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Rice Football Recruiting: Owls ramping up as Early Signing Period nears

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The 2020 Rice Football recruiting class is coming together. The Owls added two commitments this week and are in pursuit of several additional targets.

December marks the busiest weeks of the recruiting calendar. The Owls paid visits to nearly every member of the 2020 Rice Football recruiting class over the past week while simultaneously preparing to host additional waves of new recruits.

Rice Football Recruiting

Entering the weekend, every member of the 2020 class was a high school senior. With football seasons done and school year’s wrapping up, several potential transfer targets made their way to Houston. Rice walked away with two commitments from transfers — JUCO quarterback TJ McMahon and former Colgate offensive tackle Jovaun Woolford. Several other players were impressed by what they saw from the Owls.

Names to Know

OL – Witt Mitchum

Near the top of the list of outstanding targets is Tennessee offensive tackle Witt Mitchum. Rice offered Mitchum in November. Since then he’s picked up offers from Georgia Southern, UConn, Kansas State and Kansas. His recruitment is blowing up, but Rice is hanging in with him for the long haul. Mitchum is originally from San Antonio and those Texas ties might help the Owls in this fight.

OL – Mike Leone

Leone has been a priority for a while now, staying in close communication with the staff despite being tucked away in New Jersey. He’s coming down to Texas for a visit, skipping over opportunities much closer to home to come to South Main. Building the offensive line pipeline is crucial for this program, making the importance of Leone’s visit tremendous.

OL – Adam Sheriff

If the addition of Woolford earlier this week didn’t make it abundantly clear, Rice will always be on the market for experienced production on the offensive line. Sheriff spent last season at Butler Community College and has three years of remaining eligibility. He’s being courted by a few other C-USA schools like North Texas and Western Kentucky.

What’s Next?

In addition to some new targets, Rice will have the majority of their non-transfer commits on campus this coming weekend. Most of the local commits have been back for a few games during the year, but the out-of-state additions have had fewer chances to get back to campus. Despite the distance, the class has remained close. They’re looking forward to all getting back together.

As of right now, I expect Rice to sign at least a dozen, if not more, of their current commits during the Early Signing Period, which starts on Wednesday, Dec. 18. That will leave a handful of additional spots to lock down prior to National Signing Day in February, similar to how the team filled out their 2019 class a year ago.

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Rice Football Recruiting: Grad transfer OT Jovaun Woolford commits to Owls

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The 2020 Rice football recruiting class has added a big grad transfer target up front. Colgate offensive lineman Jovaun Woolford has committed to the Owls.

The Rice football offensive line was completely retooled entering the 2019 season. The Owls brought in three grad transfers: Brian Chaffin (Stanford), Nick Leverett (North Carolina Central) and Justin Gooseberry (Ouachita Baptist).

All three of those new additions are out of eligibility, and although players like walk-on Isaac Klarkowski have emerged, bringing in a veteran presence in the trenches was a focal point of the Owls’ recruiting efforts in the 2020 cycle. Head coach Mike Bloomgren’s background with offensive lines continues to pay dividends.

Rice Football Recruiting

Rice has answered that priority with its most recent commitment. Grad transfer Jovaun Woolford — a three-year starter from Colgate, who stands 6-foot-5, and weighs 300-pounds — will play his final season of eligibility at South Main.

A former high school wrestler, Woolford is going to bring an infusion of physicality and proven production to the Rice football offensive line. Woolford redshirted in 2015 and missed the majority of the 2018 season with an injury. His breakout year came between those campaigns, in 2017 when he started all 11 games at right tackle, earning first-team All-Patriot League honors.

Clay Servin will most likely hold down his spot on the left side of the line. The right tackle spot is open with the departure of Gooseberry, seemingly a natural spot for Woolford to slide into.

With Woolford committed, the Owls can be a bit more selective on other potential additions in the trenches. At the very least, Rice football has two quality offensive tackles to block for their deep stable of running backs. New additions beyond Woolford or not, this a big get for the Owls.

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Rice Football 2019: Owls in the NFL Week 14 Update

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Rice Football alum Andrew Sendejo nabbed a game-sealing interception. Just one of several notable NFL Owls in action in Week 14.

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

Week 14 results

Seahawks 28 (Ellerbee, Willson) – Rams 12
Vikings 20 (Sendejo) – Lions 7
Broncos 38 (Anderson, Callahan) – Texans 28 (Gaines)
Bears 31 – Cowboys 24 (Covington)
Steelers 23 (Boswell, McDonald) – Cardinals 17

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 visit the Colts in Week 15.

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 visit the Colts in Week 15.

Christian Covington, DE, Cowboys

Covington had three tackles (two solo) in the Cowboys’ Thursday Night Football loss to the Bears. This was the seventh time this season he’s recorded multiple tackles in a game. The Cowboys host the Rams in Week 15.

Andrew Sendejo, Saf, Vikings

Sendejo didn’t have any tackles against the Lions in Week 14, but he didn’t need them to slam the door shut for a Vikings victory. He picked off Lions quarterback David Blough in the endzone in the final minute, quelling any chances of a Detroit comeback attempt. The Vikings visit the Chargers in Week 15.

Emmanuel Ellerbee, LB, Seahawks

Ellerbee was placed injured reserve prior to the start of the season. The Seahawks visit the Panthers in Week 15.

Luke Willson, TE, Seahawks

Willson has missed the past three games. He was inactive again this weekend against the Rams. The Seahawks visit the Panthers in Week 15.

Chris Boswell, K, Steelers

Boswell was automatic again on Sunday. He made all three of his field goals (with a long of 37 yards) and both of his extra point attempts. The Steelers host the Bills in Week 15 on Sunday Night Football.

Vance McDonald, TE, Steelers

McDonald didn’t have much of a chance to impact the Steelers’ game against the Cardinals, leaving with a concussion after catching one pass for three yards. The Steelers host the Bills in Week 15 on Sunday Night Football.

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 Titans in Week 15.

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 QB TJ McMahon commits to Owls

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The 2020 Rice football recruiting class has a quarterback in the fold. JUCO passer TJ McMahon has committed to the Owls.

If Rice football has learned anything about the quarterback position, they know depth matters. In 2018, the Owls turned to scout team quarterback Wiley Green in their first conference win. Last season, true freshman JoVoni Johnson and grad transfer Tom Stewart provided an effective tandem. Who takes the majority of the snaps in 2020 remains to be seen, but the Owls have a new contender in the race.

TJ McMahon, quarterback for Cerritos College in Norwalk, CA has committed to Rice. McMahon just completed his freshmen season, giving him potentially three years of eligibility to play at South Main. That first year of college ball was productive for McMahon, who threw for 2,667 yards in 11 games, completing 65.8 percent of his passes. He threw 24 touchdowns and 5 interceptions.

Rice Football Recruiting
McMahon represents an upgrade in the passing game from the current roster. As a group, the Owls’ tallied 1,992  passing yards, 13 touchdowns and 56.3 percent completions. Last year’s leading passer Tom Stewart won’t return.

Unlike Stewart who arrived in the summer last year, McMahon intends to enroll early, joining the team in January. He’ll be in attendance for spring practices, getting the extra time to learn the offense which Stewart wasn’t afforded.

McMahon is being brought in to compete for the starting job. He’ll battle returning quarterbacks JoVoni Johnson and Wiley Green. There’s plenty of time before Mike Bloomgren will have to make a decision, but McMahon checks all the boxes with his athleticism, arm talent and mental ability. McMahon is an exciting talent and a name Rice fans need to know.

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Rice Football 2019 Offensive Newcomer of the Year: Bradley Rozner

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Former junior college wide receiver Bradley Rozner went from a question mark to a game changer for Rice Football in 2019, becoming an easy selection for Offensive Newcomer of the Year.

There were plenty of new faces on the Rice football offense this season. The freshman class had high expectations, but the most notable newcomers on that side of the ball were transfers. Rice brought in three graduates on the offensive line. They added a quarterback and a running back from Harvard. There was also one receiver from the junior college ranks.

When it came to sorting through which new face had the biggest impact, the answer was fairly straight forward. Former JUCO wide receiver Bradley Rozner, whose journey began with little fanfare, is our 2019 Rice Football Offensive Newcomer of the Year.

Bradley Rozner didn’t make it a week into Rice football spring practices before his head started spinning. The rigors of Rice academics combined with a thick playbook and a brand new offense had his mind working overtime. He looked at ease in one-on-one drills, but wasn’t able to translate that inate ability into the Owls’ scheme. Not yet.

By the time the 2019 season arrived, Rozner was more or less prepared. He wouldn’t be eased in, rather, the 6-foot-5, 195-pound junior college product became the de facto replacement for big-bodied wideout Aaron Cephus who had been suspended indefinitely prior to the team’s first game.

“At the beginning of the year, the only guy who had ever caught a ball for us was Trammell. Rozner was a question mark,” recalled wide receivers coach Mike Kershaw. Although the staff had noticed a progression from their new offensive weapon, there was still uncertainty about his ability to win one-on-one balls and out-muscle defenders in the air.

Rozner had one catch for six yards in his D1 debut.

After that, something clicked. “Once he learned the offense, actually learned where to line up, that started slowing things down. Then he could just play.” Rozner averaged nearly five receptions for 70 yards a game across his final 11 contests of the season. For the year, he led Rice football in receiving yards (770) and touchdowns (5). His highwater mark came on the road against Middle Tennessee, a game in which he caught three touchdowns.

If there was ever any doubts as to his ability, the Middle Tennessee game erased them entirely. No. 2 by jersey, Rozner became the No. 1 downfield threat for the Owls’ offense, which snapped out of a scoring funk to average 27 points per game in their final three contests. Prior to the winning streak, Rice had managed 27 points just once: a road game against UTSA in which Rozner had a season-high nine receptions for 138 yards.

Rozner was the big play machine for an offense desperate to be woken up. “There’s no doubt I struggled earlier on during the season, but I’m starting to hit my stride,” he said following his big day against UTSA. “Hopefully I can just keep progressing and the offense can keep working.”

The offense didn’t transform overnight solely because of Rozner. The veteran arm of quarterback Tom Stewart and production in the rushing game from Aston Walter helped push the Owls back in the right direction. But the impact Rozner had when he was on the field was always notable.

Against North Texas, an offensive staff that had intentionally grounded the football the game prior, trusted Rozner to make a big play when the team needed it most. Lined up in single coverage on third and long on what Rice hoped would be the clock-killing drive, Bloomgren took to the air. Stewart threw a jump ball up to Rozner who caught it in stride. From there, the Owls picked up another first down and the win.

The season was a collection of moments like that for Rozner. He led all of junior college in touchdowns last season. In his first year at Rice, he led the Owls’ pass catchers in scoring, too. Not only did South Main become his home, he proved he belonged on this stage time and time again.

Many hoped Rozner could become a useful piece of the Rice football offense. Instead, he became an integral component, one the Owls needed to move the ball. And when they did throw it his way, he made play after play.

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