Moorpark Quarterback Appears on ESPN Special

Moorpark High football quarterback Grant Rohach was on television last Friday as part of ESPN’s two-part series Elite 11: Top High School Quarterbacks.

The competition pitted 24 of the top quarterbacks in the nation in a five-day tryout at Pepperdine University in July, and Rohach was the only one from Southern California.

The second part of the series is scheduled for 4 p.m. Friday.

“It’s been weird. I think everyone in my family watched it, plus I got a bunch of messages and emails from people I haven’t heard from or talked to in years,” Rohach said.

With so many quarterbacks competing and with a group of high-profile coaches that included former NFL standout Trent Dilfer as the main evaluator, it was tough to get much face time in the final edit, but Rohach is seen doing a quick interview plus a few close-up shots and a few seconds of Rohach making some passes.

The field gets narrowed from 24 to the Elite 11 in the finale episode, and as previously reported, Rohach does not make the final cut. But if you don’t know, he is not giving anything away.

“Everyone is asking me about it, but I just say ‘what?' " Rohach said with a smile.

Rohach has committed to Iowa State after passing for nearly 1,900 yards as a junior. After going through conditioning drills in the spring and summer, Moorpark has finished its mandatory three-week break, and the Musketeers begin hitting in full pads this week.

“We got all our gear and took team pictures and all that stuff (on Monday), and it was a good feeling to put that helmet on again,” Rohach said.

Jameis Winston of Hueytown High in Alabama, a commit to Florida State, was one of three MVPs of the group, with Neal Burcham of Greenbrier (Ark.) and Tanner Mangum of Eagle (Idaho).

The other Elite 11 honorees were El Cajon's Shane Dillon, Bart Houston of Concord De La Salle, Chad Kelly of St. Joseph's in Buffalo, N.Y., Zach Kline of San Ramon Valley in Danville, Jeff Lindquist of Mercer Island (Wash.) High, Austin Appleby of Hoover High in North Canton, Ohio, Zeke Pike of Dixie Heights High in Fort Mitchell, Ky., and Chad Voytik of Cleveland (Tenn.).

In addition to Dilfer, the evaluating coaches also included former New York Jets quarterback Ken O'Brien.