2015 JSU Football National Signing Day Headquarters
2/4/2015 7:59:00 AM | Football
JACKSONVILLE – John Grass and the Jacksonville State football team had 15 players sign National Letters of Intent on Wednesday, which was National Signing Day.
"This is a really good signing class, and it may be our best yet. We've got a really good class coming in," said Grass. "They are good people first and that's what we look for – good students and good families to add to our family. This class is going to be strong athletically.
"When you can sell that we are going to play on a national level and have a chance to win a National Championship year in and year out, and a chance to be at the top of our conference, it sells itself," added Grass. "Kids want to come to a winning program…there's a lot to be said for that and when a kid comes into a college program, they want a chance to win a National Championship."
The defending Ohio Valley Conference Gamecocks added 15 prep standouts for the 2015 season to three other newcomers that enrolled in school at the start of the Spring Semester in January.
Below is a complete list of players that signed their NLI to join the Gamecocks on Wednesday, as well as their bios and highlights from their prep careers.
2015 FOOTBALL SIGNEES (15)
Marlon Bridges (SAF, 6-0, 185, Lanett, Ala./Lanett HS)
Branqavious Bussey (OL, 6-3, 290, Lanett, Ala./Lanett HS)
Daniel Byrd (WR, 6-0, 180, Pensacola, Fla./Pensacola Catholic HS)
Jalen Choice (LB, 6-1, 227, Tuscaloosa, Ala./Hillcrest HS)
Shi'Kim Coward (RB, 5-10, 180, Niceville, Fla./Niceville HS)
Dorien Dickey (WR, 5-9, 165, Greenville, S.C./Christ Church Episcopal HS)
Tremaine Dillard (WR, 6-3, 185, Lovejoy, Ga./Lovejoy HS)
Eliah Goodman (DE, 6-4, 210, College Park, Ga./Hapeville Charter HS)
Jamari Hester (TE, 6-6, 210, Miami, Fla./Miami Central HS)
Jalyn Johnson (DE, 6-3, 230, Dadeville, Ala./Dadeville HS)
Cedric Miller (RB, 5-10, 185, Miami, Fla./Miami Central HS)
Jayse Pruitt (QB, 5-11, 194, Rainsville, Ala./Plainview HS)
Randy Robinson (DL, 6-2, 320, Lovejoy, Ga./Lovejoy HS)
Dallas Tucker (OL, 6-3, 280, Tallahassee, Fla./North Florida Christian)
Nuka Yobo (OL, 6-2, 250, Covington, Ga./Newton HS)
2015 JANUARY ENROLLEES (3)
Montrez Lang (DL, 6-2, 295,Prichard, Ala./Vigor HS)
Joel MaCandless (LB, 6-2, 229, Birmingham, Ala./Hinds (Miss.) CC)
Joseph Roberts (DE, 6-3, 215, Trussville, Ala./UAB)
2015 SIGNEE BIOS & HIGHLIGHTS
Marlon Bridges
Safety - 6-0 - 185 - Lanett, Ala. – Lanett HS
Played for head coach and former Gamecock Clifford Story (1993-96) at Lanett High School in Lanett, Ala…listed as a three-star recruit by scout.com and a two-star recruit by rivals.com…recorded over 90 tackles on defense and intercepted three passes for the Panthers…a versatile player that starred on the offensive side of the ball as well, rushed his way to Second Team All-State honors as a running back in his senior year…as a junior, was named the Opelika-Auburn News Offensive Player of the Year and First Team All-State as an athlete after running for 2,310 yards and 34 touchdowns…led LHS to an 11-1 record and to the third round of the AHSAA Class 2A State Playoffs in his junior season…chose the Gamecocks over South Alabama, UAB, Southern Miss, Arkansas State and Western Kentucky.
Branqavious Bussey
Offensive Lineman – 6-3 – 290 – Lanett, Ala. – Lanett HS
Played for head coach and former Gamecock Clifford Story (1993-96) at Lanett High School in Lanett, Ala…listed as a two-star recruit by rivals.com and 247Sports…a first team all-state selection by the Alabama Sportswriters Association in each his junior and senior season…record over 100 pancakes as a senior…helped led the Panthers to an 11-1 season and top the third round of the AHSAA Class 2A Playoffs as a junior, paving the way for first team all-state back Marlon Bridges, who ran for over 2,000 yards…chose the Gamecocks over Arkansas State, Western Kentucky, UAB, Memphis and Troy.
Daniel Byrd
Wide Receiver – 6-0 – 180 – Pensacola, Fla. – Pensacola Catholic HS
Played for head coach Greg Seibert at Pensacola Catholic in Pensacola, Fla…had 46 catches for 700 yards and six touchdowns as a senior for the Crusaders…as a junior in 2013, caught 34 passes for 669 yards and eight touchdowns…was selected to play in the Subway All-Star Football Game at the end of his senior season and was an all-area selection by the Pensacola News-Journal.
Jalen Choice
Linebacker – 6-1 – 227 – Tuscaloosa, Ala. – Hillcrest HS
Played for head coach Sam Adams at Hillcrest High School in Tuscaloosa, Ala…helped the Patriots to a 9-4 record and into the third round of the AHSAA Class 6A Playoffs…was named to the West Alabama All-Star Team by the Tuscaloosa News…128 tackles, 98 solo as a senior for HHS and racked up 484 career tackles in his career with the Patriots.
Shi'Kim Coward
Running Back – 5-10 – 180 – Niceville, Fla. – Niceville HS
Played for head coach John Hicks at Niceville High School in Niceville, Fla…listed as a three-star recruit by rivals.com, espn.com and 247Sports…a class 7A All-State selection, ran for 1,291 yards and 19 touchdowns as a senior, averaging seven yards per carry…also an all-district and all-region back for the Eagles…had four 100-yard rushing games in his senior year and averaged 92 yards per game…ran for 216 yards and two scores against Crestview on Oct. 31 of his senior year, capping a streak of six-straight games with two rushing touchdowns…also caught 15 passes for 188 yards on the year…led NHS to four district titles and two state runner-up finishes…chose the Gamecocks over several schools, including East Carolina, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Lafayette, Middle Tennessee, South Florida, Southern Miss, Troy, UCF and Western Kentucky.
Dorien Dickey
Wide Receiver/Athlete – 5-9 – 165 – Greenville, S.C. – Christ Church Episcopal
Played for head coach Don Frost at Christ Church Episcopal in Greenville, S.C…listed as a two-star recruit by rivals.com…helped lead the Cavaliers to four-straight Class A state championships…named to the South Carolina Football Coaches Association All-State Team as a junior and senior…helped Christ Church to what was a 54-game winning streak over his career, the third-longest active streak in the country when his senior season ended…selected to participate in the 2014 North-South All-Star Game…chose the Gamecocks over East Tennessee State, The Citadel, Holy Cross, Mercer and Youngstown State.
Tremaine Dillard
Wide Receiver – 6-3 – 185 – Lovejoy, Ga. – Lovejoy HS
Played for head coach Edgar Carson at Lovejoy High School in Lovejoy, Ga…listed as a three-star recruit by 247Sports and espn.com and a two-star recruit by rivals.com…had 20 catches for 443 yards, over 22 yards per catch, and four touchdowns for the Wildcats in 2014, when they finished as runners up in Region 2-AAAAAA…chose the Gamecocks over East Carolina, Indiana, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Iowa, Marshall, Miami (OH), Middle Tennessee, Richmond and Southern.
Eliah Goodman
Defensive End – 6-4 – 210 – College Park, Ga. – Hapeville Charter HS
Played for head coach Winston Gordon at Hapeville Charter High School in Atlanta…recorded 80 tackles, five tackles for a loss and eight sacks as a senior for the Hornets…over his career, racked up 240 stops and 20 sacks…played his first two seasons at Alcovy High School…also plays basketball and baseball at Hapeville Charter HS.
Jamari Hester
Tight End – 6-6 – 210 – Miami, Fla. – Miami Central HS
Played for head coach Roland Smith at Central High School in Miami, Fla….led the Rockets to a No. 3 ranking in the state of Florida…listed as a two-star recruit by rivals.com…led Central High School to its third straight Class 6A State Championship…as a senior, caught eight passes for 122 yards and two touchdowns…had six catches for 72 yards and a score in his junior season with the Rockets.
Jalyn Johnson
Defensive End – 6-3 – 230 – Dadeville, Ala. – Dadeville HS
Played for head coach Richard White at Dadeville High School in Dadeville, Ala…led the Tigers into the second round of the AHSAA Class 4A Playoffs as a senior in 2014…had 92 tackles, 36 solo, nine sacks and forced a fumble for the Tigers as a senior…averaged over seven tackles per game and had double-digit tackles in a game twice…had 23 quarterback hurries…named to the 2014 Super 12 Team By the Alex City Outlook…led DHS to region titles in 2012 and 2013…a first-team all-region performer and second team all-state selection as a junior.
Cedric Miller
Running Back – 5-10 – 185 – Miami, Fla. – Miami Central HS
Played for head coach Roland Smith at Central High School in Miami, Fla…led the Rockets to their third-straight state championship in his senior year…listed as a two-star recruit by scout.com and 247Sports…named All-Dade County by the Miami Herald after leading Dade County in rushing with over 1,800 yards and 10 touchdowns…a second team all-state selection…named MVP of the Battle of the Borders Classic, a 21-20 win over Stephenson (Ga.) that saw him run for 159 yards on 22 carries…the week before, ran for 127 yards on 18 carries in a win over No. 7 Hoover (Ala.) on national television.
Jayse Pruitt
Quarterback – 5-11 – 194 – Rainsville, Ala. – Plainview HS
Played for head coach Dale Pruitt at Plainview High School in Rainsville, Ala…the son of Georgia defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt…led the Bears to the second round of the AHSAA Class 3A State Playoffs after a 34-6 win over Weaver in the first round…was named MVP of 3A Region 7…led PHS to the 3A Region 7 title with a perfect 7-0 mark in region play, its first region title in seven years.
Randy Robinson
Defensive Lineman – 6-2 – 320 – Lovejoy, Ga. – Lovejoy HS
Played for head coach Edgar Carson at Lovejoy High School in Lovejoy, Ga…listed as a two-star recruit by rivals.com…a first team all-state pick by the Georgia Sportswriters Association and also named to the All-Region 2-AAAAAA Team as a senior…named one of Georgia's 10 best Offensive Linemen in 2014 by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution…earned first team all-state honors as an offensive lineman…also won the Clayton County title in the shot put as a member of the LHS track and field team…chose the Gamecocks over James Madison and William & Mary.
Dallas Tucker
Offensive Lineman – 6-3 – 280 – Tallahassee, Fla. – North Florida Christian
Played for head coach Robert Craft at North Florida Christian in Tallahassee, Fla…listed as a two-star recruit by rivals.com…a first team all-state selection as a senior for the Eagles…named to the Tallahassee Democrat's All-Big Bend Team…helped pave the way for an Eagles offense that threw for over 2,000 yards and ran for almost 2,000 yards in 2014…led NFC to the third round of the FHSAA State Playoffs.
Nuka Yobo
Offensive Lineman – 6-2 – 250 – Covington, Ga. – Newton HS
Played for head coach Terrance Banks at Newton High School in Covington, Ga…an all-region performer that was also selected to the DL Scott Coalition Bowl and the Georgia/Florida All-Star Classic…recorded 30 pancakes on offense and 15 tackles for a loss on defense…also intercepted a pair of passes…was named NHS Most improved Player as a sophomore and the team's Defensive Line MVP as a senior…after his team's first-round win over Valdosta, was named Athlete of the Week by the Covington News…led the Rams to the quarterfinals of the 2015 state playoffs…also threw the discus on the NHS track and field team.
2015 JANUARY ENROLLEES
Montrez Lang
Defensive Lineman – 6-2 – 295 – Prichard, Ala. – Vigor HS
Played for head coach Ashley Johnson at Vigor High School in Prichard, Ala…listed as a two-star recruit by rivals.com…led the Wolves to the AHSAA Class 5A State Playoffs as a senior…cose the Gamecocks over Western Kentucky, Memphis, Samford and Northwestern State.
Joel McCandless
Linebacker – 6-2 – 229 – Birmingham, Ala. – Wenonah HS/Hinds CC
Played his high school football at Wenonah High School in Birmingham before signing with Hinds Community College in Jackson, Miss., in 2014…played just one season at HCC, recoding 24 tackles as a freshman…at Wenonah, was named Defensive Player of the Year by the Birmingham Athletic Partnership.
Joseph Roberts
Defensive End – 6-3 – 215 – Trussville, Ala. – Hewitt-Trussville HS/UAB
Spent the 2014 season at UAB, where he redshirted for former JSU head coach Bill Clark…was a two-star recruit out of Hewitt-Trussville High School in Trussville, Ala., where he totaled 76 tackles and nine for a loss as a senior…tied for the team lead with three sacks and also broke up three passes.
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