Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Football signs 18 on Signing Day
12/18/2019 | 3:59:00 | Football
Nick Hill Opening Statement
"I would like to thank our staff. Everything here, we do together. If it wasn't for everyone believing in the same vision, I don't think we would be able to do this thing. Recruiting is a lot of hard work. It goes back to usually about a year at our level as far as knowing these kids and putting a lot time and effort. It's not just these last couple of weeks getting on the road. It's a lot of phone calls at night when you're with your family and text messages when you're on the road. It's camps, traveling the country, home visits and all of that stuff. It's special whenever a class comes together like this. I just can't thank my staff enough and Gaizka Crowley – the director of recruiting. He organizes everything and everybody.
Everybody has had a great vision on what this class needed to be and we feel like we have put together a special class. We joke around that you won't really know what this class will be until a couple years down the road. We play in a game where some guys will be able to come here and contribute right away. We play in a game where people will have to develop and you have to project a little bit with some of these guys. They will come in here, you got to develop them, redshirt them and they will get better. If your roster is where you want it, the redshirt freshmen will start to play a little bit and your older guys on the roster who have been in the program and know what's expected can be the ones who the younger guys learn from. They can learn the winning traditions and what the culture is all about. You'll be hearing some of these names right away. You'll be hearing some of these names a few years down the road. I think that's a good thing. So, we're excited. Eighteen guys is a lot guys to sign in the early signing period. It's the most we've ever signed in the third year for it. I'm excited to talk about these guys publicly, since you can't up until today."
Gianini Belizaire
Defensive Tackle
6-1, 293, Freshman
Gonaives, Haiti | Snider HS (IN)
Pronounced G-uh-knee-knee | Bell-uh-zar-ee … Named to the Indiana Football Coaches Association Top 50 All-State team … One of five players on the Class 6A All-State team … All-Northeast area selection as a senior, and first-team All-Conference in 2018 and 2019 … Recorded 32 tackles for loss and 13 sacks during his junior and senior seasons … Racked up 16 tackles for loss with five sacks as a senior and 15 tackles for loss with eight sacks and 61 total tackles … Also wrestles and has a 27-4 career record and leads the team in pins … A three-year track letterman … Moved from Haiti to U.S. in 2012.
Coach Hill: "He just committed to us this past week and was the first guy to send in his NLI this morning. His best days are in front of him. He was born in Haiti, came over here when he was nine years old, so the game is new to him. He's a big, strong kid — maybe similar to Malik (Haynes). Awesome kid — we've had five kids come here from Haiti since I've been a head coach and they've been a pleasure to coach — super appreciative and hard-working."
D'Ante' Cox
Wide Receiver
5-11, 180, Junior
Rochester, Ill. | Rochester HS | Missouri Baptist
Twin brother of Salukis WR Avante Cox … As a freshman at Division II Missouri Baptist in 2017, recorded 37 catches for 738 yards and 6 TDs … Also rushed four times for 12 yards and 2 TDs … Transferred to Illinois in 2018 as a walk-on but did not play … At Rochester High School from 2014-16, teamed with his brother to help the Rockets to a 35-5 overall record and two Class 4A state championships (2014 and 2016) … During those three seasons, caught 110 passes for 2,100 yards (19.1 yards per reception) and 20 touchdowns … Missed five game his senior year with a broken arm.
Coach Hill: "We all know Avante Cox, and it's his identical twin brother. He's kind of had a longer road to get here. We've been trying to get D'Ante' here for a little while. He'll have two years to play, similar type skill set to his brother. If you watch their high school film, similar-type stuff — playmaker with the ball in his hands, elite speed, and has just gotten bigger and stronger."
Jaylen DeVries
Quarterback
6-2, 200, Freshman
Clear Lake, Iowa | Clear Lake HS
School record holder in passing yards and passing TDs … As a senior in 2019, passed for 2,358 yards, 29 touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 58.2 completion percentage, plus 519 rushing yards and eight TDs … Named Class 2A First-Team All-State by the Iowa Print Sports Writers Association, All-District 3 and All-Area … Team finished 10-1 in 2019 and advanced to the state quarterfinals … All-State selection as a junior, in which he threw 22 TD passes and no interceptions … A starter at quarterback since the second-to-last game of his freshman year … Coached by his father, Jared DeVries, who was an all-American at Iowa, and played 12 years in the NFL for the Detroit Lions as a defensive lineman … Also plays basketball.
Coach Hill: "I've known Jaylen for a while because my brother-in-law is the defensive coordinator at Clear Lake. He's just an all-around great kid, comes from an awesome family. You probably know his dad, Jared DeVries, a Hall of Famer at the University of Iowa who played for the Detroit Lions and is (Clear Lake's) head coach, so he's a coach's son. He's grown up in pro locker rooms. He's had one "B" in high school and it was a freshman English class and it makes him sick to talk about it. He's a competitor. He's a good basketball on a team that won third at state last year, he runs track."
Zach Gibson
Tight End
6-5, 205, Freshman
Romeoville, Ill. | Romeoville HS
Has played only two seasons of organized football … At Romeoville, played quarterback for his dad, Oliver Gibson, who enjoyed a long NFL career with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals after starring at Notre Dame … Also played basketball for Mike Mullins' Illinois Wolves AAU team and plans to walk-on for the Saluki basketball team.
Coach Hill: "He's an intriguing kid, a basketball player growing up. He's tall, all of 6-5, and like myself, figured out that football might be the avenue for him to have the most success at the next level. His dad played in the NFL, but he's always been a basketball guy. He's only played two years of football, but he has a frame and athleticism to come in here and develop. We're going to start him on the offensive side of the ball. He's an early enrollee, has graduated for high school, takes school very seriously, is a really mature kid."
Derek Harden Jr.
Guard
6-2, 315, Freshman
Lawrenceville, Ga. | Archer HS
Three-year starter on the offensive line … Helped Archer to a 9-4 record and trip to the state quarterfinals as a senior … Team reached the state semifinals as a junior … Recipient of the Kevin Maloof Award … Also wrestled.
Coach Hill: "Derek came up here to our offensive line camp and was super-impressive. We knew he was a kid that could play at this level. He came on campus with his family and committed to us during the year. He's a worker, a great student. He reminds me a lot of ZeVeyon (Furcron), that type of physicality up front."
Izaiah Hartrup
Wide Receiver
5-10, 165, Freshman
O'Fallon, Mo. | Fort Zumwalt North HS
First-team All-State receiver and second-team All-State kick returner … Totaled 1,915 all-purpose yards, 1,230 yards of offense and 28 touchdowns during his career … Also recorded four interceptions, including three pick-sixes … First-team All-Conference and All-District … Also runs track.
Coach Hill: "We saw him at Lindenwood this summer, wanted to get him on campus, he came back over to campus without an offer and earned it right here at camp. He's a quiet, humble kid, but loves to compete. He plays on both sides of the football, he's not scared to run down and hit people, he's a physical kid, and he's a play-maker. Another kid who came (to camp), we saw him, he competed. A lot of times (the most successful) kids are those that come to camp, we spend a ton of time on, we see them, we know what we're getting."
Adam Hundemer
Defensive Line
6-2, 255, Freshman
Liberty Township, Ohio | Lakota East HS
Pronounced Hun-duh-mer … First-team All-District, All-Conference and All-City honors as a senior … Special mention All-State in 2019… Recorded 46 tackles and 4.0 sacks as a senior … Totaled 148 career tackles, including 38.0 tackles for loss … Helped Lakota East to a 8-4 record and playoff win as a junior.
Coach Hill: "The biggest compliment you can get as a defensive lineman is you're a kid who just plays extremely hard, that you have a motor, you're relentless. We can teach you technique, and you're going to get better at that, but if we don't see that type of things on high school film, then they probably don't have a shot. If you put on his film, he's got that type of motor, that type of physical-ness to him. He's just going to keep getting better."
Jathen Jones
Wide Receiver
6-4, 190, Freshman
St. Louis, Mo. | Carnahan HS
Pronounced Jay-thin … Two-time Public High League All-Conference selection … As a junior, caught 34 passes for 855 yards and 10 TDs … Caught three TDs in a game against Sumner HS and had 210 receiving yards vs. Duchesne HS … A 2019 St. Louis All-Star game participant … Also plays basketball.
Coach Hill: "Awesome kid — I just can't say enough about what type of person he is. When you see him, he looks the part, like a Power 5 type receiver. When you're recruiting, I always like to ask the office assistant, 'what do you think about Jathen?' and when their eyes light up about what type of kid, that means a lot. That whole school raves about what type of kid he is. He's going to be a worker, put his nose down, and I'm excited to put him in the receiver room."
Chris Koerwitz
Offensive Line
6-4, 295, Freshman
Rochester, Ill. | Rochester HS
Pronounced Core-witz … Helped lead Rochester to Class 4A titles in 2016 and 2017 and Class 5A title in 2019 … A four-time Academic All-Conference selection … Wrestled for three years, and also played basketball and track & field … His father, Chris, was a center at the University of Illinois from 1992-96.
Coach Hill: "He's another kid who's used to winning state championships. We've got multiple guys from Rochester. My brother's on the staff now. They're used to winning, they've been coached up as good as you can get coached up. He's played in three state championships — they bumped them up to 5A to maybe put a halt to that run, and they won 5A, and they're the smallest school in 5A. When you get kids here who are used to a certain standard, used to winning, winning close games, there's not an adjustment."
Sean Larkin
Wide Receiver
6-0, 185, Freshman
Naperville, Ill. | Neuqua Valley HS
DuPage Valley All-Conference and All-Area selection in 2019 … Helped Neuqua Valley to a 9-2 record and IHSA playoff win as a senior … Piled up 46 catches for 481 yards and six TDs as a senior … Added two interceptions on defense … Had 32 receptions for 329 yards as a junior… Also competed in rugby and wrestling.
Coach Hill: "He was on the USA Rugby team for his age group all the way through 16 years old. That tells you what type of toughness you're getting in this kid, a kid who's up for the Presidential scholarship here, a 29 ACT. I really didn't have to see him do much, whenever you're on the rugby team and you have a 29 ACT, he's tough, he's smart, he's coachable, and he's a really good football player, too."
Aaron Maddox
Safety
6-1, 190, Junior
North Augusta, S.C. | North Augusta HS | University of Colorado
Started the first three games at Colorado in 2019 and had nine tackles, one TFL and one forced fumble … Played in all 12 games for the Buffaloes in 2018 and had 15 tackles … A second-team All-American at Pima CC in 2017, where he played one season and posted 58 tackles with one interception and three pass breakups … A first-team All-Region, All-Area and All-Central Savannah River Area selection as a senior in high school … Also played basketball and averaged 10 points and nine rebounds per game … In track & field he competed in the 100-meter dash and the long jump.
Coach Hill: "Aaron's brother, Christian, is on our team, currently. Aaron was a really sought-after player two years ago by most Power 5 schools. He ended up starting at Colorado, got in the transfer portal after he got injured Week 4 or 5. We got him over here and told Christian not to screw it up as his host. Those guys are going to room together. They're only separated by 15 months of age, they've grown up together. He's a high-level player that could have an immediate impact."
Dre Newman
Cornerback
5-11, 170, Freshman
Abbeville, Ala. | Headland HS
Dothan Eagle Super 12, All-Conference, Team Playmaker award and MVP ... As a junior, recorded 56 tackles, 4.0 TFLs and four interceptions, while rushing for 980 yards and nine TDs … Also plays basketball.
Coach Hill: "We call him, 'Mr. Yes, Sir' because that's all he says. Yes, sir — yes, ma'am. He's been raised the right way by his mom and dad. They were a pleasure to have on the visit. He's a worker. We have three young corners, another emphasis is developing young corners. We had four seniors corners that left the team this year. We wanted to spend some time to develop young corners, and Dre was a guy we had pegged from the beginning, who came up here in February to our first early Junior Day, stayed on him since. We're fired up to have Dre."
Jacob Poetzl
Defensive End
6-4, 250, Sophomore
Porterfield, Wisc. | Marinette HS | Ellsworth CC
Pronounced Pet-zil … NJCAA honorable mention All-American and first-team All-Conference at Ellsworth CC as a freshman in 2019 … Led the team with 9.5 sacks and 11.5 tackles … Totaled 3.5 sacks in a 15-8 win over Dodge City CC … Had 2.0 sacks against Iowa Central CC and College of DuPage … First-team All-State honoree as a senior at Marinette HS and first-team All-Conference as a junior and senior … Four-time All-Conference basketball player and the all-time leading scorer in school history with 1,613 points.
Coach Hill: "He's from Wisconsin, up north from Green Bay — just a tough, Wisconsin kid, a worker. He's the all-time leading (basketball) scorer at his high school. He's a lot like Zach (Gibson) and myself — you're playing AAU and thinking about basketball, you start to grow and put on some size, and you're a Division I football player. He had some opportunities last year to walk on to some Power 5 schools but decided to go to Ellsworth and see what was out there. Can't say enough good things about him and his family — the toughness he's going to bring, the work ethic. We had to get him out of the gym from working out to go sign his NLI."
Peyton Reeves
Defensive Tackle
6-1, 280, Freshman
Basehor, Kan. | St. Thomas Aquinas HS
Helped St. Thomas Aquinas to a 12-0 record and state title in 2018 … Compiled 35 tackles and a team-best 5.5 sacks as a junior … Second-team All-State and second-team All-Conference as a junior … Helped team to a state runner-up finish in 2017 and state semifinals appearance in 2019 … Also wrestled.
Coach Hill: "He's another kid who's used to winning and competing for championships. He's an excellent wrestler. He sprained his ankle this year which took him out of the games down the stretch, so he won't wrestle this year, but he'll be healthy once he gets here. He's another kid we saw in camp who got over here on a Junior Day, that came back for a game. All those things matter. When they show they want to be here, they want to be a Saluki, committed to us before the season and had other offers in our league."
John Volmert
Tight End
6-4, 230, Freshman
Washington, Mo. | St. John Vianney HS
Pronounced Vol-mert … A Missouri Football Coaches Association Class 5A second-team All-State selection in 2018 … Helped team win Class 5A state championship in 2018 and 2019 … All-Conference his sophomore through senior years and All-District as a junior and senior ... Academic All-State as a junior.
Coach Hill: "We've got a couple other kids from Vianney on our team, Luke Giegling being one of those guys — they're tough, they've been coached hard. He's grandma and grandpa live over in Marion. Really enjoyed the home visit — he comes from a big family, he's one of five. Another kid who's been over here a bunch of times. We've seen him in person at camp. We feel like we know him really well. A big, strong kid who will add a lot to the tight end room."
Jay Welch
Cornerback
5-9, 170, Freshman
Chicago, Ill. | Nazareth Academy
Helped Nazareth Academy to a Class 7A IHSA state championship as a junior in 2018 and runner-up finish in 2019 … Team was 26-2 combined during his junior and senior years … On a team with nearly a dozen college-bound players, he was the fasted, clocking a 4.3 in 40 … Also competed in track and placed fifth in the 100-meter dash at the Class 2A IHSA state meet.
Coach Hill: "He's fun to be around. He's an exciting kid with a big personality, state champion. It's incredible to see the amount of state champions we have on this list. His head coach is a Saluki, just a lot of things that add up. He can run. He's probably the fastest kid on this list. He's a legitimate 4.3 type guy, 10.6 in the 100, he's going to run track, he can fly. We're excited to put him in the corner room and develop."
Jeffrey Wells
Safety
5-10, 190, Freshman
Indianapolis, Ind. | Decatur MacArthur HS (IL)
Two-time first-team All-State selection and All-Conference his sophomore through senior season … Helped Decatur MacArthur to three-consecutive IHSA playoff appearances … Compiled 179 solo tackles, 70 assisted tackles, six interceptions in his career … Held offers from FBS Central Michigan and Kent State … Also ran track … State qualifier in the 4x200 and 4x400 relays.
Coach Hill: "He is like the principal of that school, just an incredible kid, I don't know what else to say about him. He's been coached really well, his high school coach is a guy I've know for a long time. He's a worker, he has a physicality about himself. He has the highest GPA in his class. School and his degree is really important for him. He's a kid that has things mapped out for what he wants to do in life."
Colin Williams
Cornerback
5-11, 175, Freshman
Hoschton, Ga. | Mill Creek HS
2019 GACA All-Star … Helped Mill Creek to a 10-3 record and a trip to the state quarterfinals as a senior … Totaled 83 tackles, 15 pass deflections and one interception as a senior… Held offers North Dakota State and FBS Kent State … Also ran track.
"He's an outstanding kid who had multiple FCS offers from teams that are in the playoffs. Colin and his family knew what type of education they were going to get here. It was a fun official visit. Two weeks ago we had 14 kids on campus, 13 are signing today. They've come here, they want to be here. Colin's parents kind of led the way . It's fun when you see the parents start to get to know each other, the kids to get excited about each other."
More from Coach Hill:
On recruiting multi-sport athletes…
"All kids should play multiple sports. It's something that our entire staff knows will be one of the first questions I ask when they come back (from recruiting) — what other sports do they play? Are they used to competing? Are they used to maybe not being the best at something but going out and getting better?"
On recruits that set high standards for themselves…
"We look at how many times they have been late to school. How many times have they been late to weights? Usually, those things don't change. They might change a little bit, but they don't change completely. You want guys that are from great programs and have high expectations for themselves off the field. That usually translates on the field. You don't have to look much past who we call 'The Standard' in Jeremy Chinn. It's his final semester. He's going to train (for the NFL Draft). He gets all these (All-American) accolades. He could easily slip. But he took six classes and got five A's and one B. It doesn't stray too far from that. If you're a kid who is going to do everything right, the stuff on the field will take care of itself."
On continuing to recruit…
"I don't think you're ever done with recruiting. We have 18 guys, and I feel good with where we're at. There are a couple positions we will still be after. When we get to February, there will be a couple more adds, but we don't have much more room. We will continue to evaluate and try to improve our roster."
On a recruiting blueprint…
"I think it takes time to develop that blueprint. Getting better as a coach isn't all about X's and O's. It's about how you're running your program. What's the emphasis in recruiting? That class in 2016, our first recruiting class, they're graduating or becoming fifth-year seniors. Now you can see — who came here and was successful on and off the field? What were their characteristics? Each year, you're taking notes on everything. If a kid doesn't work out, whether that's in the classroom, off the field, or on the field — where did we go wrong? Sometimes, that's going to happen. It happens in the NFL when they get paid millions of dollars to evaluate. The biggest thing is knowing what your vision is, knowing what you stand for and what values you're going to put on. Now, go get that. There will be a lot of kids, and it's easy to get distracted — well we could go get this kid or that kid.' No — we laid out the characteristics, the questions we want answered. When you get a kid like that, you don't keep looking. This is our kid. He's checked every box. Sign him, and those are the kids that want to be here."
