Owls Sign 19 on Signing Day
The Rice Owls recruiting class has been status quo for quite some time as the Owls have had the good-fortune of being able to pretty much coast through their football season in terms of recruiting as the only worry they had was holding on to the commitments they had.
Owls head coach David Bailiff often compares the recruiting process to courting a 'Pretty Girl', "Once you get them to say yes, it's all about holding on to them."
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For the most part the Owls were able to hold on to them, the only attrition they saw was one de-commitment relatively late in the process, but all in all the Owls landed 19 very talented high school football players who will join the Rice Owls football program this summer. 18 of those players are from the state of Texas and one from North Pole, Alaska, who was born in the Dallas area. So to say this class is rich in Texas ties would be an understatement.
Here is a look at how the class shakes out in what Bailiff calls his most athletic class to date.
Quarterback
Jeremy Jones: 6-foot-6, 195-pounds San Antonio (TX) East Central High School
Running Back
Samuel Stewart: 5-foot-8, 183-pounds Cypress (TX) Cy-Woods High School
Austin Walter: 5-foot-8, 183-pounds Crosby (TX) High School
Wide Receiver
Trevor Long: 6-foot-5, 212-pound East Bernard (TX) High School
James Mayden: 6-foot-2, 177-pounds Garland (TX) Sachse High School
Lance Wright: 6-foot-3, 190-pounds North Pole (AK) High School
Offensive Line
Calvin Anderson: 6-foot-6, 240-pounds Austin (TX) Westlake High School
Cory Klingler: 6-foot-5, 290-pounds New Caney (TX) High School
Sam Pierce: 6-foot-6, 297-pounds Houston (TX) St. Pius X High School
Hunter Ponder: 6-foot-6, 250-pounds Mansfield (TX) High School
Defensive Line
Preston Gordon: 6-foot, 257-pounds Frisco (TX) Heritage High School
Brady Wright: 6-foot-3, 220-pounds Cypress (TX) Cy-Fair High School
Linebacker
Emmanuel Ellerbee: 6-foot-2, 220-pounds Houston (TX) Strake Jesuit High School
Martin Nwakamma: 6-foot-2, 210-pounds Leander (TX) High School
Defensive Back
V.J. Banks: 6-foot-1, 175-pounds Bryan (TX) High School
Jorian Clark: 5-foot-9, 175-pounds Mesquite (TX) Horn High School
J.T. Ibe: 6-foot, 184-pounds Mansfield (TX) High School
Athlete
Aston Walter: 5-foot-8, 180-pounds Crosby (TX) High School
Destri White: 6-foot, 191-pounds Mesquite (TX) Horn High School