Marshall University Athletics
Doc Holliday
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Marshall Football Announces Early Signees
12/18/2019 9:05:00 PM | Football
Top-level talent headed to Huntington
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Marshall coach Doc Holliday has announced the Thundering Herd's early signees in the 2020 football recruiting class. The group features 15 student-athletes and includes eight who are mid-year enrollees.
"This group represents the beginning of what we believe will be a great class," said Marshall head coach Doc Holliday. "I've said all along that football is a personnel-driven game and we've enhanced that area today."
In what has become the norm for the program, Marshall has nine of its newcomers ranked as three-star prospects and two more as two-stars by ESPN.com, Rivals.com or 247Sports.com - or some combination of the three.
Below are biographical capsules on each Marshall newcomer:
Shadeed Ahmed
Position, Height, Weight: WR, 6-0, 170
School: Navarro College
Hometown: Richmond, Tx.
Recruited by: Dallas Baker
Will enroll early at Marshall … Snared 51 passes for 775 yards this year at Navarro, with seven receiving touchdowns … Participated in the 2019 Bayou Bowl where he caught an 11-yard touchdown pass to help the West score a 31-21 victory over the East … Also played for Foster High School in Richmond, Texas … Caught 83 passes for 1,024 yards at Foster, with 11 receiving touchdowns … Also ran track at Richmond, where he helped set the 4x400 meter relay school record in a time of 3:16.13.
Emmanuel Balogun
Position, Height, Weight: DL, 6-7, 240
School: Fork Union Military Academy
Hometown: Oshogbo, Nigeria
Recruited by: J.C. Price
Will enroll early at Marshall … Also received offers from Fordham and Chattanooga … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds with a shuttle time of 4.5 … Played defensive end and tight end at Fork Union … Also attended St. Frances Academy in Baltimore where he played basketball as well.
Abraham Beauplan
Position, Height, Weight: LB, 6-0, 220
School: Navarro College
Hometown: Boynton Beach, Fla.
Recruited by: Mike Treier
Will enroll early at Marshall … Rated a three-star prospect by Rivals.com and 247Sports.com out of Boynton Beach High School where he was offered by Georgia Tech, Indiana, Pittsburgh, Florida Atlantic, Middle Tennessee, UMass and Bethune-Cookman … Also received offers out of junior college from Abilene Christian, Incarnate Word, McNeese State, Sam Houston State, Stephen F. Austin and Texas Southern … Navarro's leading tackler this year with 133 stops, 10.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and one pass breakup … Saw action in nine games as a freshman for Navarro, where he amassed 43 tackles, a sack and forced fumble … Played both outside and middle linebacker at Navarro, where he ran a 4.59 40-yard dash.
Josh Bowers
Position, Height, Weight: DB, 5-9, 180
School: Navarro College
Hometown: Tampa, Fla.
Recruited by: Mike Treier
Will enroll early at Marshall … Also received offers from The Citadel, McNeese State, Robert Morris and Tennessee Tech … Out of high school, also held offers from Florida Atlantic, UMass, Indiana State, Central Arkansas and Savannah State … Posted 46 tackles as a sophomore at Navarro, with 15 pass breakups … Also returned kicks and punts … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.38 seconds, with a shuttle time of 4.03 … Boasts a vertical leap of 41 inches … Has a 100-meter dash time of 10.8 seconds … Attended East Lake High School, where he played both wide receiver and cornerback and ran on the track and field team.
Immanuel Bush
Position, Height, Weight: LB, 6-1, 250
School: Lancaster
Hometown: Lancaster, S.C.
Recruited by: Brad Lambert
Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com and 247Sports.com … Also had offers from Tulane and Coastal Carolina … Played defensive end, defensive tackle and middle linebacker at Lancaster … Also wrestles for Lancaster in the 285-pound weight class … Boasts a bench press of nearly 400 pounds … Selected to play in the annual North-South game.
JJ Davis
Position, Height, Weight: RB, 6-0, 195
School: Bluefield
Hometown: Bluefield, W.Va.
Recruited by: Mike Treier
Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com, Rivals.com and 247Sports.com … Also received offers from NC State, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, West Virginia, Cincinnati, Toledo, Old Dominion and Temple … Played running back and outside linebacker at Bluefield … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds … Has a vertical leap of 30 inches with a bench press of 270 pounds ... Helped Bluefield to win the 2017 AA state title … Also ran track at Bluefield, competing on the 4x100 and 4x200 relay teams and the 100 and 200-meter events.
Chris Everhart
Position, Height, Weight: OL, 6-3, 305
School: Greeneville
Hometown: Greeneville, Tn.
Recruited by: Greg Adkins
Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com and 247Sports.com … Also received an offer from Middle Tennessee, Chattanooga and Campbell … Played offensive guard and defensive tackle at Greeneville, where he was a four-year starter and earned all-state honors … Also threw the discus as a member of the track and field team.
Charlie Gray
Position, Height, Weight: LB, 6-3, 225
School: Butler County Community College
Hometown: Edwardsville, Ks.
Recruited by: Brad Lambert
Will enroll early at Marshall … Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com … Also received offers from North Texas, UTEP, Liberty, Akron, New Mexico State and Texas State … Racked up 79 tackles with six sacks as a sophomore at Butler and 33 tackles with three sacks and a forced fumble as a freshman … Played both outside linebacker and middle linebacker at Butler … Attended Bonner Springs High School in Kansas, where he played quarterback and rushed for eight touchdowns as a senior … Also recorded 147 tackles in two seasons with 16.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, an interception and a blocked field goal.
Hayden Hagler
Position, Height, Weight: TE, 6-4, 235
School: Blinn College
Hometown: Sulphur, La.
Recruited by: Kyle Segler
Will enroll early at Marshall … Rated a three-star prospect by 247Sports.com out of Sulphur High School, where he was ranked the top tight end in the state of Louisiana and received offers from New Mexico State, Southeast Louisiana and Seton Hill … Received offers from Memphis, Akron, UMass, Louisiana Monroe and Idaho State out of junior college … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.82 seconds and squats 425 pounds … Named first-team all-district and first-team all-area at Sulphur in 2017 … USA Today's Louisiana High School first-team tight end in 2018 … U.S. National Team tight end in 2017 and 2018, when he caught 26 passes for 411 yards and four touchdowns … Also played basketball and ran track at Sulphur.
EJ Horton
Position, Height, Weight: WR, 6-0, 170
School: Palmetto Academy
Hometown: Louisville, Ky.
Recruited by: Dallas Baker
Will enroll early at Marshall … Rated a two-star prospect by Rivals.com … Also had offers from Kent State and Alabama State … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.5 seconds … Caught 47 passes for 774 and 11 touchdowns as a senior with 48 catches, 827 yards and 11 more scores as a junior … Returned three interceptions for touchdowns with three more in the kicking game … Two-time all-region honoree and claimed all-conference honors, while being named the team's offensive player of the year in each of his last two seasons … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.5 seconds.
De'Kwan Hughes
Position, Height, Weight: DB, 5-11, 178
School: Armwood
Hometown: Tampa, Florida
Recruited by: Chip West
Also had offers from Bowling Green, Buffalo, Central Michigan, Colorado State, Kent State, Liberty, Southern Miss, Toledo, Troy, Western Michigan, Campbell, East Tennessee State and South Dakota … Totaled 27 tackles as a senior (25 solo) with four interceptions and a forced fumble.
Ethan Ingram
Position, Height, Weight: OL, 6-4, 280
School: Buchholz
Hometown: Gainesville, Fla.
Recruited by: Tim Cramsey
Rated a two-star prospect by ESPN.com and Rivals.com … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.98 seconds … Bench presses 305 pounds with a squat of 350 and a clean of 265 … Posted a 3.6 GPA at Buchholz, where he also played basketball.
Kerion Martin
Position, Height, Weight: LB, 6-2, 200
School: Capital
Hometown: Charleston, W.Va.
Recruited by: Brad Lambert
Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com and 247Sports.com … Received offers from WKU, Air Force, Miami (Ohio) and Indiana State … Also played free safety at Capital, where he earned first-team all-West Virginia honors … Also named an All-Mountain State Conference selection … Caught 15 passes with five touchdowns as a junior to earn honorable mention all-state honors … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.64 seconds … Squats 305 pounds with a bench press of 245 pounds.
Eli Sammons
Position, Height, Weight: QB, 6-6, 205
School: Greenup County
Hometown: Greenup, Ky.
Recruited by: Tim Cramsey
Will enroll early at Marshall … Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com, Rivals.com and 247Sports.com … Three-plus year starter as Greenup County's signal-caller … Finished his career at Greenup having thrown for 7,508 yards to become northeast Kentucky's all-time career passing yardage leader … As a senior, he completed 134 of 259 passes with 19 touchdowns … Greenup averaged 35.3 points per game during his sophomore and junior seasons … Boasts a 450-pound squat and 300-pound bench press.
Daytione Smith
Position, Height, Weight: DB, 5-11, 160
School: Highland Springs
Hometown: East Highland Park, Va.
Recruited by: J.C. Price/Chip West
Rated a three-star prospect by Rivals.com … Also received offers from Virginia State … Earned Class 5, all-Region B honors at defensive back … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.58 seconds … Played wide receiver, defensive back and free safety at Highland Springs.
"This group represents the beginning of what we believe will be a great class," said Marshall head coach Doc Holliday. "I've said all along that football is a personnel-driven game and we've enhanced that area today."
In what has become the norm for the program, Marshall has nine of its newcomers ranked as three-star prospects and two more as two-stars by ESPN.com, Rivals.com or 247Sports.com - or some combination of the three.
Below are biographical capsules on each Marshall newcomer:
Shadeed Ahmed
Position, Height, Weight: WR, 6-0, 170
School: Navarro College
Hometown: Richmond, Tx.
Recruited by: Dallas Baker
Will enroll early at Marshall … Snared 51 passes for 775 yards this year at Navarro, with seven receiving touchdowns … Participated in the 2019 Bayou Bowl where he caught an 11-yard touchdown pass to help the West score a 31-21 victory over the East … Also played for Foster High School in Richmond, Texas … Caught 83 passes for 1,024 yards at Foster, with 11 receiving touchdowns … Also ran track at Richmond, where he helped set the 4x400 meter relay school record in a time of 3:16.13.
Emmanuel Balogun
Position, Height, Weight: DL, 6-7, 240
School: Fork Union Military Academy
Hometown: Oshogbo, Nigeria
Recruited by: J.C. Price
Will enroll early at Marshall … Also received offers from Fordham and Chattanooga … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds with a shuttle time of 4.5 … Played defensive end and tight end at Fork Union … Also attended St. Frances Academy in Baltimore where he played basketball as well.
Abraham Beauplan
Position, Height, Weight: LB, 6-0, 220
School: Navarro College
Hometown: Boynton Beach, Fla.
Recruited by: Mike Treier
Will enroll early at Marshall … Rated a three-star prospect by Rivals.com and 247Sports.com out of Boynton Beach High School where he was offered by Georgia Tech, Indiana, Pittsburgh, Florida Atlantic, Middle Tennessee, UMass and Bethune-Cookman … Also received offers out of junior college from Abilene Christian, Incarnate Word, McNeese State, Sam Houston State, Stephen F. Austin and Texas Southern … Navarro's leading tackler this year with 133 stops, 10.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and one pass breakup … Saw action in nine games as a freshman for Navarro, where he amassed 43 tackles, a sack and forced fumble … Played both outside and middle linebacker at Navarro, where he ran a 4.59 40-yard dash.
Josh Bowers
Position, Height, Weight: DB, 5-9, 180
School: Navarro College
Hometown: Tampa, Fla.
Recruited by: Mike Treier
Will enroll early at Marshall … Also received offers from The Citadel, McNeese State, Robert Morris and Tennessee Tech … Out of high school, also held offers from Florida Atlantic, UMass, Indiana State, Central Arkansas and Savannah State … Posted 46 tackles as a sophomore at Navarro, with 15 pass breakups … Also returned kicks and punts … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.38 seconds, with a shuttle time of 4.03 … Boasts a vertical leap of 41 inches … Has a 100-meter dash time of 10.8 seconds … Attended East Lake High School, where he played both wide receiver and cornerback and ran on the track and field team.
Immanuel Bush
Position, Height, Weight: LB, 6-1, 250
School: Lancaster
Hometown: Lancaster, S.C.
Recruited by: Brad Lambert
Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com and 247Sports.com … Also had offers from Tulane and Coastal Carolina … Played defensive end, defensive tackle and middle linebacker at Lancaster … Also wrestles for Lancaster in the 285-pound weight class … Boasts a bench press of nearly 400 pounds … Selected to play in the annual North-South game.
JJ Davis
Position, Height, Weight: RB, 6-0, 195
School: Bluefield
Hometown: Bluefield, W.Va.
Recruited by: Mike Treier
Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com, Rivals.com and 247Sports.com … Also received offers from NC State, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, West Virginia, Cincinnati, Toledo, Old Dominion and Temple … Played running back and outside linebacker at Bluefield … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds … Has a vertical leap of 30 inches with a bench press of 270 pounds ... Helped Bluefield to win the 2017 AA state title … Also ran track at Bluefield, competing on the 4x100 and 4x200 relay teams and the 100 and 200-meter events.
Chris Everhart
Position, Height, Weight: OL, 6-3, 305
School: Greeneville
Hometown: Greeneville, Tn.
Recruited by: Greg Adkins
Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com and 247Sports.com … Also received an offer from Middle Tennessee, Chattanooga and Campbell … Played offensive guard and defensive tackle at Greeneville, where he was a four-year starter and earned all-state honors … Also threw the discus as a member of the track and field team.
Charlie Gray
Position, Height, Weight: LB, 6-3, 225
School: Butler County Community College
Hometown: Edwardsville, Ks.
Recruited by: Brad Lambert
Will enroll early at Marshall … Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com … Also received offers from North Texas, UTEP, Liberty, Akron, New Mexico State and Texas State … Racked up 79 tackles with six sacks as a sophomore at Butler and 33 tackles with three sacks and a forced fumble as a freshman … Played both outside linebacker and middle linebacker at Butler … Attended Bonner Springs High School in Kansas, where he played quarterback and rushed for eight touchdowns as a senior … Also recorded 147 tackles in two seasons with 16.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, an interception and a blocked field goal.
Hayden Hagler
Position, Height, Weight: TE, 6-4, 235
School: Blinn College
Hometown: Sulphur, La.
Recruited by: Kyle Segler
Will enroll early at Marshall … Rated a three-star prospect by 247Sports.com out of Sulphur High School, where he was ranked the top tight end in the state of Louisiana and received offers from New Mexico State, Southeast Louisiana and Seton Hill … Received offers from Memphis, Akron, UMass, Louisiana Monroe and Idaho State out of junior college … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.82 seconds and squats 425 pounds … Named first-team all-district and first-team all-area at Sulphur in 2017 … USA Today's Louisiana High School first-team tight end in 2018 … U.S. National Team tight end in 2017 and 2018, when he caught 26 passes for 411 yards and four touchdowns … Also played basketball and ran track at Sulphur.
EJ Horton
Position, Height, Weight: WR, 6-0, 170
School: Palmetto Academy
Hometown: Louisville, Ky.
Recruited by: Dallas Baker
Will enroll early at Marshall … Rated a two-star prospect by Rivals.com … Also had offers from Kent State and Alabama State … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.5 seconds … Caught 47 passes for 774 and 11 touchdowns as a senior with 48 catches, 827 yards and 11 more scores as a junior … Returned three interceptions for touchdowns with three more in the kicking game … Two-time all-region honoree and claimed all-conference honors, while being named the team's offensive player of the year in each of his last two seasons … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.5 seconds.
De'Kwan Hughes
Position, Height, Weight: DB, 5-11, 178
School: Armwood
Hometown: Tampa, Florida
Recruited by: Chip West
Also had offers from Bowling Green, Buffalo, Central Michigan, Colorado State, Kent State, Liberty, Southern Miss, Toledo, Troy, Western Michigan, Campbell, East Tennessee State and South Dakota … Totaled 27 tackles as a senior (25 solo) with four interceptions and a forced fumble.
Ethan Ingram
Position, Height, Weight: OL, 6-4, 280
School: Buchholz
Hometown: Gainesville, Fla.
Recruited by: Tim Cramsey
Rated a two-star prospect by ESPN.com and Rivals.com … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.98 seconds … Bench presses 305 pounds with a squat of 350 and a clean of 265 … Posted a 3.6 GPA at Buchholz, where he also played basketball.
Kerion Martin
Position, Height, Weight: LB, 6-2, 200
School: Capital
Hometown: Charleston, W.Va.
Recruited by: Brad Lambert
Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com and 247Sports.com … Received offers from WKU, Air Force, Miami (Ohio) and Indiana State … Also played free safety at Capital, where he earned first-team all-West Virginia honors … Also named an All-Mountain State Conference selection … Caught 15 passes with five touchdowns as a junior to earn honorable mention all-state honors … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.64 seconds … Squats 305 pounds with a bench press of 245 pounds.
Eli Sammons
Position, Height, Weight: QB, 6-6, 205
School: Greenup County
Hometown: Greenup, Ky.
Recruited by: Tim Cramsey
Will enroll early at Marshall … Rated a three-star prospect by ESPN.com, Rivals.com and 247Sports.com … Three-plus year starter as Greenup County's signal-caller … Finished his career at Greenup having thrown for 7,508 yards to become northeast Kentucky's all-time career passing yardage leader … As a senior, he completed 134 of 259 passes with 19 touchdowns … Greenup averaged 35.3 points per game during his sophomore and junior seasons … Boasts a 450-pound squat and 300-pound bench press.
Daytione Smith
Position, Height, Weight: DB, 5-11, 160
School: Highland Springs
Hometown: East Highland Park, Va.
Recruited by: J.C. Price/Chip West
Rated a three-star prospect by Rivals.com … Also received offers from Virginia State … Earned Class 5, all-Region B honors at defensive back … Runs the 40-yard dash in 4.58 seconds … Played wide receiver, defensive back and free safety at Highland Springs.
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