As he stands on the sideline, talking with his receivers, Jeffrey Godfrey is plotting his next play. He is thinking about what will happen during the next series. He has always been that way.

At 5-11 and 180 pounds, the Central High senior quarterback has heard all the critics have their say about what he isn't or might not be at the next level. He has overheard college coaches talking about what will happen when they get him on campus, thinking of turning him into a receiver or defensive back.

For those who have followed his career, growing up in Miami, at Edison High during his freshman season and at Central the past three years, they laugh at the very thought that this gifted run/pass prospect will play any other position than the one he has been groomed for all of his 17 years.

Godfrey is not someone who is playing the position because there is nobody else to play it. He is back there because he's the best senior in Florida, and perhaps the entire Southeast. He has the credentials to back up the hype that began nearly three years ago.

While many who cannot fully grasp what this talented prospect represents, maybe they should sit down with college coaches and recruiters who know the game. During the spring practice, it was Godfrey who entertained more than 100 college coaches from all over the country, and not one left with any doubt in their mind.

OK, so he is not the prototypical drop-back passer that some schools are looking for, but as the captain of a spread offense, this strong-arm, quick-footed standout might have no rival. He is a 300- to 400-yard-a-game player who will beat you with his arm, feet and mind.

As college coaches watched him in a spring practice, all agreed he was making throws that established college quarterbacks aren't making, and that endorsement came from SEC, ACC and Big Ten coaches who have more than watched their share of outstanding prospects.

What Godfrey has become is so impressive that even his detractors continue to find things to pick apart, and while it bothers his teammates and family members, he has learned to let it roll off his shoulders.

In the spring game against a Belle Glades Central team that is as athletic as you will find, many found fault with the three interceptions he threw rather than focus on the fact he passed for more than 300 yards and guided an offense that rolled up more than 600 yards against one of the most impressive programs in the state.

While many kept pointing to the fact the Rockets got a bulk of their yards against backups, coaches and fans could only laugh at such a foolish comment, especially when Godfrey and the Rockets have been putting up these types of numbers for three seasons.

While nobody is touting the Rockets as the national champions, this program understands that to convince anyone they are for real, beating Northwestern is not an option.

Last year, the Rockets beat the Bulls, stopping a lengthy winning streak, but even though that victory was huge, it became hollow when Godfrey and his teammates couldn't finish the job, losing to the Bulls in the playoffs.

Even his head coach, Telly Lockette, a one-time Northwestern standout running back, knows the Rockets will need to beat Northwestern twice, which is never an easy task.

Godfrey has offers from FSU, Georgia, Michigan, Miami, USF, Tennessee and USF -- with schools such as Oregon, Florida, Ohio State and many others watching over the next few months.

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