Ray Rice, Future NFL Draft Prospect
 | Running Back 5' 9" 200 lbs. Speed: NA Junior Rutgers  |
At NFL Draft Dog we say, “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog”. That saying can’t be truer, and Ray Rice is living proof. At 5’ 9” 200 pounds, Ray Rice is not the biggest Running Back, but his success on the football field cannot be discounted. As just a sophomre (2006) Rutgers broke onto the national scene and the pride of Piscataway, the Rutgers Scarlett Knights, finished with a record of 11-2 and ranked 12th in the nation. They capped off their spectacular season with a 37-10 victory over the Kansas State in the Texas Bowl. In that game Rice ran the ball 24 times for 170 yards and a touchdown, he had an amazing 7.1 yards per carry average. Rice was instrumental in Rutgers stunning success in 2006 as he finished with 1,794 yards and 20 touchdowns. He finished fifth in the nation in scoring averaging 9.23 points per game. Rice finished second in the BIG EAST and 11th in the nation with an average of 140.3 all-purpose yards per game.
Ray Rice was only the second Rutgers player in the last 30 years to record 1,000-yard seasons two years in a row. Rice plays his best football under difficult conditions and thrives while playing on the road; he was the first player in school history to record four 200 yard games while on the opposing teams’ fields. Last year (2006), Rice finished seventh in the voting for the Heisman Trophy.
In 2005 as a freshman, he was named Freshman All-American by The Sporting News and finished as the fifth-leading true freshman runner in the nation with 1,120 yards, he also recorded the most rushing yards by a true freshman in school history. Rice really stepped up towards the end of his freshman season, he averaged 132 yards per game rushing, and in the post season he carried the ball 20 times for 108 yards against Arizona State in the Insight Bowl.
Rice was also a highly regarded recruit coming out of high school where he was rated the 19th best all-purpose back in the country by Rivals.com. Not only a football star, but Rice was also a standout on New Rochelle's basketball team. As the starting point guard he led his team to the state finals in 2003 and 2004.
Short, squat, but solid as a rock, Rice prefers to run around defenders, but he has the power and leg drive to also run through them. Rice was either first or second team All-American in every major pre-season football publication in 2007 was named to the prestigious 2007 Playboy All-America Squad. Rice had an outstanding offensive line blocking for him this year with left tackle Pedro Sosa, (Second Team BIG EAST honoree and Preseason Honorable Mention All-America by Street & Smith's.) and right tackle Jeremy Zuttah, (First Team BIG EAST selection). The Rutgers offensive line allowed just eight sacks in 2006, the fewest amount in the nation. Rice is not without weaknesses, he hasn’t caught the ball much out of the back field or did much pass blocking, both of those skills will be instrumental for his success in the NFL.
Update: Ray Rice has skipped his senior year and will enter the 2008 NFL Draft. He finished his illustrious career as the leading rusher in Rutgers history and a semifinalist for the Doak Walker Award. Rice will plunge to the NFL holding multiple rushing records, 4,926 career rushing yards and 49 career touchdowns. He became just the 13th player in NCAA history to gain more than 2,000 yards in a season.
"I have always dreamed of playing in the NFL, and I felt the time is right to pursue the opportunity to play at the next level," Rice said.
He finished the 2007 season strong, Rice ran for 280 yards and scored four touchdowns in a 52-30 victory over Ball State in the International Bowl. It was Rutgers' third straight bowl game and second straight bowl win after the school went 27 years without qualifying for a bowl. Rice finished 2007 as the nations 3rd leading rusher with 380 carries for 2,012 yards 24 touchdowns and a 5.29 yards per carry average.
Rice will have a rough time in the 2008 NFL Draft however, with so many other uber talented juniors declaring like Darren McFadden, Kevin Smith, James Davis and maybe Jonathan Stewart, he will have to separate himself from the pack with a fast 40 yard dash time at the 2008 Scouting Combine.