NSD in the books

Today was National Signing Day.  The full information is here.

Of the 21 players, 12 came from Ohio or a neighboring state.

By position:

• 4 RB
• 3 TE
• 2 WR
• 3 OL
• 3 DL
• 1 OLB
• 1 ILB
• 2 CB
• 2 S
• 0 QB

Loeffler noted there is still work to do in the portal.  We will continue to recruit our own players. Thinks we could still lose 1-2 players to Portal.  Also expects to announce some people staying. 

Caden Campbell's dad is Mark Campbell who played with Loeffler with Michigan. He is coming as a TE but Loeffler said that his Dad thinks he is a center someday.  He will need to eat his way onto the list.

Loeffler was asked about no QB. Said "we will see" if we go for a portal guy between Orth/Bazelak and Anderson.  "Was not our year" for a HS QB. 

There are three players who were verbals who did not show up as signees.

Aqil Meredith-Smith, OL, said he was re-opening his recruiting on December 4 after committing in July. So far as I can see, he did not sign anywhere.

Elijah Parker, SS, also committed in July.  His twitter photo still shows him in a BG jersey but he is not on the signing list and does not appear to have signed elsewhere.

Elijah Blue, DB, also committed in June.  His commitment post is still pinned to his Twitter feed.

You never know what is happening with these.  They sometimes committed as a PWO, in which case they might not have signed today.  Something may have happened with their eligibility.  But they were not on the official list.

Having said that, there were three players who were signed who made their choice late.

The one that has eyes-popping is Kal-El Pascal.  He is listed as a 3-star safety who had offers from Texas A&M, Auburn, Georgia BG, Akron, Arkansas State, Charlotte, FIU, FAU, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Liberty, Maryland, UMass, Duke, Pitt, WKU and WMU.  The P5 offers came a couple days apart in May. His last tweet before signing said that "when one door closes, God opens another one."

Coach said he was committed to NC State.  Brian White, from out staff, has his son on the Wolfpack staff.  He "de-committed" and we jumped on him.  He "fell into our laps."

• Notched 108 tackles and 6.0 tackles for loss in 2023 as a senior
• Recorded two interceptions and defended 22 passes as a senior
• Earned all-state honorable mention honors as a junior in 2022
• Also garnered second-team All-Dade accolades in 2022
• Recorded 180 solo tackles in his three-year varsity career and 233 tackles overall

He will enroll in January.

Isaac Hill is listed on 247 as a 3-star TE/ATH from Steubenville.  He had offers from BG and WMU--BG was his first offer in January.  I see a November news story that mentions him as a Bowling Green commit.

He was highly productive.

• Named Big 22 Player of the Year and led Steubenville to the regional title and state semifinal appearance (Big 22 is akin to being all Mahoning Valley).
• Listed at 6'4" and 210.
• Earned first-team all-state accolades
• Named Eastern District Co-Offensive Player of the Year
• Caught 61 passes for 892 yards and seven touchdowns in 2023
• He also carried the ball 11 times for 132 yards and a score
• Holds all of Steubenville’s receiving records
• Aided Steubenville to a combined 25-5 record over 2022 and 2023
• Recorded 780 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns as a junior in 2022
• Laser timed 4.60-40, 76" wing and 10" hands

Next is Jaden Copening from Hartford, CT.  BG offered him in August.  He also had one FCS offer.  Beyond that, there is not a lot of information on him.

Also, BG netted a portal transfer last night.  This young man is RJ Garcia, who is transferring from Kansas State. He's from Tampa, and was a 3-star out of Tampa.  BG offered him, along with Air Force, Army, Buffalo, FAU, Iowa State, Georgia State, Rutgers, Tulane and WMU.

As a FR he played in 3 games, made one catch and took a red-shirt.  As a sophomore, he appeared in every game and made 14 catches with 1 score.

Welcome aboard to all.