It was a banner season for St. Petersburg (Fla.) Lakewood junior wide receiver Rodney Adams. After putting up big numbers for the Spartans this fall, he has started to emerge on the radar of a number of BCS programs – including that of the Florida Gators. Adams made his second trip to Gainesville of the fall on Saturday for the Florida-Florida State game. Despite the loss for UF, Adams still had positive things to say of the visit.
“Yeah, the visit was good. I love the atmosphere in the Swamp,” he said.
The 6-foot-1, 170-pound Adams previously visited Florida for the UAB game back in September.
Area recruiter Derek Lewis has been the primary point man for the Gators on Adams to date. The two had a chance to exchange some pleasantries inside the stadium before Florida and Florida State got down to business on the field.
“Yeah, I spent some time with coach Lewis,” Adams said. “He told me he was glad to see me at the game.”
As the prep teammate of St. Petersburg (Fla.) Lakewood defensive end Dante Fowler – who is committed to Florida State, but still being recruited by Florida – Adams has a different and unique take on the ongoing saga surrounding the Under Armour All-American. Both prospects had a chance to take in the “Sunshine Showdown” on Saturday night as unofficial visitors of the Gators.
“Knowing he’s going to be playing for the Seminoles, just makes it better knowing we might be playing against each other one day,” Adams said.
With 742 yards and 10 touchdowns on 25 receptions this season, Adams established himself this season as one of the top wide receiver prospects in the state of Florida for the Class of 2013. Still, he has bigger goals in mind as Lakewood hopes to build on a 6-4 campaign in which they fell just short of the playoffs this fall.
“I wanted to show everyone I was a BCS [caliber] receiver,” Adams said. “I was aiming for a 1,000-yard season. But there’s still room for improvement, to get better and come hard next year to help my team win state.”
In recent weeks, Adams earned an invitation to the Army All-American National Combine, aimed at bringing in over 500 of the top sophomore and junior football prospects from around the country to San Antonio. The event will take place at the Alamodome on Jan. 6. He presently claims one offer from – from San Diego State – but also reports interest from Florida and Florida State, among a number of other BCS programs.
Justin Wells hosts a weekly recruiting video chat with Andrew Spivey on Tuesday nights from 8:30-9:30 p.m. EST. You can view the show live on the Gator Country TV page. You can also e-mail him at justin@gatorcountry.com—or follow him on twitter @j_wellsGC.