderson (OL)
Bryce Callahan (CB)		 vs Las Vegas L, 17-13 at Los Angeles
Pittsburgh Chris Boswell (PK) at Kansas City L, 36-10 vs Cleveland (MNF)
Detroit Jack Fox (P) at Atlanta L, 20-16 at Seattle
Tampa Bay Nick Leverett (OL) at Carolina W, 32-6 at New York Jets
Indianapolis Andrew Sendejo (Saf) at Arizona (SAT) W, 22-16 vs Las Vegas

Offense

Calvin Anderson – OT, Broncos

Anderson was placed on injured reserve following a leg injury suffered in the Broncos’ Week 13 loss to the Chiefs. He did not play in their Week 16 game against the Raiders.

Nick Leverett – OT, Buccaneers

Leverett saw some work against the Panthers in Week 16. It was his first game action since being called upon in Week 12 against the Colts.

Defense

Bryce Callahan – CB, Broncos

Callahan has quickly returned to form and resumed his place in the starting lineup after missing six weeks on injured reserve. He had two tackles against the Raiders in Week 16.

Christian Covington – DL, Chargers

Covington notched his third start of the season in Week 16 on the road against the Texans, his former team. He posted a career-best nine tackles, including three solo takedowns.

Andrew Sendejo – S, Colts

Sendejo missed the Colts’ Week 16 game with a concussion.

Special Teams

Jack Fox – P, Lions

Fox punted two times against the Falcons, including a long punt of 57 yards, but it was the work he did with his arm — not his leg — that drew the most attention. Fox dialed up this magnificent throw on a fake punt attempt late in the second quarter:

Chris Boswell – K, Steelers

Boswell had a fairly quiet weekend along with the rest of the Steelers’ offense. He made his lone extra-point attempt and one of two field goal tries.

More Owls in the NFL

From practice squads to current free agents, there are other Owls on the cusp of returning to active rosters. Find more detail on current contractual agreements and former Rice football players waiting for their next opportunity here.

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Rice Football 2021 Offensive Player of the Year: Jordan Myers

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Positionless, yet irreplaceable. Swiss-army man Jordan Myers was an obvious selection for our 2021 Rice Football Offensive Player of the Year.

The disjointed 2020 COVID-19 season was riddled with quirks and oddities of one kind and another. Among the most peculiar tidbits from the strange season was the number one. Rice football scored one rushing touchdown in their abbreviated five-game season, and it wasn’t scored by a running back. Sort of.

At that point in his career, Jordan Myers was still listed as a tight end on the official roster. Utilized as the short-yardage and goal line back and other similar situations in 2020, that designation would slowly morph. He worked almost exclusively with the running backs in the spring and was listed atop the depth chart entering the 2021 season.

When asked exactly what position he played during preseason media availability, Myers just shrugged. “Pretty much just wherever the team needs me,” he said. “As of right now, I’m kinda labeled as the utility player.”

Utility player is a destination occasionally reserved for that extra player on the bench of a traditional baseball team. He’s probably not good enough to be your everyday starter, but if you need a backup across the board, he can fill in sparingly well enough.

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Head coach Mike Bloomgren would refer to him often as the team’s “swiss army knife”  ostensibly implying a similar level of versatility. Myers never really seemed to mind what terms were being tossed around regarding his position. He just showed up.

Myers saw sparse action in the Owls’ final four games of the season as he battled injuries and Ari Broussard took over the workhorse duties in the backfield.

Even though he missed a good chunk of time, he still finished the year with more plays from scrimmage than any other skill player on the roster. He led Rice with eight rushing touchdowns and added one more through the air. He and Cedric Patterson were the only Owls to find paydirt more than three times in 12 games. That tandem accounted for 16 of the team’s 35 touchdowns, just shy of 50 percent.

Myers rocketed up those stat sheets with a career game in Week 4 against Texas Southern. Rice football was in desperate need of a boost entering the game, having scored a combined 24 points in their first three non-conference games, all losses.

Not only did Myers show up, he rushed for 160 yards and four touchdowns and caught four passes for 48 yards. The combined 208 all-purpose yards would have ranked in the top seven among all Owls’ season totals. Myers got there in four quarters.

Bloomgren was understandably beaming in the postgame sessions following that big day. “He is exactly what I want our team to be. He is the perfect college football player in so many ways,” he said, delivering the quintessential complement every ballplayer hopes his coach will someday refrain. And honestly, it’s hard to argue with Bloomgren’s pronouncement.

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“He’s probably too smart to ever get into coaching, but I’d hire him the moment he did,” Bloomgren added next. Whether he goes into coaching or finds something else to apply his abilities to after a lengthy collegiate career, Myers curious combination of excellent and versatility have seemingly shown no bounds.

But despite all of the praise and the accolades he received over the course of his six-year career, Myers remains the same calm, humble guy from Dickinson, Texas that signed with Rice football prior to the arrival of this current coaching staff. “I’m just happy I can be someone the guys can lean on,” he murmured following his spectacular game against Texas Southern.

By the time he hung up his cleats, Myers had graduated from being labeled as simply a utility player. He was someone Rice could count — and did count on — in the most crucial moments. Myers was the man handed the football on fourth and short and asked to find a yard. More often than not, he did.

No Myers, wasn’t just a jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none. He was a dude, and an easy selection for our 2021 Rice Football Offensive Player of the Year.

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Rice Football Recruiting: Transfer TE Gavin Reinwald commits to Owls

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Former Cal tight end Gavin Reinwald has joined the 2022 Rice Football recruiting class, providing experience and depth for the Owls at the position.

It’s going to be surreal looking at the roster next season and not seeing Jordan Myers or Jaeger Bull listed anywhere on it. That’s part of what made finding a quality tight end in the Transfer Portal became somewhat of a priority for the 2022 Rice Football Recruiting class. And that’s what eventually would open up the door for the commitment of Cal transfer Gavin Reinwald.

The Owls weren’t desperate to find just anybody to play the position. Jack Bradley has emerged as a fixture on the depth chart and getting Nate Kamper back healthy for next season will provide more options in the passing game. Adding a tight end was only going to make sense if they found one that could add value in a variety of facets. Reinwald fits that bill.

A California native, Reinwald tallied 1,873 receiving yards and 30 touchdowns in high school, proof that he’s more than just someone to stick on the end of the line and block. He would go on to play in 39 games at Cal with eight starts. He tallied 31 receptions for 315 yards and four touchdowns over four years with the Golden Bears. He can line up wide and play some wide receiver if needed.

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Reinwald crossed paths with current Rice offensive coordinator Marques Tuiasosopo before Tuiasosopo headed to Texas. In fact, Tuiasosopo was Reinwald’s position coach in 2019 and 2020, moving over from the Cal quarterback room the two seasons prior. Tuiasosopo is very familiar with what Reinwald brings to the table, and if he feels he can be an asset for the Rice offense, it’s hard to fault him.

A graduate transfer, Reinwald will have one final season of eligibility once he arrives at South Main. Already familiar with some of the scheme which Tuiasopopo brought with him from Cal, he’s a good pickup for the Owls from the portal.

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