JMU inks 24 on national signing day

JMU coach Mickey Matthews announced the signing of 24 players to football scholarships Wednesday. The group included 23 scholastic players and one junior college transfer.

"We needed a good, balanced recruiting class," Matthews said. "And we accomplished that."

Defensive high-profile recruits include lineman Sam Daniels, linebacker Reggie Wesby, defensive back Phil Minafield and linebacker Trae Kenney.

"Sam Daniels, out of Portsmouth, was a big recruit for us," Matthews said. "He has the ability to be a great defensive lineman. Wesby, out of Augusta, Ga., is probably as good of a football player as we’ve ever signed. We keep getting these good players out of Augusta."

By that, Matthews was alluding to rising sophomore free safety Tony LeZotte, who played at Westside High School in Augusta. Wesby attended Glenn Hills.

Minafield, a former high school teammate of current JMU starting quarterback, rising junior Justin Rascati, joins the Dukes as a transfer from Hutchinson Junior College in Hutchinson, Kan.

"Minafield turned down several Division I schools to come here," Matthews said.

Another player who chose JMU over Division I schools was linebacker Trae Kenney. After Michigan State and the University of Cincinnati pulled their respective offers off the table, Kenney turned down several low-tier I-A programs and chose JMU.

Matthews said JMU’s recruiting efforts landed a strong group of linebackers who will provide depth. Both starting linebackers from 2004, Trey Townsend and Kwynn Walton, finished their JMU careers this season.

"We really helped ourselves at linebacker," Matthews said. "We signed some very athletic players. The linebackers we signed are very good and I think all those guys have chances to come in and help us."

Other players who have an ability to make an impact are wide receiver Tommie Lawrence and tailback Scotty McGee.

"I think Lawrence has as much ability as anyone," Matthews said. "Scotty McGee can fly, he has tremendous speed and he could play running back or corner."

Matthews said speed is a trait the Dukes traditionally look for in players, a valuable asset on the Bridgeforth Stadium Astroturf.

On the flip side, the Dukes were unable to land a scholarship quarterback. Matthews attributes that to Rascati’s success and freshman Rodney Landers’ potential.

"With Justin and Rodney, it makes it hard to find a quarterback," Matthews said. "Recruits may think it’ll be three years before they play, and that may or may not be the case — but that’s the perception."

JMU’s recruiting efforts were further affected by the Dukes 13-2 season and I-AA national championship run, which required them to play an extra month of football. Matthews said the situation both helped and hurt JMU’s recruiting.

"It was a double-edged sword," Matthews said. "One, it opened some doors and allowed us to close some deals with recruits because of our television exposure and the success we had.

"The negative thing is we probably lost some players because you still recruit players by establishing one-on-one relationships."

Forming those connections was nearly impossible for the JMU coaching staff during the Dukes’ playoff run, mainly because JMU did not host a postseason game. The Dukes played their final five games on the road.

"We did not recruit a day in the month of December," Matthews said. "Usually, when you have home playoff games, you can go recruit on Fridays. We were on the road and there’s no question it hurt us."

Regardless, Matthews is optimistic about the incoming class and the impact it will have on the field.

"I think if you look at our football team for next year we’re going to be as good as last season maybe better," Matthews said. "This recruiting class will add a lot of depth to our team."