Brenden Rice was struggling midway through his 2022 season at USC. Rice, the son of football legend Jerry Rice, was dropping passes left and right, a source of annoyance for fans and coaches alike. It was legitimate to question whether Rice would make a meaningful impact at USC.
To Rice’s great credit, he stuck with the plan and worked harder to improve himself. The drops receded. Rice made important plays late in the season. Then, in the Cotton Bowl against Tulane — the game made infamous by an implosion from Alex Grinch’s defense — Rice had a star turn for USC. He delivered an absolutely spectacular performance with acrobatic catches and huge plays in high-leverage situations.
Rice was part of a crowded wide receiver room in 2023 at USC. With Dorian Singer and Mario Williams in that room, Rice might have been third or fourth in the eyes of some analysts heading into the season. Yet, if one was to evaluate USC’s receivers this year, Rice would probably be the second-best receiver on the team behind Tahj Washington. He was clearly better than both Singer and Williams. Rice was good enough to merit an invitation from the Senior Bowl.
Brenden will try to follow his dad into the NFL. We wish him the best and thank Brenden Rice for his efforts as a Trojan. He truly emboded the Fight On! mentality at USC.
OFFICIAL! WR Brenden Rice @BrendenRice from @uscfb has accepted his invitation to the 2024 Reese's Senior Bowl #FightOn✌️ #TheDraftStartsInMOBILE™️@JimNagy_SB @PaniniAmerica #RatedRookie pic.twitter.com/ny4OC85uNK
— Reese's Senior Bowl (@seniorbowl) November 30, 2023
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