Five-star Justin Rogers picks Kentucky
The Kentucky Wildcats pulled off one of the biggest recruiting coups of the 2020 class on Monday, when five-star Oak Park, Mich., five-star Justin Rogers announced his commitment to head coach Mark Stoops and the Kentucky program.
Calling Rogers the biggest commitment in Kentucky recruiting history is not an overstatement. The Wildcats signed a five-star lineman before, but that was a home-state prospect. With Rogers, Stoops and Co. had to go into the state of Michigan and out-recruit the likes of Alabama, Georgia, Michigan and Tennessee to secure the commitment.
Rogers took three official visits before this spring before rendering his decision. The first official visit went to Tennessee the weekend of April 12. Kentucky was the second overall official visit, and it took place the weekend of April 26. Several teams were vying for a pre-decision official visit for Rogers, but Georgia got the last one this past weekend.
Ranked as the No. 1 offensive guard prospect in the 2020 class, Rogers is being recruited by Kentucky as a defensive lineman. He lined up at defensive tackle this past winter at the Future 50 event in Orlando and was just as impressive in that role as he has proven to be on the offensive line.
“At any school, if I can come in and start soon at any position, I’ll play that position,” Rogers said last month. “I’ll play the position where I’ll see the field the fastest.”
Kentucky has had success recruiting the state of Michigan in recent classes, including landing four-star offensive guard Marquan McCall out of Oak Park High School in the 2018 class. McCall and Rogers lined up together early in Rogers’ prep career, and has been a positive influence for the Wildcats in this recruitment.
With Rogers now committed to Kentucky, the Wildcats will now set their sights on trying to land his four-star teammate, cornerback Enzo Jennings, who has scheduled an official visit to Lexington in June.
The addition of Rogers vaults Kentucky into the top 25 of the Rivals 2020 team rankings, and every school ranked higher has more commitments than the Wildcat’s current tally of five.