OCC's Rutledge receives early offer from Colorado State
COSTA MESA -- Orange Coast College freshman wide receiver James Rutledge has received an early offer from Colorado State University, according to head coach Kevin Emerson.
"Rutledge is a gifted athlete," Emerson said. "He is committed to getting better in the classroom and on the field. I am excited to watch his journey."
Last season, Rutledge played in nine games for the Pirates and caught 36 passes for 604 yards and four touchdowns.
Rutledge, a 6-foot-4, 195-pounder out of Lawton (OK) HS, caught at least to passes in all nine games he played, including two games where he caught six, including a six-catch, 104-yard performance at Saddleback College in the season finale.
Compared to the rest of the National Division, Southern League receivers, Rutledge was sixth in receiving yards, ninth in receptions, fourth in yards-per-game (67.1 yards/game) and fourth in yards-per-catch (16.8 yards/catch). In league play, Rutledge was fourth in receptions (24), sixth in yards (377) and fifth in yards-per-catch (15.7 yards/catch)
Rutldege's 36 receptions were second-most on the Pirates in 2016, behind only Joey Cox, who caught 51 passes for 630 yards and nine touchdowns. That duo accounted for nearly half of all receptions, nearly 55% of all receiving yards and over 70% of all receiving touchdowns by Pirate pass-catchers in 2016.
