DAYTONA BEACH, Florida --Under the direction Head Coach Terry Sims, recently completing his third year at the helm of the Wildcats Football program following the 2017 playing season, Bethune-Cookman enjoyed its fourth National Signing Day Class under the Jesup, Georgia native on Wednesday, Feb. 7. The day concluded with the sixth annual Signing Day Bash at the Michael & Libby Johnson Center for Civic Engagement.
The fax machine in the BCU Department of Intercollegiate Athletics began going off at exactly 7:46 a.m.
The number of total commits for the day would total 25 as Terry Sims oversaw what many think to be one of the best recruiting classes in the history of Bethune-Cookman Football. In breaking down the positions for the Wildcats, BCU inked nine receivers, five defensive backs, four defensive linemen, two quarterbacks, two running backs, two tight ends and one offensive lineman.
"The coaching staff went out and had their sights set on key positions that we needed to strengthen during the off-season," expressed Sims, the 2015 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Coach of the Year. "I think the staff did an excellent job getting the recruits we wanted to get, as well as a few surprises in the mix. Overall, I am very pleased with this year's class."
From 7:46 a.m. through 8:36 a.m., a total of 17 National Letters of Intent came through the BCU Office of Athletics Compliance with ink from recruits set to continue their education and play football at BCU.
In contrast to the 2017 recruiting class, BCU saw a total of 16 NLIs come through the fax machine altogether a season ago.
One major change in this year's class that sets it apart from any other in school history – the amount of California commits that will play for the Maroon and Gold during the 2018 season. In all, five (5) future Wildcats hail from the "Golden State", coming across the country to the "Sunshine State".
Among the California commits is Nico Lima (Camarillo), Maurice Gardin (Los Angeles), Marc Martin (Atascadero), Kyeree Wallace (Los Angeles) and Kaelin Humphrey (Long Beach). Humphrey, a junior college transfer from Los Angeles Southwest College, attended perennial national power Long Beach Poly. Meanwhile, Lima – a product of Moorpark College and another transfer for the Cats, was an all-county selection and all-state honorable mention performer on the baseball diamond.
"We made it an emphasis to recruit the entire nation, and that means going coast to coast," stated Sims when referring to California players committing to BCU. "We wanted to hit on guys that we felt could play high-quality football in a great league, compete for a chance in a bowl game, as well as getting an environment similar to home with the weather here in Florida."
Closer to home in this year's signing class, Alvin Harper Jr. (Lakeland, Fla.) transfers into the BCU program from Butte College, despite originally signing with Florida A&M out of Victory Christian High in his hometown of Lakeland, Florida. Other fellow Floridians include Henry Miller (Kissimmee, Fla.), a highly-touted defensive back transferring back to the Central Florida area after spending two years at the University of Pittsburgh.
Additionally, the quarterback duo of Devin Black (Ruskin, Fla.) and Kyle Smith (Jacksonville, Fla.) inked just moments after each other, coincidentally, adding to the stable of dual-threat quarterbacks for Sims and Offensive Coordinator Allen Suber moving forward. They join Akevious Williams and Jabari Dunham already placed at BCU the previous three seasons.
BCU had 16 total inked future Wildcats from the "Sunshine State", including six from the Central Florida area. Another four come via South Florida, and three hail from the western half of the state in the Tampa/St. Petersburg area.
"It's always good to recruit at home because everyone is beating down the doors trying to get into Florida and recruit the talent we produce in this state on a yearly basis," expressed Sims. "A lot of times, the talent is right underneath your nose because of how many talented kids there are here."
Not to be outdone, Sims added Trenten Jackson from his hometown of Jesup, Georgia, as well as De'Ron Maxwell (Woolwich, N.J.), Tydarius Peters (Jayess, Miss.) and Lebronze Allen (New Iberia, La.) to the out-of-state NLI list of incoming Wildcats for 2018.
"As we get ready for spring ball, just like in year's past, this class sets a tone for the upcoming 2018 campaign," concluded Sims. "Every position will be up for grabs, and we have plenty of guys that want to play each week. So, every single meeting; every single practice; every single game will be ultra-competitive."
For complete bios and the up-to-date list of the 2016 signing class, please click here.
Follow Bethune-Cookman Football on Twitter (@BCUGridIron) for all of the latest news and updates. For all Bethune-Cookman Athletics news, follow us on Twitter (@BCUathletics), Instagram (@BCUathletics), Snapchat (@BCUathletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/BCUathletics).
| 2018 BETHUNE-COOKMAN WILDCATS FOOTBALL SIGNING CLASS | |||||||
| PLAYER | POS | HT | WT | HOMETOWN | TIME SIGNED | BIO | VIDEO |
| Henry Miller | DB | 6-3 | 205 | Kissimmee, Fla. | 7:46 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Alvin Harper, Jr. | WR | 5-10 | 175 | Lakeland, Fla. | 7:48 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Nico Lima | TE | 6-3 | 250 | Camarillo, Calif. | 7:50 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Maurice Gardin | OL | 6-4 | 340 | Los Angeles, Calif. | 7:52 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Marc Martin | RB | 6-1 | 225 | Atascadero, Calif. | 7:54 a.m. | Bio | View |
| De'Ron Maxwell | CB | 6-2 | 205 | Woolwich, N.J. | 7:56 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Bryan Jefferson | WR | 6-0 | 195 | Leesburg, Fla. | 7:58 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Victor Harvey | DB | 6-0 | 180 | Hollywood, Fla. | 8:01 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Tydarius Peters | SAF | 6-0 | 190 | Jayess, Miss. | 8:03 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Kyeree Wallace | WR | 6-2 | 175 | Los Angeles, Calif. | 8:05 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Lebronze Allen | WR | 6-4 | 185 | New Iberia, La. | 8:09 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Kaelin Humphrey | WR | 6-4 | 215 | Long Beach, Calif. | 8:14 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Desmond Pete | DT | 6-3 | 275 | Pompano Beach, Fla. | 8:16 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Terrell Ware | CB | 6-1 | 176 | Orlando, Fla. | 8:19 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Darryl Powell | WR | 6-4 | 190 | Pompano Beach, Fla. | 8:21 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Aaron Thompson | RB | 5-9 | 180 | Orlando, Fla. | 8:25 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Albert Fuller III | TE | 6-2 | 237 | Williston, Fla. | 8:36 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Anthony Bingham | DE | 6-4 | 200 | St. Petersburg, Fla. | 9:14 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Trenten Jackson | WR | 6-3 | 175 | Jesup, Ga. | 10:03 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Tyrese Spain | WR | 5-9 | 170 | Tampa, Fla. | 10:11 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Devin Black | QB | 6-2 | 190 | Ruskin, Fla. | 10:40 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Kyle Smith | QB | 6-2 | 186 | Jacksonville, Fla. | 10:44 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Zeryus Coleman | WR | 5-11 | 175 | Miami, Fla. | 10:58 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Rakeem Terry | DT | 6-1 | 280 | Homestead, Fla. | 11:23 a.m. | Bio | View |
| Judas McKenzie | DT | 6-2 | 270 | Ft. Myers, Fla. | 2:47 p.m. | Bio | View |
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