Tag: Zach Rice

Two Tar Heels make ESPN’s All-Freshman team for 2022

Two UNC football freshmen earned praise by ESPN ahead of the 2022 season, being named a preseason all-american.

Mack Brown and his UNC football staff are entering year four in the second stint for the head coach. And now we are starting to see UNC’s recruiting classes under Brown come to fruition.

The 2022 class is the best under Brown so far and we could get a very early look at that talent coming in. The Tar Heels were able to lock down a top 15 class for the cycle and now they are receiving praise from ESPN for a pair of freshmen.

Both [autotag]Zach Rice[/autotag] and [autotag]George Pettaway[/autotag] were named to the ESPN preseason true freshman All-America team on Friday. The annual list spotlights the best true freshmen in the country.

Here is what Tom VanHaaren and Tom Luginbill had to say about Pettaway:

Like Singleton, British Brooks may be listed ahead of Pettaway on the depth chart, but Pettaway brings a different dimension with his sudden explosiveness and ability to make defenders miss. With Brooks and Pettaway, Mack Brown’s offense could resemble UNC’s 2020 run game, which featured the outstanding duo of Michael Carter and Javonte Williams.

I have to imagine this was written BEFORE British Brooks suffered an injury that will cost him the season. Pettaway has the chance to be the lead back for UNC this season and a big opportunity to become a household name.

As for Rice, the five-star has a chance to be a staple on UNC’s line for the future and earned praise in the article:

Rice, an early enrollee, started the spring game at right tackle and eventually could play both spots. Rice is clearly ready for the jump and did not look like a freshman during spring ball. He still needs to get stronger, but skill-wise, he is ready to go.

Even though UNC had just two players on the list, their 2022 class is very talented and it wouldn’t shock us to see others making an impact as well.

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Zach Rice lands on this impact freshman list

UNC football freshman Zach Rice is earning some preseason All-American honors by On3.

Mack Brown and his staff are welcoming in their best recruiting class over the past four years as the roster continues to be turned over from the previous regime.

One of the prized recruits from this class is five-star offensive tackle [autotag]Zach Rice[/autotag], a Virginia native that picked the Tar Heels over fellow Atlantic Coast Conference foe Virginia. Rice was a monster pickup for UNC in this class and he could be an anchor on their offensive line for years to come.

Ahead of this season, Rice is earning some praise as he landed on On3’s Preseason True Freshman All-American Team for 2022. Here is what the site said about Rice:

Zach Rice was one of the more highly-touted offensive line prospects to sign with North Carolina in recent memory. The Lynchburg (Va.) Liberty Christian Academy product has been working at both right tackle and right guard and is competing at both spots. Rice could earn a starting spot early on or could prove to be more of a rotation player. The 6-foot-5, 320-pounder was a dominant run-blocker at the high school level. He may need some time to continue refining his technique but has the ability to project as a multi-year starter, perhaps as soon as this season. Rice was a five-star and ranked as the No. 20 overall prospect in the 2022 On3 Consensus.

Rice was the lone UNC freshman to make the preseason team but he likely won’t be the only one to have an immediate impact.

With so many questions and position battles on the roster, there will be playing time for freshmen to win. And as the year goes on, they could see an increase in their playing time as well.

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Four-star 2024 WR set to visit UNC Football this weekend

A four-star wide receiver in the 2024 class is visiting the UNC football program this weekend.

This weekend will be a big one in terms of recruiting for the UNC football program in Chapel Hill.

We already wrote on one of the top 2024 players set to return for a visit and now he will be joined by a four-star receiver in the class. Keylen Adams revealed that he will also be in attendance this weekend, setting up a big visit for the Tar Heels.

The 6-foot-2, 180-pound wide receiver is a Virginia Beach native that is ranked No. 65 overall, No. 12 wide receiver and the No. 1 player in the state of Virginia per the 247Sports recruiting rankings. Adams has a total of 17 offers, drawing interest from programs like Florida State, Ole Miss, Penn State, Virginia, and Virginia Tech among others.

The Tar Heels have found success in the state of Virginia under [autotag]Mack Brown[/autotag] and [autotag]Dre Bly[/autotag]. They’ve landed top talent like [autotag]Zach Rice[/autotag], [autotag]Tony Grimes[/autotag], and [autotag]Dazz Newsome[/autotag] among others over the years.

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Nation’s top offensive tackle commits to ACC program

Not the most surprising thing but still a bummer…

Five-star offensive tackle Zach Rice, who ranks seventh overall in the 2022 247Sports Composite rankings listed Notre Dame among his five finalists, but the Irish didn’t win his services Thursday night as he announced his plans to attend North Carolina.

Joining Notre Dame and North Carolina as finalists were Alabama, Ohio State, and Rice’s home-state Virginia.

Rice becomes North Carolina’s 15th overall commitment in the 2022 class that is currently ranked ninth nationally by 247Sports.  He’s also their second five-star recruit in the class based off those same Composite rankings.

Notre Dame currently checks in fifth in the 247Sports team rankings that include five-star linebacker Jaylen Sneed of Hilton Head Island.

Related:

Notre Dame’s current 2022 recruiting class commitments

Notre Dame’s all-time results against each ACC football team

Notre Dame’s statistical leaders through six games

 

Nation’s top offensive tackle to announce college decision Thursday night

Zach Rice, the nation’s top offensive tackle in the 2022 recruiting cycle, will announce his college choice on Thursday night.

The top ranked offensive tackle in the 2022 college football recruiting cycle is set to announce his college decision Thursday night and the good news for Notre Dame is that they’ve still got a seat at the table.

The bad news is there is stiff competition to land the commitment of five-star Zach Rice, a 6-6, 282-pound senior from Lynchburg (VA) Liberty Christian.  Rice ranks as the seventh player overall in the entire 2022 recruiting class according to the 247Sports Composite.

Along with Notre Dame, Rice lists Alabama, North Carolina, Ohio State, and Virginia as his finalists.  We’ll know where Rice chooses at 8:15 p.m. ET tonight as he’ll announce his college decision on CBS Sports HQ.

Rice will be a great addition wherever he ends up attending but at this point it’d appear to be a bit of an upset if he chooses Notre Dame.

Related:

Notre Dame to host five-star quarterback and current LSU commit vs. USC

Ranking the top 10 college football coaching jobs

Notre Dame’s entire 2022 recruiting class

Notre Dame-USC: fun facts about epic rivalry

Notre Dame injury update ahead of USC game

Notre Dame releases depth chart for USC game

Which Notre Dame commits and targets made USA Today’s Top 100 recruits

Could more big names be on the way to South Bend?

The high school season is halfway through but the analysis of the players never stops. With that said, the USA Today has published their Top 100 players in America. As we all know, the Irish have recruiting class that is among the best in the country as a whole.

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While the Irish’s class does have 21 commits, they are still in line for some big fish that remain uncommitted. Find out below which Notre Dame commits and recruiting targets made USA Today’s list.

The Athletic thinks Notre Dame’s ‘22 recruiting class ranking will drop

The Athletic is iffy on the Irish’s finish for their 2022 recruiting class

Recruiting for the 2022 class is about to take a turn, with the dead period being lifted after the conclusion of this month, expect a whole lot more action. For Notre Dame, so far it’s been a great start on the recruiting trail, with 13 commits and a top 4 ranking according to the 247Sports composite.

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With the early success of the class, The Athletic’s Ari Wasserman (subscription required) was asked in his mailbag if the Irish could keep their high ranking and finish inside the top 5. Well, Wasserman wasn’t very high on that projection.

Right now, Notre Dame has a top-five class, yes, but some of that is due to the fact that the Irish already have 13 commitments. The way you can see if a particular class is actually built to finish in the top five is by counting how many top-100 players it has. Right now, Notre Dame’s class doesn’t have a single one.

It’s easy to discount the Irish as this moment if you look at it the way Wasserman has, but there are certainly some big fish still out there to be caught. Virginia offensive tackle Zach Rice, a top-10 player, is highly considering the Irish. South Carolina linebacker Jaylen Sneed, California linebacker Niuafe Tuihalamaka, and instate defensive tackle Caden Curry are just a few names that seen as top-100 players who could end up in the Irish’s class.

Don’t forget about the always underrated prospects that Brian Kelly seems to find or ones that could have big senior years and make a recruiting ranking leap.

In all reality, although it would be nice to see the Irish finish with a top-5 class, it really doesn’t matter. Was does is the development of the classes and the results on the field. Kelly has shown over the last three years, that Notre Dame is among the best schools in the country at racking up wins and making it to the playoff field.

Five-star tackle Zach Rice sets up visit to Ohio State

According to an announcement on Twitter, 5-star 2022 offensive tackle Zach Rice has set up a date to visit the Ohio State campus.

The schedule is filling up when it comes to June visitors to the Ohio State football program. With the recruiting dead period set to lift on the first of the month, many prospects and targets are lining up to make the trek to the banks of the Olentangy.

The latest comes from five-star offensive tackle Zach Rice. According to a tweet from top prospect edit guru Hayes Fawcett, Rice has set up his official visit to Ohio State for June 4-6, and it could be a big one.

The Lynchburg, Virginia, native would fill a huge need for Ohio State in the future. He is listed at 6-foot, 6-inches, and 282-pounds and ranked as the No. one offensive tackle and fifth overall prospect in the 2022 class according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings. It would send ripples through the recruiting universe for the Buckeyes to make an impression and find a way to land such an amazing talent on the offensive line.

It won’t be easy though. As you can see from the graphic, Rice has also set up visits to North Carolina, Virginia, Alabama, and Notre Dame. Nobody really knows which way he is leaning right now, but we’ll keep an eye on things and see how they progress through June after all the visits have been made.

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Notre Dame makes top 5 for the best tackle in the country

A potentially huge addition to the ‘22 class

The 2022 recruiting class for Notre Dame is shaping up to be one of the best in recent memory. The class of ‘13 was a fantastic group, ranking inside the top 5 in the country, with the ‘08 version pacing the field after finishing second in the nation. The current class has the same ranking as ‘08 class held, which included Michael Floyd, Kyle Rudolph, and Dayne Crist.

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The momentum is building and the Irish are still certainly in the mix for the best offensive tackle in the country Zach Rice. The Virginia native dropped his top 5 and Notre Dame was included.

The plan is for Rice to visit each of his final schools for an official when the NCAA finally ends the long dead period. At six-foot-six-inches and 282-pounds, the tackle has a very good last group of schools to choose from.

Jeff Quinn, Notre Dame offensive line coach, and Brian Kelly, has their work cut out for the to beat the current college football power powerhouse, Alabama, the Midwest power Ohio State, his home state school in Virginia and another ACC foe in North Carolina.

A commitment from Rice would certainly be a cherry on top of the Notre Dame recruiting class and the Irish are hungry to make that addition.

 

Ohio State included in final five of 2022’s top rated offensive tackle

Ohio State was included in the final five of five-star 2022 offensive tackle Zach Rice. The football recruiting efforts continue.

Moves are being made for the 2022 recruiting cycle and Ohio State made another top prospect’s final five list. This time the young stud is a five-star offensive tackle from Lynchburg, Virginia. Zach Rice is a 6-foot, 6-inch, 305-pound star for Liberty Christian, and the Buckeyes are one of his top choices along with Notre Dame, Alabama, North Carolina, and Virginia.

247Sports currently ranks Rice as the No. 11 overall player in the nation, and Rivals is not far off, also ranking him safely in the top 20 at No. 17 overall. Both recruiting services have Rice as the number one offensive tackle for the 2022 class.

It’s obvious Rice is a highly sought-after recruit and this trimmed list has now excluded programs such as Georgia, LSU, and Oklahoma, who have all offered the talented prospect.

Rice has clearly put a lot of time into making this list, adding comments for every school that made the cut. He mentions his mom being very active talking to Alabama, and that he appreciates the staff at North Carolina. He called Notre Dame O-line university and added that he has a good relationship with the other Ohio State commits.

Virginia appears to be the sleeper in this group as he has family that has attended the university. It is still very early in the process, but it is good to see the Buckeyes making moves and thinking about the future. So far there has been no date set for Rice and his potential official visit to Ohio State, but we will be on alert.