| ||||||||||||||
One of Western's top pass-catching tight ends in recent history, Rucker enters his third season on the Catamount football staff his second as a full time assistant after serving as a graduate assistant coach during the 2005 season.
Rucker, who assisted with the running backs in2005, will take over as the running backs coach in 2006. Last year saw the Cats' running backs be a force in the Southern Conference. Darius Fudge, who averaged over five yards per carry, earned All-SoCon honors to become Western's first running back to be such honored since 2001. Also, Lamont Reid ranked among the league leaders in scoring and went on to sign a free agent contract with the Tennessee Titans.
Prior to joining the Catamount football staff and while completing his undergraduate degree (B.S. in Business Administration), Rucker worked as a student assistant in the athletic department's Academic Enhancement Program.
During Rucker's final two years at Western, the Catamounts led the Southern Conference in passing twice. As a senior, Rucker caught 12 passes for 158 yards, an impressive average of 13.2 yards per reception, while adding a two-point conversion in a win over Johnson C. Smith. Rucker has also made a name for himself on the WCU special teams, providing devastating blocks on kick off returns among his many contributions.
Rucker caught nine passes as a junior and six passes as a sophomore. In both years, he caught 17-yard touchdown passes in wins over VMI. Rucker's most productive season came in 2000 during his freshman campaign when he ranked third on the team with 254 receiving yards on 17 receptions. For his career, Rucker caught 44 passes for 558, averaging an 12.68 yards per catch.
A native of Winston-Salem, N.C., Rucker helped Mt. Tabor High to back-to-back Central Piedmont 4-A titles his junior and senior seasons. He caught 27 passes for 525 yards and two touchdowns as a senior to earn all-conference, all-county and all-region honors.
