Football

American Athletic Conference Fares Well on National Signing Day

A look at how American Athletic Conference teams fared on Signing Day 2015. Please note that Navy, which joins The American in 2015, will officially announce its incoming class July 1 as part of the academy's Induction Day.
 
UCF
 
Rashard Causey DB 6-0 190 Miami, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas
Aaron Cochran HB 6-3 262 Atlanta, Ga./Hapeville Charter
Titus Davis DL 6-3 230 Ellenwood, Ga./Stockbridge
Marcus Foster LB 6-2 225 League City, Texas/Clear Falls
Quintin Hampton LB 6-0 235 Moultrie, Ga./Colquitt County
Brendon Hayes DL 6-4 255 Laplace, La./Brother Martin
Luke Hiers OL 6-3 285 Lake Wales, Fla./Lake Wales
Tyler Hudanick OL 6-5 300 Harmony, Pa./Seneca Valley
Pat Jasinski LB 6-2 218 Roswell, Ga./Blessed Trinity Catholic
Neal Nelson LB 6-2 215 Sicklerville, N.J./Timber Creek
Tristan Payton WR 6-1 185 Jacksonville, Fla./First Coast
Bo Schneider QB 6-4 225 Dallas, Texas/Jesuit
Brandon Scott DB 6-0 185 New Sarpy, La./Destrehan
Cam Stewart WR 6-3 190 Snellville, Ga./Shiloh
Monte Taylor DL 6-4 245 Springdale, Md./Charles H. Flowers (ASA College)
D'erren Wilson WR 6-3 195 Greenville, Texas/Greenville
 
“I would say that this class is the most talented class since I’ve been here, as far as filling needs, I think what helped in the living room was the exposure we’ve gotten on national TV, I think that’s where the American Conference has really helped us.”
- Head Coach George O’Leary
 
Cincinnati
 
Christian Angulo CB 6-2 175 Gibsonton, Fla./East Bay
Reed Armagost OL 6-6 230 Gainesville, Fla./Gainesville
Caleb Ashworth DE 6-3 235 Dry Fork, Va./Tunstall
Doug Bates TE 6-4 230 Cincinnati, Ohio/Moeller
Brayden Beard * WR 5-10 186 Fredericksburg, Texas/IMG Academy
Taylor Boose RB 6-0 200 Clifton, Va./Centreville
Malik Clements S 6-2 185 Danville, Va./George Washington
Daniel Cobb * WR 5-10 170 Fort Myers, Fla./Dunbar
Marquise Copeland DE 6-3 230 Bedford, Ohio/Bedford
Jhavonte Dean CB 6-1 168 Homestead, Fla./South Dade
Josiah Deguara TE 6-3 210 Folsom, Calif./Folsom
Matthew Draper LB 6-2 214 South Euclid, Ohio/Brush
Joshuwa Holloman RB 5-11 180 Auburn Hills, Mich./Avondale
Bryce Jenkinson * LB 6-2 220 Greenville, Ohio/Greenville
Lyndon Johnson DE 6-6 270 West Point, Miss./West Point/Holmes CC
Antonio Kinard * LB 6-3 220 Youngstown, Ohio/Liberty/Arizona Western
Frank Labady * ATH 5-7 170 Hialeah, Fla./Champagnat Catholic/Milford Academy
Kahlil Lewis WR 6-0 180 Hollywood, Fla./Miramar
Evan Mallory * OL 6-5 302 Brownsburg, Ind./IMG Academy
Tyler McGarr OL 6-4 275 Hamilton, Ga./Harris County
Jaylyin Minor LB 6-1 240 Navasota, Texas/Navasota/Tyler JC
Delonte Murray * OL 6-5 311 Burtonsville, Md./Springbrook/Lackawanna
Braxton Neal WR 6-4 168 Cincinnati, Ohio/Lakota West
Norman Oglesby DT 6-0 265 Indianapolis, Ind./Ben Davis
Josh Pasley * K 5-11 205 Lenexa, Kan./DeSoto/Highland CC
Idarius Ray * OL 6-5 305 Amarillo, Texas/Palo Duro/LA Valley
Ross Trail QB 6-3 200 Wynne, Ark./Wynne
Bryan Wright * DE 6-4 235 New Castle, Del/Jireh Prep
 
“We’ve been recruiting this class for two years. Most of them came to our camps, so we know about them. We evaluated them. We’re around them personally, watch them work athletically. Now the group next year will have a chance to be better because we’ve been recruiting them for three years. It’s a three-year cycle. Now this being our third year, from now on we’ll have three years of information on the kids that we recruit, three years of watching them work out, going to practices, watching their games.”
- Head Coach Tommy Tuberville
 
 
UConn
 
 
Frank Battle WR 6-5 190 Miami, Fla./Belen Jesuit Prep
Tyraiq Beals WR 6-0 180 East Orange, N.J./East Orange
Felton Blackwell DL 6-2 323 Egg Harbor, N.J./Cedar Creek
Ian Campbell TE 6-5 225 Pompton Plains, N.J./Pequannock
Bryan Cespedes OL 6-7 260 New London, Conn./New London
Tyler Davis QB 6-3 214 North Bellmore, N.Y./Mepham
Connor Freeborn DL 6-6 225 Wilmington, Del./Salesianium School
Aaron Garland DB 5-11 190 Oak Park, Ill./Fenwick
Zordan Holman TE 6-6 235 Portland, Maine/Cheverus
Chris Lee TE 6-7 225 Severna Park, Md./Severna Park
Hergy Mayala WR 6-1 200 Montreal, Que./Trinity Pawling (N.Y.)
Aaron Mclean WR 6-6 210 Southborough, Mass./St. Mark's
Kevin Murphy DL 6-2 270 West Chester, Pa./West Chester East
Philippe Okounam DL 6-5 265 Chateauguay, Quebec/St. Paul's School (N.H.)
Dallas Parker OLB 6-5 235 Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla./Ponte Vedra
Matthew Peart OL 6-8 265 Bronx, N.Y./Governor's Academy (Mass.)
William Richardson OLB 6-3 220 Washington, D.C./Frank W. Ballou Senior
John Robinson DB 6-2 185 Englewood, N.J./Dwight Morrow
David Ryslik DE 6-3 292 Freehold, N.J./Peddie Schook
Michael Tarbutt K 6-0 180 Buffalo, N.Y./Canisus
Marshe Terry DB 6-4 190 Columbus, N.J./North Burlington
Nazir Williams OLB 6-3 225 Bridgeton, N.J./Bridgeton
 
 
“We detailed out as a staff what we were looking for – smart and responsible young men, tough. Not only contact tough but mentally tough. Coachable, respectable and unselfish, committed, self-motivated and resilient. Enthusiastic, passionate and high energy. We walked away from the ones that didn't fit. We continued to recruit the ones that did.”
- Head Coach Bob Diaco
 
East Carolina
 
Darius Anderson OL 6-3 330 Jonesboro, Ga/Mundy's Mill HS
Tony Baird ILB 6-3 210 Virginia Beach, Va/Ocean Lakes HS
Justin Brown DL 6-3 310 Greenville, N.C/Ayden-Grifton HS
Deondre Farrier WR 6-1 195 Orlando, Fla/Lake Nona HS
Shawn Furlow RB 5-10 187 Greenville, N.C/South Central HS
Colby Gore DB 5-11 170 Little River, S.C/North Myrtle Beach HS
John Jacobs QB 6-2 220 Shawnee, Okla/Shawnee HS
C.J. Maybin OLB 6-4 195 Pompano Beach, Fla/Cardinal Gibbons HS
Dalton Montgomery OL 6-6 225 Corinth, Texas/Lake Dallas HS
Nhyre Quinerly DB 5-11 180 Portsmouth, Va/Lake Taylor HS
Justin Sandifer OL 6-5 310 Greenwood Miss/Hinds CC
Derrell Scott RB 5-11 179 Havelock, N.C/Havelock HS
Corey Seargent DB 6-0 180 Rock Hill, S.C/Northwestern HS
Kyron Speller DL 6-1 235 Virginia Beach, Va/Kempsville HS
Justin Strozier WR 6-1 170 Stockbridge, Ga/Woodland HS
James Summers WR 6-3 210 Greensboro, N.C/Hinds CC
Darius Wright ILB 6-0 220 Irmo, S.C/Hutchinson CC
 
“We feel this is a really good class with big-play ability, line depth and strong local ties. We’ve built this program brick-by-brick and believe that every one of these young men has the ability to make an impact, both on and off the field. Any time you can put people in a positive and powerful environment, they will have the opportunity to succeed at the highest level.”
- Head Coach Ruffin McNeil
 
Houston
 
Chance Allen WR 6-2 200 Missouri City, Texas/Oregon
Rusty Clark TE 6-5 255 Saucier, Miss./Pearl River CC
Ryan Deshotel TE 6-4 241 Pearland, Texas/Pearland HS
Emeke Egbule LB 6-3 215 Galena Park, Texas/North Shore HS
Michael Eke DB 6-2 200 Houston, Texas/Cypress Falls HS
Kameron Eloph ATH 6-4 285 Bossier City, La./Parkway HS
Darius Gilbert DB 6-2 190 Springhill, La./North Webster HS
Leroy Godfrey LB 6-3 225 Missouri City, Texas/Elkins HS
Tyreik Gray RB 5-11 185 Houston, Texas/Lamar HS
Kobe Idumwonyi TE 6-2 225 Cedar Hill, Texas/Cedar Hill HS
D.J. Jenkins LB 6-2 245 Huntsville, Texas/Huntsville HS
Josh Jones OL 6-6 280 Richmond, Texas/George Bush HS
Kevrin Justice RB 5-11 190 Kilgore, Texas/Kilgore HS
Terry Mark WR 6-1 190 Lufkin, Texas/Lufkin HS
Jordan Milburn LB 6-2 215 Galveston, Texas/Ball HS
William Noble OL 6-4 280 Leander, Texas/Rouse HS
Camden Ross LB 6-2 241 Fort Worth, Texas/Timber Creek HS
Adam Schulz QB 6-2 210 Muskego, Wis./Utah
Devin Smith WR 6-2 180 River Ridge, La./John Curtis HS
Tyrell Thompson DE 6-3 255 Copperas Cove, Texas/Copperas Cove HS
Jarrid Williams OL 6-5 276 Cedar Hill, Texas/Cedar Hill HS
 
“We’re thrilled for this class as a whole. We have a wide array of players coming in from guys who were already committed and loved the University of Houston, guys who had been recruited to our program and we were able to seal the deal with and guys who had been committed to other schools but saw what Houston had to offer them. I’m just thrilled they allowed me to build a relationship with them in the short period of time we were provided to establish a new era of Houston Football.”
- Head Coach Tom Herman
 
 
Memphis
 
Tim Belles LS 6-6 255 Germantown, Tenn./Houston HS
Ross Burcham WR 6-5 215 Adamsville, Tenn./Adamsville HS
Tyler Charrette * DB 6-1 200 Martinez, Calif./Berean Christian HS/Laney College
Marcus Childers QB 6-2 200 Adairsville, Ga./Adairsville HS
Emmanuel Cooper DL 6-1 250 Arkadelphia, Ark./Arkadelphia HS
Brady Davis QB 6-4 200 Starkville, Miss./Starkville HS
Keenen Davis * OL 6-5 293 Horn Lake, Miss./Horn Lake HS
Mark Dodson * ATH 5-10 198 Memphis, Tenn./Whitehaven HS/Ole Miss
Michael Edwards * DT 6-2 300 Madison, Wis/Sun Prairie HS/Iowa Western CC
Steven Enis LB 6-2 240 Fayette, Ala./Fayette County High School
Jared Gentry DL 6-2 323 Opelika, Ala./Opelika HS
Tre Hamilton WR 6-3 197 Humble, Texas/Atascocita HS
Darrell Henderson RB 5-9 190 Batesville, Miss./South Panola HS
Jamarius Henderson RB 5-11 215 Ozark, Ala./Dale County HS
Grayson Hubbard PK 6-1 180 Warwick, Va./Warwick HS
Khalil Johnson DE 6-5 255 Dallas, Texas/Kimball HS
Kedarian Jones WR 6-1 175 Dallas, Texas/Kimball HS
Peyton Jones DE 6-6 236 Memphis, Tenn./Memphis University School
Drew Kyser * OL 6-5 299 Opelika, Ala./Opelika HS
Ryan Mack * OL 6-5 305 Memphis, Tenn./Wooddale  HS/Louisville
Arthur Maulet DB 5-11 195 Harvey, La./Bonnabel/Copiah-Lincoln CC
DeMarco Montgomery * DE 6-2 270 Atmore, Ala./Spanish Fort HS/East Mississippi CC
Jae’Lon Oglesby * WR 5-11 175 Central, S.C./D.W. Daniel HS/Fork Union Military Acad.
Brytain Peddy OL 6-5 310 Munford, Tenn./Munford HS
Tony Pollard ATH 5-11 196 Memphis, Tenn./Melrose HS
Darian Porter LB 6-3 220 Louisville, Ky./Seneca HS/Mt. San Jacinto College
Joseph Prevost LB 6-1 219 Marrero, La./Archbishop Shaw HS
Kam Prewitt DB 5-11 171 Pinson, Ala./Clay-Chalkville HS
Nick Raby DE 6-4 260 Cape Coral, Fla./Baker HS
Mechane Slade ATH 5-8 160 Roswell, Ga./Roswell HS
 
“I’m excited about this signing class. Obviously, there is a lot of balance in it. From just a pure numbers standpoint, I think we helped ourselves with the kids and the type of players that we brought in. We needed to make a big charge in our skill position areas. We have been trying the best we can to plan for this day ahead of time. I’m proud of the kind of regional diversity we have in this class. Obviously, we want to do a great job here locally. We’re basically recruiting throughout the southeast part of the United States. I think some of our work in Alabama paid dividends this year along with some of our local work.”
- Head Coach Justin Fuente
 
 
USF
 
Deangelo Antoine WR 5-10 185 Orlando, Fla./Oak Ridge HS
Billy Atterbury OL 6-4 286 Clearwater, Fla./Clearwater Central Catholic HS
Chris Barr WR 5-10 165 Jacksonville, Fla./Trinity Christian Acad.
Jarvis Baxter WR 5-11 165 Garland, Texas/ Lakeview Centennial HS/Trinity Valley CC
Glen Bethel OL 6-6 300 Miami, Fla./Champagnat Catholic HS/Arizona Western C.C.
Cameron Campbell OL 6-3 270 Pembroke Pines, Fla./Flanagan HS
Malik Dixon S 6-3 195 Port Charlotte, Fla./Port Charlotte
Nate Ferguson  CB 5-9 170 Tampa, Fla./Sickles HS
Reilly Gibbons * OL 6-6 305 St. Petersburg, Fla./St. Petersburg Catholic
Marlon Gonzalez DT 6-4 260 Cape Coral, Fla./North Fort Myers HS
Ronnie Hoggins DB 5-10 160 Coconut Creek, Fla./Monarch HS
Brett Kean QB 6-1 205 Lakewood, Ohio/St. Edward HS
Kirk Livingstone DE 6-4 235 Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Stranahan HS
Khalid McGee DB 5-10 180 Miami, Fla./Miami Northwestern HS
Marcus Norman OL 6-6 290 Sebastian, Fla./Sebastian River HS
Jordan Reed WR 5-10 170 Tampa, Fla./Plant HS
Trevon Sands RB 5-11 170 Miami, Fla./Southwest Miami HS
Nico Sawtelle LB 6-2 215 Jensen Beach, Fla./Jensen Beach HS
Danny Thomas * LB 6-1 230 Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Amos P. Godby HS
Jaymon Thomas DB 6-3 180 Immokalee, Fla./Immokalee HS
Mitchell Wilcox TE 6-4 225 Tarpon Springs, Fla./Tarpon Springs HS
 
“I’m really excited about this signing class. I think that we addressed a lot of needs in this class. Our guys came in and hit the ground running with recruiting. I thought it was really an outstanding job by our coaching staff. We made sure we put a great emphasis on getting some more speed in this class. It’s refreshing knowing that all of the hard work you put in pays off.
- Head Coach Willie Taggart
 
 
SMU
 
Keaton Bates OL 6-4 265  Arlington, Texas/Arlington Lamar
Chris Biggurs DT 6-3 245  Coppell, Texas/Coppell
Xavier Castille WR 5-11 195  Rockwall, Texas/Rockwall
Rodney Clemons S 6-0 185  Katy, Texas/Taylor
Austin Corbett LB 6-4 200  Plano, Texas/Plano East
Myron Gailliard WR 5-9 165  Mansfield, Texas/Mansfield Timberview
Xavier Jones RB 5-10 180  Spring, Texas/Spring
Hunter Herndon TE 6-4 236  Forney, Texas/North Forney
Ben Hicks QB 6-2 200  Waco, Texas/Waco Midway
Alex Honey WR 6-4 194  Denton, Texas/Denton Guyer
Mitchell Kaufman LB 6-3 217  Dallas, Texas/Highland Park
Marcus McNeil OL 6-3 300  San Antonio, Texas/Madison
Matt McNew LB 6-3 220  Robinson, Texas/Robinson
James Proche WR 5-11 185  Dallas, Texas/Desoto
Delontae Scott DE 6-5 200  Irving, Texas/Irving Nimitz
Michael Scott DE 6-4 220  Irving, Texas/Irving Nimitz
Hunter Thedford DE 6-7 225  Comanche, Texas/Comanche
Kevin Thomas WR 6-2 180  DeSoto, Texas/Desoto
Braeden West RB 5-10 170  Katy, Texas/Seven Lakes
Bryce Wilds OL 6-7 305  Freeport, Texas/Brazosport
Jordon Williams LB 6-1 195  Houston, Texas/Jersey Village
Josh Williams K 5-11 180  Rowlett, Texas/Rowlett
 
“We are extremely happy with this first class. We got some difference-makers and some guys who will have a shot at contributing next season. Things are only going to get better for SMU Football. It’s a great day to be a Mustang.”
- Head Coach Chad Morris
 
 
Temple
 
Ryquell Armstead RB 5-11 205 Millville, N.J./Millville
Jeremiah Atoki DB 6-2 190 Vineland, N.J./Vineland South
Josiah Bronson DL 6-5 265 Covington, Wash./Kentwood
Chapelle Cook LB 6-1 214 Lakewood, N.J./Lakewood
Jovahn Fair OL 6-3 285 Akron, Ohio/Firestone
Jager Gardner RB 6-2 205 Black Mountain, N.C./Owen
Daishaun Grimes LB 6-2 192 St. Cloud, Fla./Harmony
Benson Israel OL 6-1 316 Spring Valley, N.Y./St. Joseph's (N.J.)
DeAndre Kelly DL 6-3 238 Hyattsville, Md./DeMatha
Dana Levine DL 6-4 213 Hallandale Beach, Fla./Hallandale
Roy Pugh TE 6-4 196 South Orange, N.J./Malcolm X Shabazz
Jake Robinson TE 6-3 208 Haddonfield, N.J. /Haddonfield Memorial
T.J. Simmons RB 6-1 195 Lakeland, Fla. /Lakeland Christian
Cortrelle Simpson WR 5-10 175 Indian Head, Md./Lackey 
Greg Webb DL 6-1 312 Sicklerville, N.J. /Timber Creek/Hutchinson (KS) C.C.
Taiyir Wilson LB 6-2 210 Collegeville, Penn./Perkiomen Valley
Dawayne Young DL 6-3 280 Philadelphia, Penn./Martin Luther King
Kareem Ali, Jr. DB 5-11 175 Sicklerville, N.J./Timber Creek
Logan Marchi QB 6-1 170 Bristol, Conn. /St. Paul Catholic
William Updegrove LB 6-2 230 Berwick, Penn. /Berwick Area
 
“The Temple T really traveled well for us. As we went around the country, we have found that the university has become a national brand. We still stayed true to our roots, but with the new landscape and our ability to travel and so many people seeing us play, we went a little bit more national. For us to compete at a high level, we had to get the best 25 guys we could, and I think we did so.”
- Head Coach Matt Rhule
 
 
Tulane
 
Nigel Anderson RB 5-10 187 LaPlace, La./East St. John HS
Darius Black S 5-10 166 Belle Chasse, La./Belle Chasse HS
Zachary Block P/K 6-4 182 Clermont, Fla./East Ridge HS
Leeward Brown OL 6-3 344 Miami, Fla./Miramar HS
Malik Eugene S 5-8 162 Lafayette, La./Acadiana HS
Jeremie Francis CB 6-10 166 New Orleans, La./Warren Easton HS
Devin Glenn RB 5-6 144 New Orleans, La./Warren Easton HS
Douglas Henry CB 5-10 162 New Iberia, La./Westgate HS
Keyshawn McLeod OL 6-4 250 Port Charlotte, Fla./Port Charlotte HS
Taris Shenall CB 5-10 171 Marrero, La./John Ehret HS
Dedrick Shy CB 6-1 161 New Orleans, La./Warren Easton HS
Keeyon Smart OL 6-4 332 Baton Rouge, La./McKinley HS
Roderic Teamer S 5-11 191 New Orleans, La./Brother Martin HS
John Washington DT 6-1 302 West Monroe, La./West Monroe HS
Brian Webb DT 6-0 298 New Orleans, La./Miller-McCoy Academy
Darius Williams WR 6-2 195 New Orleans, La./McDonogh 35 HS
 
“I said from my very first day here that we wanted to declare this `The State of Tulane,'" Johnson said. "We made it a point to keep the local talent here in New Orleans to not only create a great atmosphere on game day but also to build a foundation for a winning tradition. We've been doing this for four years now and the inroads we've made as a staff with the state's high school head coaches is paying off. Some of these kids were recruited by some big-time schools, we're glad to have them and I look forward to seeing them in action when we start preseason camp in August.”
- Head Coach Curtis Johnson
 
 
Tulsa
 
Jarion Anderson WR 5-9 167 Texarkana, Texas/Texas HS
Michael Anderson DE 6-3 235 Owasso, Okla./Owasso HS
Blake Browning OL 6-0 290 Pflugerville, Texas/Hendrickson HS
Diamon Cannon LB 6-2 210 Killeen, Texas/Shoemaker HS
Trevis Gipson DE 6-5 210 Cedar Hill, Texas/Cedar Hill HS
Austin Grotts DE 6-3 250 Broken Arrow, Okla./Bixby HS
Khari Harding * LB 6-2 220 Edmond, Okla./Auburn University
Will Hefley QB 6-5 205 Little Rock, Ark./Pulaski Academy
Christopher Ivy Jr. OL 6-4 295 Wichita, Kan./Wichita Heights HS
Chris Minter TE/FB 6-3 230 Temple, Texas/Temple HS
Alex Pagonis OL 6-5 320 Gulf Breeze, Fla./Fort Scott CC
Chad President * QB 6-3 206 Temple, Texas/Temple HS
J.R. Reed * DB 6-1 185 Frisco, Texas/Prestonwood Christian Acad.
David Richardson II DB 5-11 170 Rockwall, Texas/Rockwall HS
Reggie Robinson DB 6-1 185 Cleburne, Texas/Cleburne HS
Javon Thomas RB 6-2 215 Texarkana, Texas/Texas HS
Keidrien Wadley DB 6-1 185 Irving, Texas/Ranchview HS
McKinley Whitfield ATH 6-4 194 Spiro, Okla./Spiro HS
Cristian Williams DB 6-0 170 Dallas, Texas/Lincoln HS
Tristan Wyatt OL 6-5 290 Shawnee, Okla./Shawnee HS
 
“As we looked at our roster when I first got here and we were looking at areas of concern, we had some depth issues in some certain spots, and in our signing class we tried to address those, especially in the back seven defensively. You see several secondary guys on there, trying to provide depth, length, speed back there. We did it in a hurry but we’re excited about those additions. Then, when you start talking about the two quarterbacks that we added, you’ve got a great All American in there, and you’ve got the No. 9 dual-threat quarterback. So we feel like we attacked and saw some issues. We are excited about them getting on campus”
- Head Coach Philip Montgomery
 
 
 
 
 
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