Sam Rodgers, a former Syracuse University football player and candidate for state senator, received an $11,800 donation from a former SU offensive lineman to bolster his campaign. 

John Lally, who was a three-year letter winner at SU from 1977 to 1981, made what became the single largest contribution to Rodgers’ campaign, according to Syracuse.com. 

Rodgers, a Republican, is challenging the incumbent Rachel May (D-Syracuse), who has represented New York’s 53rd Senate District since 2019. The 53rd District includes parts of Onondaga and Oneida counties and all of Madison County. 

May serves on the state Senate’s Committee on Aging and Commission on Rural Resources and has co-sponsored legislation supporting environmental policies and women’s health care efforts. May previously worked at Syracuse University as sustainability education coordinator. Her agenda lists increasing funding for public schools and revitalizing Syracuse’s Interstate 81 corridor.  

Rodgers currently works as an assistant district attorney in Madison County. He has cited central New York’s declining population as a major issue facing the area, and he said he hopes to prioritize legislation that would attract young professionals to the region.

Lally was honored by the Syracuse football club in 2011 with the Mike Zunic award. He and his wife donated $25 million to SU Athletics last year, and they donated $1 million to SU’s football team in 2017. 

During his time at SU, Rodgers organized two mission trips to Haiti where he taught children English, built greenhouses and ran a soccer clinic at an orphanage. Rodgers also started the Syracuse chapter of Uplifting Athletes, a nonprofit that helps college athletic departments raise money to combat rare diseases. 

Rodgers graduated from SU in 2015 and earned a law degree from Cornell University in May 2019. He is currently pursuing a master’s in public administration at SU’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, according to his campaign website.

Published on October 29, 2020 at 3:02 am

Contact Sarah: scalessa@syr.edu | @sarahalessan