A player who began to turn some heads this spring with some outstanding performances on the 7v7 circuit is 2017 Westview (Portland, Or.) DB Jason Rucker. Northwest Elite Index caught up with the talented defensive back following a busy month of camps and he updated us on where things stand on the recruiting front.
“I don’t have any offers yet, but I have a lot of schools that have been talking to me and showing me interest,” Rucker told NEI recently. “I hit the Northwest Elite Camp, the Washington Rising Stars Camp, the Oregon State camp, the Oregon Opening Regional camp and the Rough Diamonds Camp (this past weekend).
“The schools I have been hearing from are Eastern Washington, Northern Arizona, Washington State, Washington, Nebraska, USC, San Diego State, Savannah State and Temple and Hawaii has talked to me on the phone a couple of times too.”
While on the field, Rucker showcased his natural ball skills and athleticism, using his 6’1”, 175 pound frame to be playmaker.
“After two games last year on varsity, I was diagnosed with Tendinitis and Osgood-Schlatter (disease) so they cut back on my varsity time and I was playing two quarters of JV and two quarters of varsity and I also missed a couple of games,” Rucker noted. “So once I got the chance to get out and show what I could do, I wasn’t going to slack off. It was my chance to show the coaches what I could do and now that I’m pretty much back to almost 100%, I think I did pretty well, but there is always stuff to work on to get better.”
Rucker’s focus this spring has been on his hips, back-pedaling, hit and run and feet.
“I wanted to improve those areas because they are the most important for defensive backs,” Rucker noted.
Rucker was one of the breakout performers for the Barton Underclass Squad that has been on the 7v7 circuit this spring, notching seven interceptions in the Pylon 7v7 Event in Las Vegas back in February.
With his size, speed and solid ball skills, Rucker is a 2017 prospect to keep an eye on. If he’s able to overcome his injury to play varsity the entire season, he could put up some big numbers and start to draw in offers and attention from schools at all levels.
Northwest Elite Index will continue to keep in touch with Rucker in the coming weeks and months and we will update news on him as it happens.
If he is playing college football EVER I will cut my balls off
@Jackson Platt, I'll take u to the Doc when it's time lol.