Local JC players reach big time

Carl Moore of Sierra College is off to the warmth and national championship glare of Florida to be a Gator.

Codi Boek of American River is headed to the cold country back East, to upstart Boston College. The Eagles are nestled in a sizzling hotbed of athletic success that has engulfed the city like the recent snow – from the Boston Red Sox winning the World Series, to the New England Patriots' pursuit of perfection, to the Boston Celtics' fast start.

The sophomores headlined the area haul on community college letter-of-intent day Wednesday, the earliest that mid-year transfers officially could sign scholarship deals.

In all, Sierra and ARC combined to have eight players sign. All will transfer to their four-year programs in early January and will be eligible to participate in spring drills with their new teammates.

According to a number of recruiting publications and online services, Moore, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound wide receiver out of Cordova High School, was the most heavily recruited community college player in the country. Florida coaches deemed him the nation's No. 1 recruit.

At the very least, he goes down as one of the most sought-after prospects in regional history, with offers from USC, Cal and LSU, among many others. USC and Cal continued their pursuit until Wednesday morning, then stopped when receiving official word that he had faxed his paperwork to Florida.

Moore was an All-American for Sierra this fall, catching 16 touchdown passes. Now he'll have a chance to catch passes from Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow. The two already have spoken several times on the phone.

"It's a great feeling to be headed to Florida," Moore said. "It's a big relief to get it over with. It's a great program. I hope we can win a national championship."

Moore is the first area recruit to sign with the Gators in football.

"We're not going to California to get someone who's going to watch (from the sideline next season)," Florida coach Urban Meyer told Gators beat reporters.

Boek, meanwhile, marvels at his good fortune. The Del Campo graduate went down with a broken arm in Week 3 of this past season and figured his scholarship hopes went down with him. But the injury motivated him. He compiled a highlight film of his first three games and shipped them to Division I programs across the country. Within five minutes of viewing the material, Boston College coaches called him and offered him a recruiting trip when the Eagles were ranked No. 2 in the country.

"It's really an exciting time for me," the 6-3, 220-pound Boek said. "It's a great school, and the city of Boston has got it going on right now."

What's more, Boek said he can accept this scholarship guilt free. After his Del Campo career, Boek took a scholarship from Idaho State, but he returned home to be with his ailing father, who was battling cancer.

"The best thing is my dad is doing great, the cancer is in remission, and he wants me to live my dream," Boek said. "Everything is right back on track."

Two other Sierra players who keyed a 9-2 season, a national ranking and a berth in the Hawaiian Punch Bowl/Northern California championship signed with Big Sky Conference schools. Offensive linemen Clint Lessard of Rocklin is off to Sacramento State, and Anthony Patterson of Oakmont is headed to Montana State. Sierra safety Dan Hart of Del Oro is headed to UC Davis.

Sacramento State also signed offensive lineman Peter Lenz, a 6-3, 300-pound guard from City College of San Francisco.

"We felt he (Lessard) was one of the top kids in Northern California," Sac State coach Marshall Sperbeck said. "We're very excited to sign him.

"(Lenz) is another kid we had rated real high."

Sperbeck said he expects to sign one or two more players in the next few days.

Other ARC players to sign included tight end Brad Walker of Woodcreek (Idaho State) and defensive back Shane Scott of Del Campo and linebacker Treston Teague of Cordova (both Southwestern Oklahoma State).

The first day high school football players can sign national letters of intent is Feb. 6.

About the writer:

• Call The Bee's Joe Davidson, (916) 321-1280. The Bee's John Schumacher contributed to this report.