Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 31-3vs Houston Christian | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 1 tackles |
| Wk 2 | L 0-52@ Notre Dame | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#13
Tariq May
Rice fans still can't agree what Tariq May is — the eye test and the résumé keep splitting the room.
6′4″ · 244 lb · Baltimore, MD · Bellarmine Prep
Returning to Rice for 2026
The story
4 defensive back on Rice's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 2-star recruit to Eastern Washington in 2022.
Recruiting
2★
ATH recruit
No. 2977 nationally · Signed with Eastern Washington
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonBuzz vs Tape
Country hotter than the fans
The wider college football conversation reads him warmer than his own fans do — a gap of 21.4 points in belief.
22.2own fans
43.6national conversation
Also worth knowing:
Tariq May
On Trialas of 2026-09-15
Tariq May is on trial in Rice's fan jury — the eye test against the résumé.
2TACKLES0SACKS
Rice fans are litigating his worthiness — the eye test against the résumé.
high confidence52 sources
Minority viewA vocal minority sees it the other way.
Read the story so far
AI-generated narrative · may contain errors · not journalism · updated 2026-09-15
His career
2022
- Signed with Eastern Washington2-star out of Bellarmine Prep
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★
CFB
College
Rice
NFL
NFL Draft
—
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2026Rice1-1HC: Scott Abell · Run-heavy, slow tempo
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Concern: tackles (0th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
Percentiles are versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score production. There are no play-by-play efficiency bars here: CFBD's play-value model credits offensive players only, so no defensive EPA exists to rank.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 1.0 TKL/g, 0.0 TFL/g, 0.0 SACK/g, 0.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Scott Abell
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Rice | 2 | -- | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 2 | -- | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 31–3
1 TOT
Dominant 28-point win at home against Houston Christian.
With Q. Jackson — 61 rush yds (10 car) · 2 TD · C. Durkin — 54 AVG · 54 LONG · 1 NO
Game log
How he plays
2026 Outlook
Rice
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Defensive back · Rice
Returning around him
- Transfer portal: -2 net (20 in / 22 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Rice · Last season: 5-8 · Talent rank #100 · 2026 recruiting class #104
Background
Honors Eastern Washington Big Sky All-Academic Team Eastern Washington 2025 Saw action in 10 games as a redshirt junior, and was credited with eight tackles including two sacks for a loss of 12 yards… First career sack was for a loss of five yards vs. Idaho and the next came the following week at...
The secondary · Rice
- #5Jerrick Harper23 tackles · 2025
- Daveon Hook16 tackles · 2025
- #4Tariq Watson12 tackles · 2025
- #20Bailey Fletcher10 tackles · 2025
- #13Tariq May2 games · 2026
14 more on the roster · Rice team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology