For the second time within a three-day span, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights have received an oral declaration from a three-star gridiron prospect from the Keystone State.
Blake Rankin, a 6’4, 195-pound senior-to-be for Bloomsburg Area High School, gave an oral declaration to Rutgers Saturday, according to national recruiting service Scout.com. The Scarlet Knights were the only program to offer Rankin, who had received interest from numerous programs through his recruitment process, including Akron, Bowling Green, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Northwestern, Penn State, Pitt, Purdue and West Virginia.
Scout.com rated Rankin as the 26th-best quarterback prospect in the 2012 recruting class.
Rankin has been a three-year varsity starter at quarterback for the Panthers, and he enjoyed successful freshman and sophomore seasons, throwing for more than 1,500 yards each year. Rankin’s 1,521-yard output as a freshman is believed to the the fourth-best single-season passing yardage total by a 9th grader in Pennsylvania since 2005. His 19 touchdown passes as a freshman are believed to be the third-highest single-season total for a 9th grader in that same span.
But Rankin really exploded in his junior season, not only showing off his ability to pass, but also as a runner. Rankin completed 96-of-188 passes (51 percent) for 1,580 yards and 16 touchdowns against three interceptions and ran for 981 yards and 17 touchdowns on 127 carries, averaging 7.7 yards per carry.
Bloomsburg finished 8-3 overall in 2010, falling in the opening round of the District 4 AA playoffs to eventual District champion Lewisburg, 21-20. Rankin directed a Panther team that averaged 38.1 points per game. Bloomsburg’s 419 total points scored in 2010 is believed to be the second-highest season scoring output in school history, trailing only the 2007 Eastern Finalist team that scored 446 points and finished 13-2 overall.
Rankin joins Archbishop Wood RB Desmon Peoples and South Allegheny TE Jesse James as the Keystone State Class of 2012 prospects to issue oral declarations to colleges.
