Middle football standout earns Division I opportunity

Posted: July 2nd 2025

By BRIAN CUNNIFF

CapeAtanticLive.com 

One of the best running backs in the history of the Middle Township High School football program is getting a chance to play at the Division I level.

Remi Rodriguez, who had drawn some Division I interest but initially committed to Division III Montclair State earlier this year, is now set to attend and play at Rutgers University as a preferred walk-on.

“Playing Division I (football) has been my dream since I was a little kid,” Rodriguez said. “I’m so hyped up right now.”

Rodriguez was first recruited by Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano during last football season, according to Middle coach Gavin Liepe. Schiano and the Rutgers staff then circled back to Rodriguez over the past month and offered him a place on the roster this week, Liepe said.

Although a bit undersized at 5-8, Rodriguez emerged as one of South Jersey’s best running backs over an incredibly productive career. As a senior last fall, he ran 173 times for 1,265 yards (7.3 yards per carry) and 11 touchdowns and also caught 17 passes for 312 yards and another score. He was also a standout at defensive back, recording two interceptions and making 34 tackles. 

Rodriguez finished his career with 4,079 rushing yards, surpassing 1,000 rushing yards in each of his final three high school seasons. He rushed for more than 1,000 yards as a sophomore despite missing two games with an ankle injury that lingered throughout the season.

REMI RODRIGUEZ

“What stands out with Remi is his first three steps,” Liepe said. “He’s so explosive, even on defense. When the ball is snapped, he makes everyone else seem like they’re in slow motion compared to him, and I think that’s what sold Rutgers. You look at some of the bigger recruits we played against last season – some kids going Division I – he’s even making them look slow. It all comes down to his explosiveness and those first three steps.

“Then there’s how tough he is. I’ve never seen anyone at the high school level with his ability to run through contact. The kid just doesn’t go down. He has a great center of gravity. I think he can do really well for Rutgers because of that explosiveness.”

Rodriguez said he can’t wait to get on campus and show the Rutgers coaching staff what he can do.

“I love competing. I feel like I can compete with anybody,” he said. “I’m going to go there and show up and work hard every single day.”

Rutgers finished 7-6 last season, including 4-5 in the Big 10 Conference.

Rutgers has had past success with running backs from the Cape-Atlantic League. Isiah Pacheco, a 2017 graduate of Vineland High School, ran for more than 2,400 yards and 18 touchdowns in his career with the Scarlet Knights and has gone on to play for the Kansas City Chiefs. He is the only running back in NFL history to win Super Bowls in his first two seasons in 2022 and 2023 and also appeared in another Super Bowl last season against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Rodriguez is the second southern Cape May County player in a little more than a decade to earn a preferred walk-on position with Rutgers. Lower Cape May graduate Vance Matthews played four years in the Scarlet Knights program as a wide receiver and special teams contributor. He appeared in 34 games over his career, which concluded in 2016.