Cali TE names top five

One of the state's best tight end prospects next year will be Van Nuys (Calif.) Birmingham standout Mychal Rivera. We've said it before but it bears repeating, the Patriots are loaded next year and Rivera is yet another sure fire Div I prospect from the school.

Rivera, 6-4, 220 pounds has very good size and the frame to put on at least another 30 pounds or so for the next level. The athlete shows up well on film and has a nice combination of hands, toughness and gets off the line very well.

The Patriots split Rivera out wide quite a bit and he causes major mismatch problems for an opposing secondary because of his size and speed. As a junior, Rivera caught 21 balls for 210 yards and earned all-league and all-area honors for the L.A city champions.

On the recruiting front, Rivera is still waiting for that first offer to roll in but schools from all over the region are showing plenty of interest.

"A lot of schools have been sending me a lot of mail and texting but San Diego State, UNLV and Oregon are recruiting me the hardest right now," Rivera said. "Other schools showing interest include USC, Boise State, Oregon, Arizona and TCU.

"I recently attended Junior Day at San Diego State and liked it a lot. I loved the campus, the location and the great weather. Their facilities were really nice and they have a great coaching staff, I can definitely see myself going to school there.

"I plan on going back to San Diego State in a couple of weeks for another visit and I'm also going to visit UNLV to watch spring practice. My current top five is San Diego State, UNLV, Oregon, Nevada and TCU. I'm not ready to make an early decision though, I want to take my time and talk things over with my family before committing anywhere."