Sports Notebook: April 9-15

Football meets the public eye during 2025 spring game

By Andersen Pickard     4/15/25 11:06pm

Rice football concluded its spring practice schedule with an open session Saturday, April 12. While an end-of-spring showcase is common throughout college football, this was Rice’s first under head coach Scott Abell, who was hired last November.

The evening included food trucks, alcohol samples and opportunities to purchase tickets for the fall season. Rice Athletics tailored the event toward families with inflatables, face painting and balloon animals. Fans observed the team’s on-field drills and the intrasquad scrimmage.

“Our fanbase, our families ­— the people showed out,” Abell said. “I love it.”

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Abell also shared key observations about the team, including their persistent hunger for improvement after finishing  6-7 under Mike Bloomgren last year.

“They love being here, and they’re ready for that next step of this program,” Abell said. “That is the most important thing. Now it’s time to get ready for the fall.”

Moving forward, Abell said that the Owls will watch film from their spring practices, including Saturday’s open session. He believes the program has made significant strides since he was hired as head coach, and he remains optimistic that the team is moving in the right direction. 

Abell highlighted the offensive line as a unit that has impressed him, even after losing senior guard Chad Lindberg to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and redshirt junior tackle Ethan Onianwa to Ohio State University.

Protection in the trenches will be key for the Owls, who are expected to adopt a run-heavy offensive scheme in 2025. Abell perfected his rushing offense at Davidson College, which averaged 58.2 carries, 315.5 rushing yards and 3.4 rushing touchdowns per game in 2024.

Redshirt sophomore Chase Jenkins, who has showcased speed and athleticism as a quarterback and wide receiver at Rice, is a candidate to start under center in 2025.

“We haven’t even gotten to the surface yet,” Jenkins said. “I’m excited. We’ve got playmakers all around. I feel like we’ll be good.”

The evening also celebrated linebacker Myron Morrison, who was named the 2025 O.J. Brigance Award recipient. 

“The Brigance Award is given annually to the Rice University football player who best represents and demonstrates the combined qualities of teamwork, good character, work ethic and courageous leadership,” a Rice Football post on X read.

Brigance is a Rice graduate who spent seven seasons in the NFL. He was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in 2007 and now works for the Baltimore Ravens as a senior advisor to player engagement.

“Truly honored to be recognized in the light of your legacy,” Morrison wrote in an X post directed toward Brigance. “Thank you for the example that you’ve set and the inspiration going forward.”

Trio of Owls flock to MBB transfer portal

by Andersen Pickard, Sports Editor

Rice men’s basketball appears set to lose three impact players in the latest transfer portal cycle. Junior guard Jacob Dar, junior forward Caden Powell and junior center Ifeanyi Ufochukwu have all entered the portal since Rice’s season concluded with a loss in the first round of the American Athletic Conference tournament March 12.

Dar joined Rice this year after two seasons at Emory & Henry University. In his lone campaign with the Owls, he averaged 19.8 minutes, 7.5 points, 3.7 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. 

According to an X post from Dushawn London of 247Sports, Dar has heard from 12 schools since entering the portal, including Gonzaga University, Texas A&M University and the University of Memphis. 

Powell, a former three-star recruit and University of Wyoming transfer, was the Owls’ only player to start all 32 games this past season. He shot 65 percent from the free-throw line while averaging 24.3 minutes, 10.4 points, 7.2 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game. 

He reportedly committed to Baylor University April 14, according to an article from SicEm365.

Ufochukwu is a 6-foot-11-inch native of Benin City, Nigeria. He primarily came off the bench during his first two years at Rice before redshirting this past season. 

As a result, he still has two years of NCAA eligibility remaining. Through 25 games at the collegiate level, he has averaged 3.5 minutes, 2.0 points and 1.2 rebounds.

So far, Rice has struggled to replace its outgoing group. According to a series of X posts, the Owls have contacted at least 19 players in the portal but have failed to secure a single commitment. The current transfer portal cycle closes Tuesday, April 22. 

Men’s and women’s tennis victorious ahead of AAC Championships

by Andersen Pickard, Sports Editor

Men’s and women’s tennis are both ranked as the regular season concludes and the AAC Championships approach. 

The men’s team ranks 72nd overall (13-9 record) and is coming off a 4-0 win over the University of Alabama at Birmingham April 13. 

The afternoon was headlined by a doubles victory from Santiago Navarro and Petro Kuzmenok, competing for the first time since entering the ITA rankings as the No. 83 Division I men’s doubles team on April 8. 

Despite winning their matchup, Navarro and Kuzmenok fell back outside the top 90 teams with the latest ITA rankings April 15. 

The women’s team also finished regular season play this past weekend with a 4-0 victory against Middle Tennessee State University April 12. 

They are 16-5 and rank 37th in the country. The team is headlined by junior Darya Schwartzman and freshman Fernanda Martinez, who rank No. 72 among women’s doubles teams.

The men’s and women’s teams will travel to Memphis, Tennessee for the AAC Championships April 17-20. They occupy the fifth and second seeds, respectively. 

Bees swarm Reckling Park dugout, delaying game

by Evie Vu, Sports Editor

During the final game of baseball’s series against the University of South Florida April 13, a bee colony took over the visitor’s dugout at Reckling Park. 

Rice baseball appeared to be aware of the issue before the game started and had already roped off several stadium seating sections and half of the dugout, but the USF players evacuated the space and first pitch was delayed as the bees were removed. 

Joseph Elam, a beekeeper and owner of a bee removal company, grabbed the hive with his bare hand to remove a large portion of the bees. 

He used a vacuum to remove the remaining bees, allowing USF to reoccupy the full dugout. 

“I got stung a couple times, but ain’t nothing,” Elam said in an interview with Leah Vann of the Houston Chronicle.

Once USF returned to their dugout, Rice defeated them 5-2 to win the series 2-1. The Owls will face the University of Memphis April 17 for Game 1 of a three-game road series. 

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