Wood’s Peoples commits to Rutgers

Archbishop Wood's Desmon Peoples was considering visiting UCLA over the summer and had received a recent offer from Georgia Tech. Pittsburgh, Kent State, and Temple were also in the mix.

But two trips last week to Rutgers, including an official visit Saturday, made up his mind. The fleet-footed and electrifying junior tailback committed to the Scarlet Knights on Thursday in Wood's library.

"I saw the relationship the Rutgers players had with each other," said Peoples, 17. "They were like brothers. And coach [Greg] Schiano stresses family. Everyone there works together to accomplish their goals."

In front of teammates and classmates, the 5-foot-7, 170-pounder was joined by his parents, Darrien and Gladys, and Vikings coach Steve Devlin. He reached under a table and revealed a black-and-red Rutgers baseball cap.

"Ever since my sophomore year, Rutgers has expressed a lot of interest," Peoples said. "I didn't feel like I would meet a more genuine coach than Coach Schiano. That's why I decided to shut down the process after Saturday."

Last season, Peoples, who spent a year apiece at Cheltenham and St. Joseph's Prep before coming to Wood, rushed for more than 1,300 yards and scored 25 touchdowns. He's also dangerous as a kick returner.

The Cheltenham resident, expected to be a running back or multipurpose performer for the Scarlet Knights, was an Inquirer first-team all-Southeastern Pennsylvania selection last season. He missed the squad's last three games because of a foot injury.

"It feels fine now," he said. "I'm running at full speed again. I'm looking forward to next season and helping us try to win a state championship."

Wood has three other juniors receiving heavy Division I interest: two-way end Colin Thompson, and offensive linemen Frank Taylor and Brandon Arcidiacono.