Kansas prospect climbing the charts
The mail from division one schools has been picking up for Mike Rivera.
“I’ve been getting mail from 41 colleges,” Rivera said.
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And there’s good reason for that. Rivera had one of the best summers of any player in the state. With his size he can play several positions and that’s one reason why schools like him.
“He’s one of those kids that has his best football days ahead of him,” said Scott Diebold, the head coach at Shawnee Mission Northwest. “He’s got a great body and really runs to the football. I think he’s a definite division one football player.”
Rivera stands 6-3, 240, and has run consistently at 4.6 in summer camps. He has explosive numbers with a 35-inch vertical jump. He can play defense and also shows big-time flashes at tight end.
Last week Rivera made an unofficial visit to Kansas and he also participated in the Jayhawks one-day camp. They are a school high on his list and they have offered him a scholarship.
“It’s close to home and I like the coaches there,” Rivera said. “I played well at their camp. My dad and I have been up there and it’s one of my top schools.”
This week Rivera will take another unofficial visit to Missouri. He tested well in the Tigers one-day camp and wants to see the campus.
“I’m going up this week,” Rivera said of Missouri. “I am learning more about Missouri. I think they might be close to offering.”
Most of the schools have told Rivera he could play inside linebacker. He said Kansas and Missouri in his top three along with Kansas State.
“I plan on going to Kansas State also,” he said. “They said I was one of their top eight recruits on the top 10 list.”
At one time Rivera talked about making an early decision. But with interest starting to pick up one of the best in Kansas may be more patient.
“I think I am going to wait until after the season to take visits,” Rivera said. “But you never know. If something changes I might make an early decision.”