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Rice Football Recruiting: 2020 Offensive Tackle Mike Leone commits to Owls

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The 2020 Rice Football recruiting class has flipped a talented offensive lineman from the Northeast. Mike Leone has committed to the Owls.

More than a dozen members of the 2020 Rice Football recruiting class were under the radar prospects on the national stage. Most rating services hadn’t evaluated them yet. There was not list for the Owls to go off, instead they identified talent and got it to South Main.

Then there are guys like Hun School offensive lineman Mike Leone. The 6-foot-5, 270-pound offensive lineman is from New Jersey, about three hours away from Maryland, an ACC school that has been after Leone for a while. Not only did Leone pick the Owls over the Terps, he opted to fly down to Houston the weekend before the Early Signing Period rather than visit Maryland.

Rice Football Recruiting

Leone has bought into Mike Bloomgren’s proven track record of development in the trenches. The successes of young players like Clay Servin, Isaac Klarkowski and Cole Garcia juxtaposed with several successful transfers makes it a pretty easy sell to incoming recruits on the line.

Prior to making the flip, Leone had been committed to Yale. He maintained that commitment since July, even after Maryland offered him in October. Now he’s set to be a Rice Owl and is a rather prominent figure in a 2020 haul loaded with talent.

He and Jovaun Woolford, a grad transfer who also made his commitment this week, give Rice plenty of options at the tackle spot for 2020 and beyond. Rice is building an arsenal of high-caliber offensive lineman, setting themselves up for sustained success up front for years to come. Leone could be one of the best.

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Rice Football 2019: Owls in the NFL Week 15 Update

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A pair of Rice Football products helped their defenses pitch dominant performances. More from Christian Covington, Andrew Sendejo and other NFL Owls in action in Week 15.

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

Week 15 results

Chiefs 23 – Broncos 3 (Anderson, Callahan) 
Cowboys 44 (Covington) – Rams 21
Seahawks 30 (Ellerbee, Willson) – Panthers 24
Bills 17 – Steelers 10 (Boswell, McDonald)
Texans 24 (Gaines) – Titans 21
Vikings 39 (Sendejo) – Chargers 10

Calvin Anderson, OT, Broncos

Anderson has yet to appear in a game for the Broncos this season. He was inactive again this week. The Broncos host the Lions in Week 16.

Bryce Callahan, CB, Broncos

Callahan was placed on injured reserve earlier this season, never playing for the Broncos in 2019. He will be sidelined for the remainder of the year. The Broncos host the Lions in Week 16.

Christian Covington, DE, Cowboys

Covington had three tackles, all solo, in the Cowboys’ Week 15 rout of the Los Angeles Rams. The Dallas defense pitched a shutout through the first 56 minutes of play before Los Angels tacked on a few garbage time touchdowns. The Cowboys visit the Eagles in Week 16.

Andrew Sendejo, Saf, Vikings

It was a relatively quiet day for Sendejo, who registered one tackle in the Vikings’ win over the Chargers. The Vikings host the Packers on Monday Night Football in Week 16.

Emmanuel Ellerbee, LB, Seahawks

Ellerbee was placed injured reserve prior to the start of the season. The Seahawks host the Cardinals in Week 16.

Luke Willson, TE, Seahawks

Willson has missed the past four games. He was inactive again this weekend against the Panthers. The Seahawks host the Cardinals in Week 16.

Chris Boswell, K, Steelers

Boswell didn’t see much of the field in Week 15. He made a 49-yard field goal, his eight successful kick from 40+ yards this season. He also added an extra point. The Steelers visit the Jets in Week 16.

Vance McDonald, TE, Steelers

McDonald left last week’s game with a concussion and was inactive for the Steelers’ Sunday night loss to the Bills. The Steelers visit the Jets in Week 16.

Phillip Gaines, CB, Texans

Gaines was placed on injured reserve following an ankle injury suffered during the Texans’ Week 8 game against the Colts. The Texans visit the Bucs in Week 16.

More Owls in the NFL

From practice squads to current free agents, there are others 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 Recruiting: JUCO Offensive lineman Adam Sheriff commits to Owls

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The offensive line contingent of the 2020 Rice Football Recruiting class is getting bigger and better. JUCO tackle Adam Sheriff has committed to the Owls.

You can never have too many offensive linemen. That creed is truer few places than South Main. After watching true freshman walk on center Isaac Klarkowski finish out last season, the 2020 Rice Football recruiting class will not lack a sizable collection of trench-defending athletes. Even though they already have some talented prospects in the fold, the Owls continue to prioritize the position.

Rice nabbed grad transfer Jovaun Woolford from Colgate last week but didn’t ease up. 6-foot-4, 280-pound offensive tackle Adam Sheriff, a transfer from Butler Community College, was among their top targets at the position. Sheriff was on campus the final weekend before the Early Signing Period and saw all he needed to make his decision. Now he’s the latest member of an impressive haul in the trenches.Rice Football Recruiting

Sheriff had drawn interest from North Texas and Arkansas State, ultimately opting for the Owls. The addition is a nice head-to-head victory over a C-USA peer and a talented Arkansas State team that had posted a winning record in sixth consecutive seasons under head coach Blake Anderson.

 

Quarterback and offensive line were the biggest gaps the 2020 Rice Football Recruiting class needed to address. With Sheriff on board, the Owls have gone a long way to filling those holes. Rice could still opt to bring in another piece to man the front lines, especially with the potential loss of Uzoma Osuji to the transfer portal.

No matter how the rest of the pieces come together, Sheriff has the potential to be a mainstay on the Rice offensive line for several years. Rice has done well with their offensive line recruits. Sheriff looks to be the next in a great line of enforcers up front.

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Rice Football 2019: Two Owls enter Transfer Portal

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Following the end of the 2019 season, two Rice football players have entered the Transfer Portal: linebacker Anthony Ekpe and offensive tackle Uzoma Osuji.

Attrition may have found its way to South Main. Rice fared well in the transfer shuffle last year, swapping out two presumed starters (Roe Wilkins and Zach Abercumbia) for a half dozen impact players like Brad Rozner, Naeem Smith and a trio of offensive lineman.

The first Owls to enter the portal this season are linebacker Anthony Ekpe and offensive tackle Uzoma Osuji.

Ekpe led the team with six sacks last season but injuries hindered his impact in 2019. He appeared in eight games, registering 23 tackles and 2.5 sacks. The majority of that production came early in the season — he tallied 17 of his tackles in the Owls’ first two games. Kenneth Orji plated well in his stead, finishing with 40 tackles, fifth most among members of the front seven.

Osuji started the first six games of the 2018 season before injuries and the emergence of Clay Servin pushed him into more of a reserve role. This year Servin was locked in at the left tackle spot. Incoming transfer Justin Gooseberry manned the right side of line. Osuji was the odd man out, seeing action primarily as a backup in nine games.

Both players were wanted and expected to be a part of next year’s team, per a source. Ekpe projected to be heavily involved, if not a starter on the Rice defense. Osuji would have been in the mix for playing time at the right tackle spot, but likely would have had to beat out a new wave of players at his position. They are the only two Rice football players in the portal at this time. The Owls would certainly love to have both back in the fold in 2020.

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The Roost Podcast | Ep. 21 – The Roosties and 2019 Rice Football Season Review

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The 2019 Rice Football is complete. Carter and Matthew look back at the year and hand out The Roosties, season-long superlatives for top players and plays.

It’s been a wild ride, but the 2019 Rice Football season has reached its conclusion. In addition to the more conventional awards — Team MVP, Offensive Newcomer of the Year, Special Teams Player of the Year, etc — we’ve taken some creative liberties with these awards.

You can always find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, Give a listen to Episode 21 below.

Episode 21 Notes

  • The Roost Postseason Survey — Thank you to all who have followed the podcast or the website this season. The journey has been a fun one and we’ve been glad to be here every step of the way. But we want to get better, too. Let us know what you liked and what you didn’t in this brief survey. Thanks!
  • Rice Football end of season thoughts —  Before getting to the fun, Carter and Matthew give their parting thoughts on the 2019 season. The offense had moments but was a bit underwhelming compared to preseason expectations. On the other hand, the defense had a year better than just about everyone’s expectations. On the whole, things are headed in the right direction. The tone of the offseason should once again be optimistic.
  • The Roosties
    • Favorite Play
    • Player You Were Most Wrong About
    • Most Improved Unit
    • Play/Game You Most Want to Redo
    • Player You’ll Miss the Most
    • Out of Nowhere Star
    • Most Valuable Transfer
    • Best Block
    • Most Dominant Game
    • Player You’re Most Looking Forward to in 2020

Where can you find us?

Download and subscribe to The Roost Podcast on any of your favorite podcast providers. The show is available on iTunes, GooglePlay, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn and PodBean. Please consider leaving a review wherever you listen.

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