Rio Linda’s Cam Skattebo gets picked in NFL draft’s 4th round. Who got him?
Cam Skattebo told his friends in youth ball that he was going to play in the NFL, then continued to insist it would happen as a teenager, some rolling their eyes in response.
That dream officially came to life on Saturday for the Arizona State running back who starred at Rio Linda High School and at Sacramento State. The 5-foot-10, 220-pound, hard-charging back known to barrel over defenders since his youth for the joy of it was selected by the New York Giants in the fourth round, his name announced by the league on the NFL draft stage in Green Bay.
Skattebo was the No. 105 overall selection and the third with Sacramento area roots to be picked in the three-day draft, following defensive linemen Femi Oladejo of UCLA by way of Cosumnes Oaks High in Elk Grove and Omarr Norman-Lott of Tennessee by way of Grant High. Both went in the second round. Oladejo went to the Tennessee Titans and Norman-Lott to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Skattebo has since the start dazzled fans and overwhelmed opponents, raising his game at each level of play, from youth ball, to small-school Rio Linda, to Sacramento State of the FCS and then FBS-level Arizona State.
In addition to setting a bounty of rushing records at each of his stops, Skattebo threw touchdown passes, caught passes for scores and punted, sometimes all in the same game. He finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting to honor the nation’s top player in 2024 after serving as the power gear to the revamped Arizona State program.
Skattebo set still-standing regional records for high school career yards rushing. He amassed 6,192 yards and 69 touchdowns as a three-year varsity starter for Rio Linda, and his 393 yards and three touchdowns led the Knights to the 2018 CIF State 5-AA championship in front of an overflow home crowd.
Sacramento State was the only program to offer Skattebo a scholarship, the idea that he wasn’t fast enough to handle the college game. He handled it just fine.
In 2022, Skattebo rushed for 1,373 yards for Sacramento State, fifth-most in program history. He was a fan favorite, leading a team that was ranked second nationally in the FCS and finished a school-record 12-1.
After arriving at Arizona State before the 2023 season through the transfer portal, Skattebo rushed for 783 yards and nine touchdowns.
He rushed for a Sun Devils program-record 1,711 yards in 2024 with 605 yards receiving and 25 total scores. His 21 rushing TDs is an Arizona State record for a single season, four more than what Woody Green produced 52 years earlier.
Against Texas in the Peach Bowl, a College Football Playoff game in which the Longhorns prevailed 39-31, Skattebo rushed for 143 yards, and he threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to go with 99 yards receiving.
This story was originally published April 26, 2025 at 9:44 AM.