CARLOS BLACKMON, GOSNELL

CONWAY - The University of Central Arkansas football coaching staff added 20 new recruits Wednesday, the first day of the National Signing period, giving head coach Steve Campbell and his staff 28 newcomers to the Bears program.

The 20 newcomers join a group of eight mid-year transfers already enrolled at UCA.

The state-by-state breakdown features eight from the state of Arkansas, seven from Mississippi, five from Texas, two from Oklahoma, Florida and Louisiana and one each from Georgia and Alabama.

The Bears open the 2016 season with three consecutive home games, beginning on Thursday, Sept. 1 against Southland Conference foe Houston Baptist.

• MID-YEAR TRANSFERS •

• Chandler Dexter

6-6, 255, Tight End

Northeast Mississippi Community College, Booneville, Miss.

Tishomingo High School

Luka, Miss.

• Tishomingo High School

All Conference 2012, 2013

All Division 2012, 2013

All Region 2012

East/West All-Star 2013

7on7 National Tournament

2013 Team Captain

Played basketball

1st Team defensive player baseball, with five home runs

• Northeast Community College

All Conference TE 2013-2014

22 Receptions for 250 Yards and 2 Touchdowns

3.6 GPA

Phi Theta Kappa member

Noted as a Blocking TE

• James Graves

6-1, 235, Linebacker

Mississippi Gulf Coach Community College, Perkinston, Miss.

Bassfield (Miss.) High School

• Bassfield HS

2012 MaxPreps All-American LB

2012 Miss/Ala All Star Game

2012 All State LB

2012 2A Defensive player of the year

2012 State Champions (16-0)

4-year letter winner basketball

Wendy's High School Heisman Award

Class Valedictorian

Beta Club, Mu Alpha Theta, FCA

4.019 GPA

• Mississippi Gulf Coast CC

2015 led team with 95 tackles

2015 had 55 solo tackles

Honors program

Member Phi Theta Kappa - 3.8 GPA

 

• Jaylon Lofton

6-1, 180, Cornerback

East Central Community College, Decatur, Miss.

Forest (Miss.) High School

• Forest HS

2013 All State

2013 All District

2013 North/South All Star game

2011 3A State Champions

All Region Track (100m, 4x200m, 4x100m)

2013 All District Soccer player

3.2 GPA

• East Central Community College

2015 2nd Team All State

2015 Playoff Appearance

2015 Heart of Texas Bowl

Finished in the top 10 in the country

• Austin McIntosh

5-11 200, Long Snapper

Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, Perkinston, Miss.

D'Iberville High School, Biloxi, Miss.

• D'Iberville High School

2-year letter winner

2013 District Champions

2014 East/West All Star pitcher in baseball

Honors program

3.4 GPA

• Mississippi Gulf Coast CC

2-year letter winner

2015 North/South All Star game

2014, 2015 Playoff appearances

2015 South State Champions

3.4 GPA

• Trai Mosley

Mid-Year Transfer

5-10, 170, Defensive Back

University of Nebraska

Hendrickson High School

Pflugerville, TX

2013 Class 5A Division II State Playoffs

2013 All-District Team

Top 60 Cornerback in the Nation by Scout.com

Top 105 Players in Texas by 24/7 Sports

• Micah Parten

6-2, 300, Offensive Line

East Central (Miss.) Community College, Decatur, Miss.

Northwest Rankin High School

Flowood, Miss.

• Northwest Rankin

North/South All-Star 2013

All-Metro 2013

All-State 2013

Playoff appearance 2011, 2013

Team Captain 2012, 2013

Honors Student 3.4 GPA

• East Central Community College

Team Captain 2015

Playoff Appearance 2015

Heart of Texas Bowl 2015

Ranked 10th Country 2015

• James Patrick Ponder

6-1, 190, Punter

Jones County Junior College, Ellisville, Miss.

Bay High School

Bay St. Louis, Miss.

• Bay High School

All District Kicker 2013, 2014

North/South All-Star 2014

All Sea Coast Team 2014

All District Soccer 2013

State Champions Soccer 2013

Honors Society Member

4.0 GPA

• Jones County JC

All State 2015.

All Region 2015

First-team NJCAA All American 2015

43.1 punting average

• Conner Wood

6-6, 300, Offensive Lineman

Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College, Miami, Okla.

Owasso (Okla.) High School

• Owasso HS

2013 All District Team

2013 All State Team

3-year starter, letter winner

2012, 2013 State playoffs

2-year letterman in track

Member of FCA

3.6 GPA

• Northeastern Oklahoma A&M

Started every game (18)

2015 2nd Team All Area

• FIRST-YEAR PLAYERS •
• Carlos Blackman

6-1, 220, Running Back

Gosnell High School

2012 Conference Champs

2013 Conference Champs

2014 Conference Champs

2014 1st Team All-Conference

2015 1st Team All-Conference

2015 1st Team All-State

Academic Honor Roll

2015 Stats

269 Points Scored in Regular Season (most in Arkansas)

2,368 Rushing Yards

12 Yards Per Carry

215.3 Yards Per Game

38 Total Touchdowns (including a 97 yd TD Run)

Scored 6 TDs in a game 3 Times

Hooten's Ark Football Magazine rated #20 player in Arkansas

• Kierre Crossley

5-8, 156, Running Back

Everman (Texas) High School

2015 All-State Team

2015 All-District Team

2015 District Leading Rusher

2015 District MVP

Junior Olympian (Track and Field) 5 Straight years

Career Stats

7,009 Rushing Yards

775 Carries

175.2 Rushing Yds per Game

88 Rushing Touchdowns

9.0 Yds per Rush

Rushed for over 3,000 yards as a junior, 2nd in the nation

24/7 Sports 2-star

#114 running back in the nation

Rivals 2-star

• Breyden DeSpain

6-3, 200, Wide Receiver

Oologah (Okla.) High School

2015 Tulsa World All-World WR Nominee

2015 All-District 4A-3

2015 Verigris Valley All-Confrence Team

2015 Tulsa World All-State Team

#47 Rated Player in Oklahoma

2015 Oklahoma All-Star

2 Time 4A State Runner-Up

Career Stats

129 Receptions

2,752 Receiving Yards

25.3 Yards per Reception

32 Receiving Touchdowns

Three-sport athlete (football/basketball/track)

• Nathan Grant

6-4, 225, Defensive End

Hebron High School

Carrollton, TX

2015 All-District Team

3 Time Academic Honor Roll

All-District track and field athlete

• Joe Hampton

6-2, 180, Wide Receiver

Little Rock Christian Academy

2015 5A West Wide Receiver of the Year

2015 Team Captain

2013 All-Conference Team

2015 All-Conference Team

2015 All-State Team

2015 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette All Arkansas Team

2015 Career

157 Receptions

2,125 Receiving Yards

24/7 Sports 3-star

Rivals 2-star

#13 player in state by Arkansas Varsity

#26 player in state preseason by Hooten's Arkansas Football magazine

• Adrian Harris

6-4, 289, Offensive Line

John Tyler High School

Tyler, TX

2015 1st Team All East Texas Super Team

2015 1st Team All-District 16-5A

2015 1st Team All East Texas

2015 FCA All-Star Game

2015 Stats

106 Knockdowns

67 Pancakes

2 Sacks as Defensive Tackle

3 Tackles for Loss

24/7 2-star

Rivals 2-star

• Jackie Harvell

5-11, 187, Running Back

Gurdon High School

2013 All State Team

2014 All State Team

2015 All State Team

2015 Offensive Gurdon Player of the Year

2015 Farm Bureau Awards Finalist

352 Rushing Yards in a Single Game

Set the school record for single season rushing yards

2015 2A Track and Field Championship

2015 Stats

2,152 Rushing Yards

213 Carries

32 Receiving TDs

2-Star Rivals

Hooten's Ark Football Magazine rated #31 player in state

• Victor Hill

6-2, 210, Linebacker

West Florida Tech High School

Pensacola, FL

2015 Super Senior Award

2015 District 1-5A Champions

2014 District 1-5A Champions

Selected to play in the 2015 Subway High School All-Star Game

24/7 2-star rated

J.W. Jones

6-4, 235 lbs, Defensive End

Rayville (La.) High School

2015 2nd Team All State

2015 All-District Team

2014 All-District Team

2013 All-District Team

2015 Co-Captain Defensive Player of the Year

2015 District All-Academic Team

National Honor Society

2015 Stats

46 Solo Tackles

22 Assisted Tackles

7 Tackles for Loss

2 Interceptions

3 Sacks

1 Fumble Recovery

brother Edgar Jones played 8 years in the NFL (Ravens/Chiefs/

Cowboys/Browns)

• Justin Meadows

6-1, 190, Wide Receiver

Lonoke High School

2015 4A State Triple Jump Champion

2015 4A State Long Jump Champion

2015 4A All-State Team

2014 4A All-State Team

2015 Hootens St. Vincent Super Team

2015 4A State 100m Runner-Up

2015 4A State Long Jump Champion

2015 Stats

805 Rushing Yards

14.9 yds per attempt

54 Carries

80.5 yds per game

17 Rushing Touchdowns

35 Total Touchdowns

15 Receiving Touchdowns

• Joshua Nix

6-5, 250, Tight End

Deshler High School

Tuscumbia, AL

2015 1st Team All-Area

2014 4A State Runners-Up

2015 4A State Playoffs

2014 4A State Playoffs

2013 4A State Playoffs

2012 4A State Playoffs

2015 Stats

100 Tackles

21 Tackles for Loss

11.5 Sacks

• Austin Norris

6-5, 258, Defensive Line

Conway High School

2014 7A Central All-Conference

2014 7A All-State

2015 7A Central All-Conference

2015 7A All-State

2015 Hooten's St. Vincent Super Team

2015 Stats

92 Tackles

9 Sacks

11 Tackles for Loss

15 QB Hurries

1 Fumble Recovery

5 Pass Breakups

Rivals 2-star

24/7 Sports 2-star

Rated #17 player in state by Hooten's Ark Football Magazine

• Brandon Northcross

6-0, 185, Wide Receiver

Ashdown High School

Career Stats

134 Carries

754 Rushing Yards

49 Receptions

676 Receiving Yards

13.8 Yards per Catch

54 Solo Tackles

5 Interceptions

680 Return Yards

22 Total Touchdowns

Rated #23 player in state by Hooten's Ark Football Magazine

• Kevin Perkins

6-0, 215, Running Back

Rosa Fort High School

Tunica, MS

2015 All-State Team

2015 All-District Team

2014 All-District Team

2015 District Player of the Year

Academic Honor Roll

Career Stats

1954 Rushing Yards

8.1 Yards per Carry

240 Carries

948 Passing Yards

41 Total Touchdowns

24/7 2-star

2nd-rated running back in Mississippi

Rated Top 100 player by Clarion-Ledger

• Robert Rochell

6-2, 180 lbs, Defensive Back

Fair Park High School

Shreveport, LA

2015 All-District Team

2015 All-Shreveport Team

2015 Stats

922 yds Rushing

93 Carries

465 yds Receiving

25 Receptions

3 Pass Breakups

3rd in state of Louisiana in 100 meters (10.8)

• John Parker Romo

5-11, 157, Kicker

McIntosh High School

Peachtree City, GA

5 Sport Athlete

2014 Special Teams MVP

2015 All-Region Team as Kicker

2015 All-Region Team as Punter

2015 UCA Kicking Camp Champion

2014 Soccer Team finished 22-0 (#1 in the Nation)

2012 Special Teams Player of the Year

2011 Top Charting Score at Jackson Kicking Camp in

Orlando, FL

2015 Georgia Southwest Bowl I Nominated Kicker and Punter

2015 Stats

23/31 Touchbacks

15/15 PATs

5/11 FGs (Long 48)

42 yd Avg Punt (Long 61)

TJK rating 4-star

Chris Sailer Kicking #48 kicker in nation

 

• Leandre Rucks

6-6, 180, Safety

Strong High School

2015 1st Team All District 8-2A

2015 Union County All-Area Team

2015 2A State Playoffs

2015 Stats

824 Rushing Yards

405 Receiving Yards

13 Total Touchdowns

63 Tackles

4 Interceptions

10 Yards per carry

36 Total Touchdowns

Rated #39 player in state by Arkansas Varsity

• Breylin Smith

6-3, 187, Quarterback

Conway High School

2013 All-Conference Team

2014 All-State Team

2015 All-State Team

THV 11 Player of the Week (September 11, 2014)

Passed for over 2,000 yards all 3 years as a starter

2013 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette All Metro Team

2015 Stats

2,333 Total Yards

17 Total Touchdowns

6.3 Rushing Yards Per Carry

212 Yards per Game

3-star by 24/7 Sports

2-star by Rivals

Rated #12 player in state preseason by Hooten's Ark Football magazine

• Tyler Wallace

6-6, 254, Offensive Line

Milton (Fla.) High School

Defensive Player of the Week

2015 2nd Team PNJ All-Area Team

Selected 2015 Scholar Athlete

All-Area track and field athlete

• Hunter Watts

6-7, 295, Offensive Line

John Marshall High School

San Antonio, TX

2015 1st Team All-District

2015 Starter in San Antonio All-Star Game

2015 Team Captain

Academic Honor Roll

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