CHADRON, Neb. -- The Chadron State College football team added 40 incoming freshmen to its roster on Wednesday, the official National Signing Day for Division II football.
 
Of the 40 signees, 11 hail from Nebraska, 11 are from Colorado, seven call Wyoming home and the other 11 currently live in Montana, Utah, Illinois, Arizona, Florida, Texas, California and South Dakota, including walk-ons.  
 
"Our focus this year was on improving the size of our team," Head Coach Jay Long said. "We recruited 24 student athletes over 6'2.
 
The group contains five defensive linemen and linebackers, six safeties and one corner defensively. On offense, four wide receivers, three tight ends and running backs, one quarterback and 13 offensive linemen join the Eagles.
 
"It takes a ton of time, people and effort to recruit one student-athlete," Long said. "I would like to thank our campus, professors, admission staff, our team, coaches and athletic department for providing the effort of showing these young men how special of a place Chadron State College is."
 
The lone South Dakota signee is a 6-1, 220-pound linebacker, Gideon Waldrop. Waldrop was named 1^st Team All-State and the Rapid City Journal Best of the West LB while playing at Rapid City Central High School.
 
State runner-up and Nebraska 6-Man Football Offensive Player of the Year, Gage Mintken, will travel the 21 miles west from Hay Springs to continue his football career at CSC at safety. Two more local signees from Nebraska are Grady Robbins from Gering and Theron Miller form Hemingford. Miller, who signed with with CSC Track and Field and will walk on with football, is listed as a 6-2 215-pound defensive end while Robbins is a 6-1 225-pound linebacker.  
 
Other signees from Nebraska include Wyatt Anderson from Amherst, Garrett O'Hare from Kearney, Rio Redmund from Arnold, Quincy Ryker from Sargent, and Brady Dahlberg from Thedford.
 
Signees from Wyoming include Logan Ortega (Douglas), Fletcher Black (Mountain View), Keaton Mills (Upton-Sundance), Colter Hanft (Tounge River), and Ty Sheets (Riverton).
 
Joining from the state of Colorado are Bryson Driks (Holyoke), Tristan Randall (Pine Creek), Cameron Meyer (Arvada West), AJ Dickens (Strasburg), Eli Martinez (Cherry Creek), Wyatt Sprague (Holyoke), Matthew Jennings (Colorado Springs), Riley Suarez (Loveland) and Brady Varney (Severance).
 
The remaining signees will come to Chadron from across the country. The list includes Stuart Oberg (Naples, Fla.), Alexander Vargas (Miami, Fla.), DeAndre Berry (Palmetto, Fla.), Isaac Jean-Pierre (Mesa, Arizona), Jaxon Harris (West Jordan, Utah), Corben Holler (Sidney, Mont.), Gerardo Vasquez Jr. (Odessa, Texas), Parker Schwarting (Joliet, Ill.), and Alijah Bruce (San Bernardino, Calif.).
 
"This group has a ton of potential. We had a great class last year and I am excited to see how this class develops," Long said.