Fresno State signs 14. Here’s what else they need in 2021 football recruiting class
On Signing Day Eve, Fresno State running back Ronnie Rivers responded to a social media post on his selection to the All-Mountain West Conference football team. “To be continued …” Rivers wrote, adding an emoji.
The somewhat cryptic message was a perfect beginning to signing day for the Bulldogs, who on Wednesday added 14 high school players and are far from done with the 2021 recruiting class. The roster and scholarship count can go in a number of directions with seniors including Rivers eligible to return for another year after a COVID-19 truncated 2020 season.
“Everyone reads into it, right, including the coaches,” coach Kalen DeBoer said of Rivers’ tweet. “The thing I just give Ronnie credit for and I’ve said it all along: He loves this place and he wants to give it all he has.
“We’re just helping him try to make the best decision for Ronnie, we really are. We’re doing that with all our seniors and what’s best for them. He’s going through that right now and figuring it out and we’re trying to help him gather as much information as we can to help him make a great decision. He has a great head on his shoulders. He loves this place. I know that for sure. He loves his teammates. He loves the coaches. He has been all in on his development and he’s come a long way. The cool thing is I think he has even further that he can go and I’d love to have us to be a part of that but we’re going to support him no matter what he decides.”
Fresno State already has had one scholarship open with backup quarterback Ben Wooldridge going into the NCAA transfer portal, and DeBoer said he expected more attrition from a 2020 team that finished 3-3 with two games canceled due to positive coronavirus tests within the program and contact tracing protocols.
The Bulldogs coach has been going through postseason interviews with players for the past two days, with more to come. But on Wednesday, DeBoer and his staff also had 14 answers.
The 14 in the Bulldogs’ signing class
Fresno State signed five players to national letters of intent on offense – running back Jordan Hornbeak from San Joaquin Memorial High; running back Johnathan Arceneaux from Lawndale High in Los Angeles; quarterback Jaylen Henderson from Chaminade Prep in West Hills; tight end Tre Watson from Cleveland High in Rio Rancho, N.M. and tackle Braylen Nelson from Vista Peak High in Denver.
The Bulldogs signed nine on defense – end Frankco Gratton from Rainier Beach High in Seattle, lineman Tito Chikere from Fort Bend Kempner High in Sugarland, Texas; tackle Julius Lewis from Central Catholic in Modesto; linebacker Charlotin Charles from Bishop Gorman in Las Vegas, Husky Malik Brooks from Desert Pines in Las Vegas, Husky Emari Pait from Culver City; cornerback Alzillion Hamilton from Hayward, cornerback Jalen Williams from Paraclete High in Lancaster and safety Julian Neal from Mission High in San Francisco.
“There are some days that are more exciting than others,” DeBoer said. “I can say that this is maybe one of the most exciting days other than taking the job and maybe going on the field for the first game this year, knowing that we had football coming back in the fall.
“We know how hard we’ve worked to put a class (together) and the class isn’t done. This is a class we’ve had in the making for a long time.”
It was an odd year, with an extended dead period due to the coronavirus pandemic. The majority of recruiting was done over the phone and in video chats with players. There were virtual tours of the campus and athletics facilities.
The Bulldogs needed to build the Husky position, a safety/outside linebacker hybrid in their 4-2-5 defense, and they did that. They needed a running back or two, and signed dynamic playmakers with different body types. They needed some help in the secondary, and their two corners and safety in the class are highly regarded prospects.
Bulldogs fill needs, will look for more
“I think we added length to our team,” DeBoer said. “I think we added just high-character guys across the board that just love football that are all in on being a Bulldog and are building those relationships already with each other and see themselves really taking this program to the next level and building on the tradition.
“I’m just fired up about this group, I really am. There will be more added to it. We’ll be very thorough, be very careful, just as we have with these 14 that have joined our program.”
The Bulldogs still are looking for help on the defensive line, in particular. They are not likely to fill in a full class of 25 initial scholarships, but could take seven or eight or more, depending on the decisions that are made by the Bulldogs’ seniors and players who might be inclined to transfer.
“We are not done there yet,” DeBoer said. “We know we need to continue to get just not even numbers, but continue to build that group up.
“We saw even in the last game we just didn’t have a lot of guys to rotate in and that hurt in the run game. We got exposed there. But these guys (Chikere, Gratton and Lewis) are a phenomenal start to our class.”
The offensive line also is an area the Bulldogs will likely add.
“We’ll have to see,” DeBoer said. “That could be one of the positions that we have to go to. We had some upperclassmen, guys that have great opportunities in different ways and guys that their bodies that have played a lot of snaps and they’re trying to figure out what their timeline is as far as goal that they want to achieve whether it’s college or the next level.
“Then the Husky, safety, corner DB, just finding the right guys for those spots, as well.”
FRESNO STATE 2021 RECRUITING CLASS
- 5-9 ,175; Lawndale High, Los Angeles
- Rushed for 1,848 yards and 23 TDs, averaging 184 ypg in junior season
- 6-2, 195; Desert Pines High, Las Vegas
Rated No. 12 prospect in Nevada in 2021 by 247Sports
- 6-2, 245; Fort Bend Kempner High, Sugarland, Texas
Had 52 tackles (39 solo) in two seasons on varsity including 22 TFLs and 10 sacks
- 6-0, 190; Bishop Gorman High, Las Vegas
- Had 57 tackles, 7.5 TFL, 5.0 sacks, 2 QB hurries, 2 interceptions in two varsity seasons
- 6-4, 215; Rainier Beach High, Seattle
Rated as a 3-star linebacker by 247Sports
- 6-0, 160; Hayward High, Castro Valley
Had 36 tackles, 4.0 TFL, 10 passes defended and 1.0 sack in two varsity seasons
- 6-3, 190; Chaminade Prep, Encino
- Completed 60.3% of his passes last season, 2,664 passing yards and 20 TDs
- 6-1, 185; San Joaquin Memorial High, Fresno
- Rushed for 1,697 yards, 18 TDs leading Memorial to CMAC title in 2019
- 6-4, 280; Central Catholic High, Modesto
- 3-star recruit by 247Sports had 37 total tackles in varsity career
- 6-4, 200; Mission High, San Francisco
- Rated as No. 126 recruit in California and No. 107 multi-position athlete in the nation
- 6-5, 300; Vista Peak High, Denver
- 3-star OL recruit had 128 total tackles, 27.0 TFL, 9.5 sacks on defense in prep career
- 6-2, 185; Culver City High, Los Angeles
- Had 64 total tackles (58 solo) and three interceptions last season
- 6-5, 215; Cleveland High, Rio Rancho, N.M.
Had 512 career receiving yards, 8 TDs, averaging 16.0 yards per catch.
- 5-11, 190; Paraclete High, Lancaster
No. 55 cornerback prospect in the nation, according to The Athletic