Charles Rogers, former Michigan State football, Detroit Lions star, dead at 38
Charles Rogers was an energetic star with an infectious smile and breathtaking talent, but it was never enough to squash the turbulence in his life.
That’s how Rogers — the former Michigan State football All-American and Detroit Lions wide receiver — is being remembered after the Saginaw native died Monday morning following a recent hospital stay.
He was 38.
Rogers’ mother, Cathy, was with her son at a Florida hospital when he died but had no further comment when contacted by the Free Press. She told the New York Times he died of liver failure.
Rogers’ former teammates and coaches said he also had been battling cancer.
Born May 23, 1981, Rogers starred at Saginaw High, where he won a state football championship in 1999, and was an All-American at Michigan State before he was taken by the Lions as the No. 2 overall pick of the 2003 NFL draft.
He is considered one of the biggest busts in NFL history.
“How I will remember him is different than how everybody else will remember him,” Matt Millen, the former Detroit Lions general manager, said Monday. “How I’ll remember him is a great kid with a good heart with a lot of skills, that mismanaged some things.”
Rogers’ career never took off as he struggled with drug issues. The 6-foot-3, 220-pounder had just 36 catches for 440 yards with four touchdowns in 15 games before he left the league in 2005.
Former MSU quarterback Ryan Van Dyke said he had heard late last week that Rogers was not doing well. The two played together for two years in East Lansing.
“I was just talking about him yesterday,” said Van Dyke, who was at MSU from 1998 to 2001. “Just a child-like spirit, always positive, always with a smile on his face. Even though the star was bright on him, the spotlight, he never failed to include people. He wasn’t your diva-centric receiver, was not like that.”
Van Dyke remembered visiting Saginaw to see Rogers, Jeremiah McLaurin and Stuart Schweigert while they were in high school to try and recruit them to join him with the Spartans. MSU was losing Plaxico Burress, and Van Dyke believed Rogers “was my guy” to replace Burress as his top target.
“When I was talking to (Rogers) probably last year, I was on the phone with him a few times, and we were just catching up and stuff. I was really just trying to gauge where he was at,” Van Dyke said.. “And he was like, ‘Man, you were my guy.’ And I was like, really? Because I had got hurt when Jeff (Smoker) came in and did a good job. And (Rogers) was like, ‘Yeah, I came to Michigan State to play with you.’ I was like, wow. He said, ‘Yeah, you threw me my first touchdown pass.’ He’s telling ME that, you know?
“It should be me being like, ‘Man, I threw it to Charles Rogers.’ He never failed to recognize everyone. He was very conscientious of everyone. It’s just sad.”
