The Fridge. Prime Time. Iron Head. The Galloping Ghost. Scoopy.

Wait, Scoopy?

Some football players only need a nickname to identify them and NIU cornerback Melvin Rice only needs to hear “Scoopy” to turn his head.

“My grandpa gave [Scooby] to me when I was two years old,” Rice said. “He said I used to scoot around the house all the time.”

And so the start of Rice’s nickname was born.

Rice took Scooby through school but eventually changed the nickname to Scoopy. And like all good nicknames, nearly everyone calls Rice Scoopy.

Where most freshmen football players are hoping to get noticed for their play, Rice didn’t have that opportunity.

“Phil Brown and Orlando Moore went to high school with me,” Rice said. “They called me it and it just kind of caught on.”

Even the coaches call him Scoopy from time to time. And now that Rice is starting, coaches will be saying it even more.

Rice was listed third on the depth chart before the season. When starter Alvah Hansbro went down for the season with a torn bicep in the second game, third became second. And that meant Rice was suddenly starting.

“I was a little nervous, but I was ready for it,” Rice said. “I’m just trying to help the team and get the job done.”

Rice has been doing that and more. The sophomore ranks eighth on the team in tackles with 23 and is tied for second in passes broken up with two.

Not bad for a guy who only measures in at 5-foot-10. Of course, he has 4.48 speed to fall back on — one of the best on the team.

But on the Huskies, there are still players with speed like that. Such as receiver Britt Davis.

So the question is: who wins in a race, Scoopy or Davis?

“Britt wins,” Rice says. “But I can cover him.”

And that’s all NIU wants Scoopy to do.

Andrew Hansen is sports reporter for the Northern Star.