Athens Review, Athens, Texas

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February 8, 2007

Bring on the playmakers

Smiley: First recruiting class at TVCC accomplishes mission

By Benny Rogers

The fax machine rang a happy tune and celebratory high fives and horn blowing were a common occurrence at the TVCC Field House Wednesday morning as Brad Smiley’s first recruiting class began to materialize.

The way the rookie Cardinal head football coach and his staff saw things, it was definitely a time for whooping and hollering. With each letter of intent that printed, they realized playmakers were on the way.

“The biggest thing (about this class) is the number of playmakers we were able to sign,” Smiley said late Wednesday afternoon. “We had a couple of areas of need we had to address at quarterback and on the defensive line, but other than that we went after kids who could make plays for us up and down the line.”

As of Wednesday night by the time the fax cooled off, the TVCC recruiting class was at 29. Smiley said the recruiting process is virtually never-ending on the junior college level and the number would grow in the days and weeks to come.

“Signing days doesn’t represent and end for us,” Smiley said. “It just indicates to us where we are and what we still need. We will still be looking for the best players we can find.”

With just one quarterback on campus heading into spring workouts, Smiley and his staff signed a pair of signal-callers — Bobby Joe Barrett of Arlington Seguin and Marcus Bowman of Carthage.

“Both are very talented and both are winners,” Smiley said. “They also both bring something different to the table.

“Barrett (6-0, 185) ran the pro-style offense and has a good arm and is very accurate. Bowman (6-2, 195) is an option quarterback and can run. He can also throw the ball effectively.”

The other area of need was helped by the signing of seven defensive linemen.

Headlining the group is Michael Collins (6-3, 265) of Crockett, Jonathan Blackshire (6-1, 25) of John Tyler and Jeromie Aysire (6-5, 275) of Arlington Lamar.

“Collins, in my opinion, is probably the best defensive lineman in East Texas,” Smiley said.

Smiley and the Cardinal coaches also signed four players from state champion squads in the 2006 season — three from Alto and one from Cedar Hill. The Alto signees include brothers Tyson and Tarcellus Mitchell, who will line up at wide receiver and tight end, respectively.

Smiley said a focal point of the recruiting process was signing players from schools with winning traditions.

“It was big to me to get players from programs that were winners,” Smiley said. “Those kids have been well coached and know what it takes to win.

“This recruiting class has met our expectations, no question.”





2007 TRINITY VALLEY COMMUNITY COLLEGE SIGNEES

Pos. Player Ht. Wt. School

QB Bobby Joe Barrett 6-0 185 Arlington Seguin

QB Marcus Bowman 6-2 195 Carthage

RB Jeremy Lofton 5-10 185 Alto

RB Marcus Mann 5-9 185 Austin McCallum

RB Nathan Pegues 5-9 180 Sanger

FB Kameron Lair 5-8 235 Cedar Hill

WR Aaron Blackshire 5-8 185 Ennis

WR David Little 6-1 170 Garland

WR Tyson Mitchell 6-2 190 Alto

WR John Turner 5-11 195 South Garland

TE Tarcellus Mitchell 6-4 210 Alto

OL Colton Jones 6-2 285 Arlington Bowie

OL Zack Spears 6-7 290 Arp

OL Josh Walters 6-5 310 Denton Ryan

LB Jon Chitty 5-11 220 Lake Worth

LB Pharius Haynes 6-3 220 Beaumont Central

DL Jonathan Blackshire 6-1 250 John Tyler

DL Michael Collins 6-3 265 Crockett

DL Jacob Fincher 6-4 240 Waxahachie

DL Willard Henson 6-2 220 Irving MacArthur

DL Chauncie Moore 6-2 250 Paris

DL Josh Robinson 6-3 235 South Garland

DB Kelvin Brent 5-7 165 Irving MacArthur

DB Tim Hayter 6-1 170 Tyler Lee

DB Hershel Hunt 6-3 190 Ennis

DB Brian Johnson 5-9 160 Garland

DB Jordan Johnson 6-2 190 Houston Westside

ATH Dwight Hamilton 5-11 175 Garland

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