Wake Forest icon Rodney Rogers passes away
Rodney Rogers, one of the most transformational players in Wake Forest basketball history, passed away Friday. He was 54 years old.
Rogers, known as the “Durham Bull,” was ACC freshman of the year in 1991, leading the Deacons to the NCAA tournament.
Coach Dave Odom has referred to Rogers as the most important recruit of his tenure. He was first to sign with Wake Forest, and Randolph Childress was the next domino of that recruiting class.
“I do not come to Wake Forest without Rodney Rogers. He and Charles Harrison, who also recently passed away, were at a Nike camp together, and that’s where our lifelong friendship began,” Childress said through a news release. “Rodney is the strongest person I have ever met — physically and mentally — and his resilience was evident in the fight he showed every single day.
“I’ve said this before and I still mean it today: he was the best athlete ever to walk onto Wake Forest’s campus.”
Rogers was the 1993 ACC player of the year. He left Wake Forest after three seasons. For his career, he averaged 19.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per game, and he was the ninth overall pick by the Denver Nuggets in the 1993 draft.
Over a 12-year NBA career, Rogers averaged 11 points per game and earned NBA Sixth Man of the Year honors before retiring in 2005.
In 2008, a life-altering accident left Rogers paralyzed from the shoulders down, yet he remained a powerful and inspirational presence. His perseverance, positive outlook and commitment to others led to the establishment of the Rodney Rogers Foundation, where he encouraged individuals living with spinal cord injuries and used his platform to promote resilience and personal growth.
“It’s easy to focus on his extraordinary talent, but what stood out to everyone who knew him was that he was every bit as remarkable as a human being,” Odom said. “He loved his teammates, he loved his family, he loved Wake Forest and he loved the game of basketball. He loved playing for Wake Forest.
“Every time we visited him, I walked away reminding myself never to complain — because he never did. He faced life exactly as it came and made the very best of every moment. He was a joy to watch as a basketball player, but he was an even greater man.”
Rogers is survived by his wife, Faye; and his children, daughter Roddreka, currently an assistant coach with Georgia State women’s basketball and a former Georgia Tech standout (2013–16); son Rodney Rogers II; and daughter Rydeiah, who played basketball at NC State from 2015–19.
