USU signs 19 to play football, seven for soccer
The culminating event of a year’s worth of recruiting for the coaching staffs of the Utah State University football team and women’s soccer team took place Wednesday, Feb. 6. The teams signed 19 football players and seven soccer players to national letter of intents to compete for the Aggies.
Football
Despite being disappointed over USU’s inability to land another junior college defensive end, Head Coach Mick Dennehy was pleased with a balanced recruiting class that featured 10 junior college transfers and nine incoming freshmen.
“I think it is really an exceptional class,” Dennehy said. “All and all, I think we made ourselves [a] better [team] without question.”
Of Dennehy’s nine high school recruits, seven hail from the state of Utah including two Utah class players of the year. Logan High product Ryan Bohm, the class 4A Player of the Year in 2000, and Northridge’s Jase McCormick, the 2001 5A Player of the Year, bring success and maturity to the program, Dennehy said.
“They [Bohm and McCormick] certainly know nothing but success, and in my opinion, I think that’s extremely important,” he said.
USU’s other Utah high school recruits include Spencer Bailey of Northridge, Pace Jorgensen of Grantsville, Mike Martini of Fremont, Alii Seiuli of Pine View and Terrance Washington of Ben Lomond.
Bailey, Jorgensen, Martini and Seiuli were selected as first-team all-state picks in their respective classifications, while Washington saw his senior season cut short after three and one-half games due to a knee injury.
The other two high school recruits USU landed are Jordan Houtz (Fort Collins High School in Fort Collins, Colo.) and Joe Lindsay (Edison High School in Fresno, Calif.).
“We think we did pretty well high school wise,” Dennehy said.
Of USU’s 10 junior college signees, five are mid-year transfers, meaning they will be able to participate in spring practices – a big plus to the program, Dennehy said. Dennehy said he hopes USU’s junior college transfers will be able to step in and play right away.
Two areas Dennehy felt USU was able to especially bolster were the offensive line and defensive backs.
“We feel our offensive line is to the point where we have some guys that can play and that will not suffer a drop-off,” Dennehy said.
When talking about defensive backs, Dennehy said it was important to sign a couple of safeties out of the JC ranks to help offset the losses of Nathan Barber to graduation and Steve Tate, who will serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Dennehy said they were able to do just that, signing Kevin Anderson and Mike Rosencrans.
“We had to get some [safeties] that were close to being ready to play, and we feel getting the two mid-year kids, Anderson and Rosencrans was huge for us,” Dennehy said.
Women’s Soccer
While the football team signed several junior college players to letters of intent, the women’s soccer team took a different route as all seven players it signed were out of the high school ranks.
Soccer Head Coach Jen Kennedy Croft feels the team landed several recruits who can immediately contribute to the program.
“This is a big class, and we’re really excited,” Croft said. “We have a lot of kids who should be able to step in and contribute right away.”
Among the recruits Croft expects to contribute right away, are Chanel Balquiere (Alta Loma, Calif.), Tiffany Jones (Orem) and Charlsie Harris (Taylorsville).
“I’m hoping Tiffany Jones, Charlsie Harris and Chanel Blaquiere can make an impact right away,” Croft said. Blaquiere and Jones will probably play the midfield position for USU, Croft said, while Harris will play forward. However, Croft said all three are versatile enough to play more than one position.
The other Utah recruits, Mountain Crest High School product Jennifer McCann and Sandy native Elizabeth Mason – both outside fullbacks – probably won’t see much action their freshman year, Croft said, but will be impact players in the future.
“I don’t foresee [McCann and Mason] being impact players their first year, but I anticipate they will contribute greatly to our program in the next couple of years,” she said.
USU also signed center midfielder Jessica Donelson (Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.) and goalie Amy Johnson (Eugene, Ore.).
“Amy Johnson, we really liked her personality-wise,” Croft said. “I think she’ll give Megan Mills some competition for the starting goalkeeper.”
Although Croft said she was worried about Donelson’s lack of height as a center midfielder – Croft said Donelson is about 5-foot-3 – she is excited about the speed and quickness Donelson brings to the team.