Michael Slater
	Position: Defensive Line Second Year: Southwest Texas State--1993

Michael Slater returns for his second season of coaching the Rice defensive line.

Slater's first season opened with only one returning starter and concluded with his squad producing one of the most productive seasons by a Rice defensive line in recent history.

Each of the four starters recorded at least five sacks and the Owls finished with 28, their highest total since 2006. Interior defenders Hosam Shahin and Christian Covington combined for 10 sacks, the most for any interior duo in school history. Junior defensive end Cody Bauer returned to the field after an injury redshirt and tied for the team lead with 5.5 sacks and earned second team postseason All Texas College honors from Dave Campbell's Texas Football.

No stranger to the Rice campus, Slater served for three seasons at Rice as a defensive graduate assistant, earning a Master's of Liberal Studies degree during his tenure while working with the defensive line. After his graduation in the spring of 2011, Slater spent one season as the Defensive Line coach at Angelo State before returning to Rice.

Slater coached at the high school level in the Houston area for 12 years, first at Alief Hastings for five seasons and most recently at Alief Taylor for seven years. He coached the defensive line and also coordinated special teams.

As the defensive line coach at Taylor, he coached future Owl and current Chicago Bear Cheta Ozougwu.

He began his coaching career while attending Southwest Texas State (now Texas State), where he served as a student assistant coach in 1993 before graduating with a degree in Agriculture/Animal Science.

Slater has one son, Kyle.