Heads up,

Several Rice Owls are on the roster for the 2014 Texas High School Coaches All Star game. The game will be on Foxsports Southwest at 7pm, July 22, 2014.

Rice All Stars

Hey all,

Got a chance to watch the replay of the 2014 THSCA All Star Game. Final score was North 13 - South 7.

I think that we had three freshman play in the game:

1. Austin Walter (South All Stars #27 - Running back) - Great speed, but a few drops, a fumble, poor blocking, and his own mistakes in back field protection plagued him. I think that he was just pressing too much. But the talent, quickness, speed, and vision are all there. He did have a few big plays where all those qualities were on display. Despite what would be a sub par game for him (given his high school success), you can obviously see that he will be a huge weapon at Rice.

2. Emmanuel Ellerbee (South All Stars #33 - Linebacker) - Solid player. He was in on almost every tackle for the South All Stars. He played some offense on a goal line series for the South's only score. He will be a good contributor at Rice. Definitely a redshirt candidate, but I think he can help on special teams.

3. VJ Banks (North All Stars #17 - Safety) - Wow...He may not red-shirt. He had two occasions on defense where if he caught the ball he would have a pick-6. He broke up at least 3 passes. Possibly more as my attention was at times divided while watching the game. What I did see of VJ was a charismatic, smart, instinctive player that plays with a chip on his shoulder. He has good speed with good technique and breaks very well on the ball. If he works on those hands, we may have a very disruptive defensive backfield defender at Rice. Think "Honeybadger", but at Rice.