The Illinois basketball coaching staff continues to see Ty Rodgers as one of their top recruits for 2022.
Rodgers has been a wanted recruit for quite some time. With roughly 22 scholarship offers, there are numerous big-time programs that want him on their team. But, on September 2, Rodgers broke the hearts of many programs by cutting his list down to nine teams, and he included the Illini.
Since Illinois made Rodgers’ list cut, head coach Brad Underwood has been in to see the star forward on multiple occasions. He visited Rodgers on September 14. Rodgers then took a visit to Champaign on the weekend of September 18. Underwood once again visited Rodgers on September 21.
Illinois’ Brad Underwood and two assistants were in last night at Thornton High School to see Top-50 senior Ty Rodgers, he told @Stockrisers. The talented prospect announced his transfer to Thornton just a few days ago.
— Jake (@jakeweingarten) October 6, 2021
The Illini see Rodgers as one of their top recruits for 2022, so they are still putting in the resources to land the kid. On Wednesday, Jake Weingarten of Stockrisers reported that Underwood and a couple of Illinois assistant coaches were in to visit Rodgers the night before.
Illinois basketball needs to keep the new in-state recruit home.
In the midst of all of the recruiting attention that Rodgers is receiving, he decided to make a big move for his career.
Yesterday, it was announced that Rodgers was leaving Grand Blanc, Michigan and heading to Harvey, Illinois to finish up his basketball career with Thornton Township High School. This is a big move for his playing career and for the Illini coaching staff.
Illinois can now drive just north to visit Rodgers. They were going to the Detroit area to visit the kid, but he is now within hours of Champaign. This makes recruiting him a little easier.
It will be interesting to see how often Underwood and his staff visit Rodgers now. Rodgers has become one of the most wanted recruits in the nation, and it feels like Illinois has a ton of momentum to land him. If they can snag Rogers, they would be getting another top 70 recruit and someone who can play the No. 4 or No. 5 spot on the court.
Keep an eye on the Rodgers recruitment. I think he has the potential to be a really good player at the next level, and he could be the next recruit to commit to Illinois. We just have to close the deal.