Rodgers sees recruitment take off

His father was involved in the famous Stanford-Cal play that has gone down in college football lore and now Richard Rodgers, from Shrewsbury (Mass.) St. John's, is being recruited by the Golden Bears.

Cal is clearly one of the favorites for Rodgers, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound wide receiver, but Boston College recently offered and so did Maryland. Many other top programs are showing a lot of interest. Cal defensive line coach Tosh Lupoi, the Rivals.com recruiter of the year, has been in touch.

"I like Cal because my dad (Richard) went there and he's a big part of the history of the school so I'd love to go to Cal," Rodgers said. "They said they feel like I have a special ability on offense.

"I can catch the ball really well and they think I can fit into their offense. They need a playmaker like me to step in there and they said I have a full scholarship and to always consider them. That's where I grew up so I like them a lot. It would be pretty cool to do that - make a name for myself and probably bring up a lot of history about the past."

Connecticut, Vanderbilt, NC state, Syracuse, Oregon, Illinois, Clemson and North Carolina have been in contact with Rodgers, who finished with 48 receptions for about 800 yards and 20 touchdowns last season.

He could also switch to defensive end and said he wouldn't mind playing on either side of the ball. Growing into a tight end is not out of the question.

"Whatever I could do to help the team would be best," Rodgers said. "It wouldn't really matter to be on offense or defense."

Boston College has emerged as one of his favorites after the Eagles offered during a recent junior day visit. Rodgers and his father had the opportunity to sit down with offensive line coach Sean Devine to discuss the program. An offer was presented on that trip.

"They offered me when I went there," Rodgers said. "I like BC. I'm always considering something that's around the hometown. It's a nice college, a nice campus, so it's always a possibility.

"My dad and coach Devine and me were in the office and he was talking about how the school was and he said the staff sat down and watched the film and said I could be an impact player on either side of the ball and they were going to offer me a scholarship. Hopefully, I could get up to their camps in the summer and watch some practices in the spring."

Location shouldn't be a major issue for Rodgers because he has family on the East and West Coast. Whether it's Cal or Boston College - or somewhere in between - Rodgers will have people close that can come watch him play.

"I have family on both coasts so it's important to have your family come to the games, have your friends come to the games and support you," he said. "That plays a big role in deciding where you want to go to college."