Rice Owls 2018 Football Preview
Opening Statement: It befuddles the mind when you think of how many years the Owls wasted just hoping that David Bailiff was going to get the program on the right track and keep it there. The last 2 seasons were especially brutal, and it became apparent that the Bailiff era was just a ton of wasted time. Mike Bloomgren, the Stanford OC, was hired finally to get the job done at Rice that Bailiff could not do in 11 seasons. With the Owls coming off of a one win season, Bloomgren will certainly have his work cut out for him moving forward. He brings in Jerry Mack as OC, who turned North Carolina Central into a MEAC power, and Brian Smith arrives to fix a defense that ranked 112th in defensive scoring, as the Owls allowed 35.8 points per game. This rebuild may take a while.
Breakdown Offense: There are no easy answers at the QB position, and the staff will just have to work with what they have. Jackson Tyner has been given the early edge in the race heading into camp, but he completed just 47.4% of his passing attempts last fall in 7 games. He is simply a place holder until someone better comes along. Sam Glaesmann returns, and will likely also have a shot to win the job, but the talent level at QB is not anywhere near solid.
Emmanuel Esukpa, a junior, has the edge to start at RB, despite only carrying the football 57 times in 10 games last season. He had a rock solid showing in the spring, but he has to prove he can do what he did in game action. Nashon Ellerbe and Collin Whitaker are the backups, but again, there is no depth. Will Phillips is the FB.
Austin Walter and his brother Aston Walter are both at WR now, and will have the ability to win starting jobs. Austin was at receiver last fall and caught 18 passes. Austin Trammell, who caught just 4 passes, has an edge to start, as does Aaron Cephus, who led the team with 25 receptions last season in 11 games. Cameron Montgomery and Cameron Johnson will try to provide some depth.
Jordan Myers gets the crack at the Halfback job, but again, depth is another issue.
RT Sam Pierce is the lone returning starter on the line. Uzoma Hanusa (LT), Joseph Dill (LG), Shea Baker (C), and Crockett Mokry (RG) are the projected starters. Cole Elms and Matt Terrill are the depth up front.
Breakdown Defense: Both interior players return on the line in NT Zach Abercrombia and DT Roe Wilkins. They should be joined by new starters at DE in Parker Hannusa and Grayson Schantz. Wilkins is promising inside, as he finished with 8.5 TFLs and 6.5 sacks. There is not a ton of depth here.
Martin Nwakamma is slated to return as a starter at LB, but finished last fall with just 40 tackles. He is being flanked by Dylan Silcox and Anthony Ekpe. Experience is thin, depth is thinner. Antonio Montero, who finished as the defensive player of the year in Minnesota, could start as a freshman.
Brandon Douglas-Dotson returns as a starter at CB, and George Nyakwol returns as the starter at FS. D'Angelo Ellis could start at the open CB spot, while Houston Robert has the edge at the open Safety spot. Nyakwol was a star in the spring game.
Breakdown Special Teams: Will Harrison is back at PK this fall, but made just 2/4 FG attempts in 8 games last fall. There is virtually no real talent here to push him.
Jack Fox, on the other hand, is one of the best punters in the nation, and averaged 44.21 yards per punt. He could get used quite a bit this fall.
Trammell and Ellerbe figure to work out at KR in camp, but neither did anything spectacular last season. Trammell averaged 7.8 yards per punt return.
Final Analysis: There is not much to be said here. Bloomgren and his staff are starting with an empty cupboard this fall, and they can only build upon a foundation that they will lay this fall. There is not a lot of actual talent on the roster, so they will have to recruit their own help in. Expect nothing this season, as the staff tries to employ baseline tactics just to install a system. The talent will come later.
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