CHADRON, Neb. -- February 3, 2016 -- The Chadron State College football team received 28 signed National Letters of Intent on National Signing Day Wednesday, according to head coach Jay Long.
 
Long praised the the incoming class, saying he'd never had as many players, with as many other quality offers, who instead chose his program.

"I'm excited about the incoming class," said Long. "We addressed some needs and brought in a bunch of athletic kids. I'm really proud of the local kids who chose to stay close to home and play for us. We try to just go out and get the best kids in our area at every position."

It is a class marked by length as well as speed. The average skill position player measures over six feet, one and a half inches. With linemen included, it averages nearly 6'2".

Six players from Nebraska signed NLIs with CSC today - all from the central or western parts of the state. The in-state prospects are linebacker/end Brendan Folk (North Platte), linebacker Lane Helgoth (Burwell), linebacker/end Jake Heeren (Sidney), running back Brad Johnston (Scottsbluff), linebacker Andy Manzo (Lexington), and athlete Baden Shelmadine.
 
A particulary large contingent of eight Coloradans joins the team for 2016. Seven of the eight come from the Front Range, while offensive lineman Jake Norris of Fort Morgan provides the exception. The rest of the Colorado natives include safety Cole Anderson (Westminster), defensive tackle Alex McFall (Aurora), o-lineman Sam McKinley of Colorado Springs, kicker/punter Will Morgan of Fort Collins, quarterback Ty Murphy of Falcon, Castle Rock's Kegan Parker, a defensive end, and defensive tackle Kyle Robideau of Englewood.

From Wyoming, four individuals chose CSC and its proximity to home. Safety David Becker is the closest, coming across the border from Torrington. Inside receiver Baylor Hayes is a product of Cheyenne. Brendan Hopkins, a defensive tackle, comes all the way from Green River, and Dalton Holst, a prolific quarterback in his home state, comes from Gillette.

Two Rapid City natives make up the South Dakota portion of the class. They are teammates Jon Hansen, an offensive lineman, and safety Cole Thurness, of St. Thomas More high school.

The remaining eight players hail from five other different states. The Eagles recruited Colorado, Wyoming, and South Dakota heavily as usual. However, this year's crop of signees includes a trio of Floridians, a pair of Cali products, and one Texan. They also pulled a strong offensive line prospect from Idaho, and a native of Washington State with ties to the program.
 
From the Sunshine State, the highly athletic group includes cornerback James Aiken III (Plantation), safety Louis Smith (Sebastian), and Tevon Wright, a wideout from Hialeah.
 
Californian Mauricio Santos (Needles) will compete at kicker/punter. His fellow Golden State compatriot is cornerback Michael Thompson of Stockton, who will join the Wood brothers from his alma mater of Stagg high school.
 
The Lone Star State has a lone representative in Kendrick Holmes (Houston) who will compete at cornerback.
 
Offensive line prospect Trystan Villano is a rare Idaho resident joining the Eagles. He becomes the only member of the team from the Gem State.
 
Finally, Donavan Sellgren, an Arlington, Washington, gridiron star, will follow fellow Arlington High graduate Max Gray to Chadron State

"For the past two years we've had great recruiting," said Long, "but what we were able to do this year is target individuals a little more than in the years past. I'm confident we got the best guys that fit our program." 
 
Long said he expects five to ten more student-athletes to sign in the coming days.