Rogers an Owl

Salem’s Rogers makes it official, signs into Temple football’s largest class ever; will report in January to take part in spring practice

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

SALEM – Kemp Carr has had a lot of hard-working players in his long tenure as a high school football coach, but the list is short of those who have worked as hard as Antwuan Rogers has to get to where the Salem senior found himself Wednesday.

When he was coming up Rogers played like a kid. He’d give what he thought was winning effort on a play, but didn’t always see it all the way through. There also was a measure of maturing away from the field that needed to take place.

Then, the winter after his freshman season he sat in the front row and watched his senior teammates signed to play college football and decided that was something he’d like to do. It was right there he knew there was work to be done.

Fast forward to Wednesday. One by one coaches, teachers, family and teammates rose to speak about the Salem senior after he signed to play college football at Temple and to a person the prevailing comment – with pride – was “he’s come a long way” to achieve his longtime dream.

It has been a long road – “real, real long,” Rogers said – a lot longer than the stretch of country road Carr has the Rams run in the summer for heart and conditioning, although Rogers will tell you that hill is a lot harder. It was on that road, where Rogers threw up in the oppressive heat and went back for more, Carr knew his senior sackmaster had was going to do whatever it took to get to the next level.

“Everybody faces struggles, battles,” Rogers said, “but it’s all about perseverance. The best football players face the most adversity.

“I think about that every day. Just looking back at my freshman year, I get amazed. If you look at my film (now) you see I run to the ball every play; eighth grade, freshman year, I didn’t play like that. I’d quit before the whistle blew. I’ve grown so much as a player.”

In signing with the Owls, Rogers becomes the Rams’ first major Division I football signee since record-breaking and future NFL All-Pro Jonathan Taylor signed with Wisconsin in 2017 and the first Salem athlete to graduate early to pursue their sport. The 6-foot-5, 245-pounder, one of four edge rushers in Owls coach K.C. Keeler’s first high school signing class, will enroll in January – one of 21 early enrollees — and be on campus to participate in spring practice.

In Rogers, the Owls are getting a fierce pass rusher who recorded 23 sacks this past season, setting the single-season school record with a beastly single-game record eight against KIPP in the opening round of the South Jersey Group I playoffs. He had 98 total tackles.

He led a defense that held six opponents to a touchdown or less. Behind that defense, the Rams went from 0-9 in Carr’s first season to 6-5 and won their first playoff game since 2022.

“He has the mindset that he tries to win everything, every rep, every wind sprint, everything, and that’s what pulls over to what you see in the game,” Carr said. “You notice he never came off the field. He was on every special team, offense, defense, that’s because he had a stamina to do so.

“How do you get that stamina, how do you build that? You build it in practice. You build it in the offseason. The kid is just relentless. His motor never stops. They ran toss on the opposite side of him and he was chasing down the ball. Some things are not teachable. Effort is one of them. He’s always given that gallant effort.”

Carr called the difference between Rogers from when he first saw him on film to what he has become “night and day.”

And it’s been an inspiration to his teammates who were on hand to help celebrate the occasion.

“His freshman year he came in and didn’t really play, he was undersized and not that strong,” recalled senior Willie Chatum, who’s known his linemate since second grade. “He took the off-season of his freshman year serious, got bigger, got stronger, got faster, then his sophomore year, junior year he went all out and worked hard every single day.

“It made me want to work really harder. When we were working out together he was working so hard it made me want to work even harder. He was making me want to go do it, gave me motivation. I felt like I was doing something to get better.”

Senior receiver William Dunn has known Rogers since they were cutting up as 3-year-olds and has been with newest Owl “every step of the way.” He, too was “motivated” watching his carpool partner sign on the dotted line.

“It makes me not want to give up on my football dreams,” Dunn said. “I want to take it to the next level, whether it’s JUCO, Division III, somewhere else. I still want to make it D-One. I’ve got hope. He gave me hope. He gave me a little spark.”

Carr hopes that’s what every one of his players took away from Wednesday’s program and he left them with a simple two-word message.

“Who’s next?”