Last updated July 22, 2015
Melvin Rice was hired as Southeast Missouri’s cornerbacks coach on Jan. 20, 2015.
Rice spent the last four years as defensive quality control assistant at Minnesota. He was in charge of opponent scouting and the day-to-day operations on the defensive side of the ball in that position.
Rice came to Minnesota from Northern Illinois, where he coached and played under head coach Jerry Kill. He served as a graduate assistant, coaching defensive backs in 2010. The Huskies went 11-3, winning the Humanitarian Bowl and earning the Mid-American Conference West Division title that year.
Prior to NIU, Rice coached the defensive backs at Chicago’s Morgan Park High School in 2009. He helped lead Morgan Park to the conference championship and a berth in the state playoffs.
Rice briefly played professional football for the Green Bay Blizzard in the Indoor Football League in 2010 before heading to NIU as a graduate assistant.
In college, Rice was a three-year starter for the Huskies. He was named the team’s Most Valuable Defensive Player in 2008 and was an All-MAC honorable mention selection. Rice holds a bachelor’s degree from NIU.
