Colonels snag 5-star prospect to headline Riley’s class

Earl Lorio

June 14, 2016

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June 14, 2016

BY CASEY GISCLAIR

casey@rushing-media.com

New Nicholls basketball coach Richie Riley has landed one of the best recruits in the country to round out his inaugural signing class.

Riley announced this week that he’s received a signed National Letter of Intent from Roddy Peters – a transfer guard from South Florida.

Peters will have to sit out the 2016-17 season, per NCAA transfer rules. He will join Nicholls in 2017-18.

Riley said Peters’ presence in the program will be huge. The new Colonel is a former consensus five-star prospect – a 6-foot, 4-inch guard who was ranked the No. 19 prospect in the country out of high school.

He played 10 games last season for South Florida, averaging 9.8 points and 3.5 assists per game. His season ended because of an injury.

“Roddy is a big guard with an incredible feel for the game and excellent vision,” Riley said. “We look forward to him using this year to get acclimated to our system.”

For the Colonels, Peters will be the highest profile player that the Colonels have had in a very long time.

Peters was a star at Suitland High School in District Heights, Maryland – a consensus All-American who was recruited by every major college in the country.

He was ranked as the No. 3 point guard out of high school by recruiting service 24/7Sports. Peters was also listed as the No. 8 point guard by ESPN.

Peters averaged 25 points and seven assists per game for Suitland, earning every accolade imaginable – from All-Region to All-State and Honorable Mention All-American.

Because of that success, Peters had his pick of colleges – a scholarship list that looked like a who’s who of powerhouses in college basketball.

He chose Maryland after fielding interest from UCLA, Illinois, Rutgers, Xavier and Georgetown, among others.

But Peters’ college career has had problems – both on and off the basketball floor.

At Maryland, Peters lasted just one season, averaging 4.1 points and 2.1 assists per game as a freshman. He started 10 games for the Terrapins in that season, but struggled to grasp the team’s complex offense. After the season, he transferred to South Florida, which forced him to sit out the 2014-15 season per NCAA rules.

He returned to the floor this season and enjoyed more consistent success for the Bulls. He scored a career-high 17 points for South Florida against Savannah State – one of five games he accumulated double digits in points.

But Peters’ season ended on Dec. 13 after suffering a foot injury. He was dismissed from the Bulls’ program later in the offseason after “repeated violations of school policy.”