Three-star Tight End Rob Booker's Gut Led Him Back to Wisconsin
WAUNAKEE, Wis. – Rob Booker had a small case of the shakes that he tried to mask to the best of his ability.
Pacing anxiously before sitting down at a purple-draped table, Booker started three minutes before his announced commitment time of 3:45 p.m. on the first day of the winter early signing period. For someone who had known what schools he was going to play at for several weeks, the enormity of the moment finally was coming to a head.
“I was excited to let everyone know I was staying home,” he said, smiling while wearing a white Wisconsin t-shirt. “It was a relief. I was nervous coming up (to today). I’m not going to lie, but it’s good.”
Life is certainly better now for Booker after he thanked his large gathering of extended family, as well as his coaches, teammates, friends, and the coaching staff from more than a dozen schools who offered him a scholarship before revealing he would be playing college football just down the road.
The 22nd prospect to be officially announced with Wisconsin’s 2024 class, Booker’s recruitment came full circle. He originally committed to the Badgers back in January as the third prospect of the class. Minnesota was his other favorite school at the time, but he held offers from Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas, Michigan State, Pittsburgh, Purdue, UNLV, Vanderbilt, and Virginia Tech.
By mid-summer, Booker had a change of heart, backing away from his commitment and quickly committing to future Big Ten school UCLA.
“It was ultimately a gut decision for me, kind of where my heart was at,” Booker said of flipping to the Bruins. “When I first made the decision to de-commit, I was looking at it like a business decision, looking out for my future. UCLA is the No.1 public university in the entire country. It’s not a recruiting pitch, it’s a fact. Academics are important to me. It’s more than just football to me. I was looking for my future.”
Booker said the communication with the Wisconsin staff picked up at the 2023 season progressed. The staff didn’t pressure him as much as they laid out a simple question to him: where did his heart want him to go? It was a question that Booker couldn’t give a good answer to.
“I really didn’t know,” he said. “It was a tough decision to make.”
Booker admitted that most of the 2024 signing class already knew his decision. Taking an unofficial visit to UW’s home game against Northwestern in November, Booker said he told four-star quarterback Mabrey Mettauer and three-star linebacker Landon Gauthier that he probably would flip back.
“I’m not in the group chat anymore, but I probably will be after this,” Booker said. “Communication was never really cut off with any of the commits. I was always close with those guys, especially the in-state guys.”
A first-team all-state selection by the Associated Press and the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association this past season, Booker joins a tight end room that was largely absent from the offensive game plan in Luke Fickell’s first season, especially with the position’s two most experienced pass catchers - Clay Cundiff and Jack Eschenbach - leaving the program before the season,
Relying on blocking tight end Hayden Rucci, injury-plagued Riley Nowakowski, and true freshman Tucker Ashcraft, UW’s tight ends combined for just 24 catches, 254 yards, and two touchdowns.
UW had Algonquin (Ill.) Jacobs four-star tight end Grant Stec committed in January and added LSU freshman Jackson McGowan from the portal Wednesday. Booker admits he needs to improve his blocking, but the 6-6, 220-pound prospect is a mismatch with his height and intangibles, an athletic, versatile tight end who can stretch the field.
Booker sees the ability to line up in the backfield, on the line of scrimmage, or split out, saying that it’s how he wants to play football.
“I like what they do with their tight ends,” said Booker, who will be one of 10 prospects in the class to enroll in January to take part in winter conditioning and spring practices. “I’ve watched every game basically. I think I bring a unique skill set to the table. Most of the tight ends on the roster were recruited by the previous staff, so I think my play style compared to some of the tight ends on the roster is different, which is why the new staff is recruiting the guys that they are at the position.”
As he tried to wait, his friends shouted out mock congratulations for picking a host of different schools, from Colorado to UW-Platteville. All good choices, but none of those schools pulled at Booker’s heartstrings like the University of Wisconsin.
“At the end of the day, it came down to what my gut was telling me to do,” he said, “and my gut was telling me to stay here and play for Wisconsin.”
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