According to Rivals.com, Khaliel Rodgers, of Eastern Christian Academy, has given his verbal commitment to the University of Southern California.
Rodgers, a unanimous four-star recruit in the scouting services, was listed as the 64th overall best recruit in the country, according to Rivals.
The former Red Lion Christian Academy offensive lineman is a standout guard, who is 6-foot-3, 300 pounds. He had offers from 15 schools and was leaning toward Auburn until he was recently offered by USC.
“USC has a lot of advantages,” said Rodgers’ coach Dwayne Thomas, who knows that two of his other players – Kenny Bigelow and David Sills will be attending the school. “They’re in Los Angeles.There is no NFL team. They have a great fan base. They have great academics. It’s just a great school.”
Bigelow, a 6-3, 295-pound, five-star defensive end, is ranked as the sixth overall recruit in the country by Rivals. Sills is a 2015 quarterback prospect that has already committed as well.
Bigelow and Rodgers are close and when Thomas was visiting USC recently he had a conversation with USC coach Lane Kiffin about the situation.
Kiffin just wanted to be sure that Bigelow was secure and asked Thomas if Rodgers were to pick Auburn was there any chance that Bigelow would flip. Thomas told him that if Rodgers gets an offer from USC, then there was a better chance of Bigelow flipping Rodgers.
As it turns out, that’s exactly what happened.
Rodgers, on Wednesday, decided to join his high school teammates in Los Angeles.
For more information on eastern recruiting, follow @EastRecruiting on Twitter or email marty.valania@easternfootballrecruiting.com.
