Dust settles on football’s 2024 season

Senior running back Dean Connors runs with the ball during the Oct. 12 game against the University of Texas at San Antonio. Kairi Mano / Thresher

By Andersen Pickard 12/3/24 11:28pm

Rice football concluded its 2024 season Nov. 30 with a 35-28 victory over the University of South Florida, treating home fans to one final win. The Owls finished the season at 4-8 overall (3-5 AAC), failing to win any of their six road games.

Rice finished 6-6 last year and 5-7 the year before, reaching a bowl game both years. Despite that pattern, Rice won fewer games this season than in previous seasons. The program limped to a 2-6 start and fired head coach Mike Bloomgren before the end of the season.

Amidst the losing season, though, Rice produced standout players and moments that the Thresher highlights in this article.

Most Valuable Player: Dean Connors

To nobody’s surprise, Connors was the best player at Rice this fall. He led all FBS running backs in targets and receptions while finishing third in receiving yards. In addition to being a talented pass-catcher, he ran the ball quite well, adding 780 yards on the ground. He finished his senior season with 1,265 scrimmage yards and 11 touchdowns, leading the Owls in both categories. Connors is a strong candidate to be selected in the 2025 NFL Draft or signed as an undrafted free agent.

Co-Offensive Players of the Year: E.J. Warner and Matt Sykes

Warner and Sykes both made major contributions this year. Warner battled through some mid-season blips to deliver 898 passing yards and six touchdowns over his final three games, with some credit being given to his newfound health and reinforced offensive line. Meanwhile, Sykes essentially filled the Luke McCaffrey role, leading the team with 65 catches, 782 receiving yards and five touchdowns while making numerous show-stopping catches. Previously, the graduate receiver hadn’t recorded more than six receptions or 86 yards in a single season.

Defensive Player of the Year: Gabe Taylor

Taylor has been a success story at Rice, blossoming into a core defender and leader on the team. He made plays all over the field this season, registering three sacks, three interceptions, two forced fumbles, seven passes defended and 56 tackles. Fellow senior Josh Pearcy was also considered given his proficiency on the defensive line, but Taylor’s 89.5 Pro Football Focus defense grade, at 32nd among over 5,000 Division I defenders, was impossible to ignore.

Special Teams Player of the Year: Quinton Jackson

Jackson was Rice’s primary kick returner and often got the green light to take the ball out of the end zone. He finished the 2024 campaign with 22 returns for 589 yards, with his highlight of the year being a 100-yard kick return touchdown against the University of Connecticut. This was the Owls’ first kick return touchdown in 12 years and their longest return ever. Jackson was named AAC Special Teams Player of the Week Oct. 28.

Freshman of the Year: Joseph Mutombo

Mutombo is a redshirt freshman who appeared in just one game before suffering an injury in 2023. He bounced back during his first full season this year, registering 11 tackles (three for loss), two sacks, one interception and one forced fumble. His 73.5 PFF defense grade ranked sixth among all Rice players. His best game came Sept. 28 when he earned more snaps along an injury-riddled defensive line and ultimately finished with a 90.3 PFF defense grade, ranking 17th among more than 2,500 qualified defenders in Division I.

Transfer of the Year: Chad Lindberg

Lindberg, a transfer from the University of Georgia, made his presence felt on the offensive line, providing key protection for Warner and Connors in a year where good blocking proved hard to come by. Lindberg led all Owls with an 84.0 PFF pass-blocking grade, and he was also their most versatile player in the trenches, logging 245 snaps at left tackle and 377 snaps at left guard. Charlie Looes, a defensive line transfer from Dartmouth College, deserves an honorable mention for his five sacks, which tied for the team lead.

Game of the Year: 24-10 win over Navy (Nov. 2)

The rain-soaked Owls waited out more than five hours of weather delays to upset a 6-1 Navy program at home. Connors scored a pair of touchdowns and interim head coach Pete Alamar earned his first career NCAA victory as the clock approached midnight at Rice Stadium. The win briefly kept Rice’s bowl game aspirations alive.

Play of the Year: Matt Sykes’s game-winning touchdown (Oct. 12)

Rice stayed neck and neck with the University of Texas at San Antonio at home, trailing by four points with less than 20 seconds to play. A costly penalty moved the Owls outside the red zone, but Warner brought Rice to the 18-yard line before throwing a strike to Sykes. The graduate receiver adjusted to catch the deflected pass while diving near the back of the end zone. The reception, which was featured on SportsCenter’s Top 10 Plays segment, gave Rice a 29-27 victory.