Son of NFL Hall of Famer Jerry Rice declares for the 2024 NFL Draft
Following a string of recent NFL bloodlines entering the last handful of drafts, yet another son of a legend is set to try to make his own mark in the league, and it may be the biggest name yet.
Brenden Rice, the son of Hall of Famer Jerry Rice has decided to take his services to the next level as he recently declared for the 2024 NFL Draft. Rice is capitalizing on what was a career year as one of quarterback Caleb Williams’ top targets with the Trojans. Rice was able to haul in 45 catches for 791 yards and 12 touchdowns during his final college season.
Not only a big name thanks to his father, Brenden Rice is expected to be one of the better receivers in his upcoming draft class. Though not quite at the level as Marvin Harrison Jr., the other son of a Hall of Fame wide receiver in this class, Rice should certainly hear his name called within the first four or so rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft.
USC’s Brenden Rice has formally been invited to the 2024 Reese’s Senior Bowl. That invitation was extended several days ago.
The senior transferred to USC football in 2022 but struggled in his first year. It was a very different story in 2023, with Rice reeling in 45 catches for 791 yards and 12 touchdowns. He averaged over 17 yards per reception, too. The Chandler, Arizona, product started his career at the University of Colorado.
His father is legendary College and Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice, a three-time Super Bowl champion who is considered the best wide receiver of all time.
The Senior Bowl doesn’t take place until February 3, which means Rice has a couple of months to prepare for it and make sure he’s in the best shape possible in front of all 32 NFL teams. Because of that two-month gap, there is still a chance Rice might play for USC against Louisville on December 27 in the Holiday Bowl. We will soon find out if Rice does indeed join the Trojans in San Diego.
Brenden Rice will try to follow his legendary father into the NFL. We wish him the best.
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.
With USC’s offense waking up, Notre Dame knew victory was far from assured. That became even more clear when Caleb Williams hit Brenden Rice for a 7-yard touchdown.
Most of the folks inside Notre Dame Stadium became nervous at what might happen next. Then, [autotag]Jadarian Price[/autotag] returned the ensuing kick 99 yards to the house, and the stadium became as electric as it has all season:
That’s how you respond to adversity. It’s something the Irish have done all night, and it’s why they’re on the verge of victory. Assuming they hold on, this is the most complete performance they’ve had this entire gauntlet of a schedule.
While it’s too late to salvage the national hopes, the Irish can at least show they aren’t far away from the next tier. Many folks would have to agree with that.
Speaking of folks, here are some of them reacting to Price’s electric touchdown:
Find out what Joey Gaston told Brenden Rice in @DonJamesSports’ latest segment with the rising high school prospect.
Ice Spice is one of the most popular rap artists with a combined 21.5 million followers on Instagram, TikTok and X. She was recently named “Best New Artist” at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards.
Her younger brother is making a name for himself too. Joey Gaston is gaining attention for his quarterbacking excellence. He is thriving as the starting quarterback for one of the best high school teams in New York.
Gaston has run for 273 yards and 2 touchdowns on 44 carries. Through the air the junior quarterback has 1,140 yards and 7 touchdowns on a 63 percent completion rate. We continue our conversation with one of the more compelling figures in high school football today.
Trojans Wire: What is your favorite pregame song?
Gaston: Forgot I was the 1 by Lil Tjay
Trojans Wire: Favorite sports movie of all time?
Gaston: The Longest Yard
Trojans Wire: Favorite athlete ever?
Gaston: That’s easy, Jerry Rice! Tell Brenden Rice I said his pops is the G.O.A.T.
We are not going to state the obvious here, [autotag]Notre Dame football[/autotag] needs to somewhat contain USC quarterback[autotag]Caleb Williams[/autotag].
It’s a tough task that not many have been able to do, but he’s not the only weapon that the Trojans will bring to South Bend on Saturday evening. As one of the top ranked teams in the country and one of the few remaining unbeaten teams, USC has talent all over the field. Even if it does seem like they have underperformed.
Let’s take a look at some of the other Trojans that could give Notre Dame problems this weekend.
USC nearly lost its perfect season against Arizona but survived. Notre Dame’s College Football Playoff chances ended with a loss at Louisville. Neither team is coming into their annual meeting with the best momentum. That means talent could be the game’s determining factor.
This is a perfect opportunity for the Trojans to make a statement. They’re catching the Irish when they’re fatigued and struggling. The only thing that could slow them down is the wet conditions forecast for the game, but they’re preparing for that by using water in rather interesting ways in practice. While there’s no way to tell if that will affect anything, it shows they’re not leaving anything up to chance.
As you’re about to see, there are several players responsible for the Trojans’ offense being the country’s highest scoring, not the least of whom is the reigning Heisman Trophy winner at quarterback. Here he is among the top Trojans players on both sides of the ball:
Rice finished his Buffs tenure with 27 catches for 419 yards and five touchdowns across 17 games, and 21 of those receptions came in the 2021 season.
In his first season with the Trojans in 2022, he caught 39 passes for 611 yards and four scores with the help of Heisman-winning quarterback Caleb Williams.
Ahead of his return to Boulder for Saturday’s Week 5 game between Colorado and USC, Rice spoke about his feelings and gave his thoughts on the current state of the Buffs under head coach Deion Sanders.
“I can’t wait to get back to Folsom,” Rice said. “Colorado is my first love, so seeing how coach Sanders has transformed Colorado, it makes me happy But at the same time, going back, that nostalgia, it’s a rivalry now. I can’t wait to go tear up Folsom.”
Brenden Rice heads back to Colorado’s Folsom Field with #USC this week to take on his old school. Here’s what he said about that … pic.twitter.com/brUBkzkJDv
Brenden Rice played like his famous Hall of Fame father, Jerry Rice, in the Cotton Bowl. Unfortunately, Alex Grinch’s defense couldn’t make Rice a winner vs Tulane.
The USC Trojans entered the Cotton Bowl game against Tulane without their best wide receiver (Jordan Addison) and star running back (Travis Dye).
Rice made a ton of noise in the first half with a couple of massive grabs, and social media reacted after seeing Rice excel with Caleb Williams throwing some spectacular passes against the Green Wave defense.
Rice had to compete all year with Mario Williams, Addison, Tahj Washington, and Kyle Ford, but he emerged on the big stage and went viral for one eye-popping grab.
Yet, Alex Grinch’s atrocious performance as USC’s defensive coordinator meant that Rice’s outstanding display was all for naught. It’s just one reason why USC has to rethink what it does on the defensive side of the ball, and why Lincoln Riley’s loyalty to Grinch can’t — and shouldn’t — be assumed at this point:
The outcome was a gut punch for #USC fans who want Alex Grinch fired, but the action was intense, and the game photos were really colorful.
That isn’t how the USC Trojans had wanted their season to end.
Late in the fourth quarter, USC held a 45-30 lead, but chaos ensued.
Tulane scored a ling touchdown, Mario Williams bobbled the kickoff at the one yard line, Tulane got a safety on USC, and then, the Green Wave scored the game-winning score with eight seconds left.
After all of that, the Green Wave walked out of the Cotton Bowl with a stunning 46-45 victory, and USC’s defense suffered another colossal defeat in Lincoln Riley’s first year in California.
It won’t be an easy game to forget, but the photos from this will be memorable nonetheless.
