FERRIS STATE ADDS 23 PROSPECTS TO 2006 FOOTBALL RECRUITING CLASS

All But One Of Ferris State’s Recruits Hails From Michigan

“We’re excited attracting an excellent group of young men,” said Pierce, who will begin his 12th year at Ferris State this fall and is the program’s all-time winningest coach. “What’s impressive about them is the mobility and speed which they possess. Their athleticism is exciting for our program and competing in one of Division II football’s top conferences (Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference), you need to have kids who can run well at all positions.

“Besides their physical talents, these young men are quality student-athletes with fine character who are committed to being successful in the classroom,” added Pierce.

The Bulldogs placed an emphasis on the state of Michigan as all but one of the 23 individuals hail from the Great Lakes State. The 2006 class is a balanced one as 13 recruits are on offense while 10 will suit up on the other side of scrimmage. Offensively, Ferris State has five running backs, three wide receivers, two tight ends, two quarterbacks, and one lineman. The Bulldogs will be bringing in six defensive linemen along with three linebackers and a defensive back.

“As a staff, we chose to bring in kids at the skill areas with speed who have the versatility to play at multiple positions,” Pierce said. “Even though we’re bringing in a quite a few running backs, some of them can also be effective wide receivers.”

Highlighting the group are six prep all-state honorable mention selections which consists of quarterback Ricky Anderson (Muskegon Heights), tailback Eric Williams (Saline), defensive end Justin Bloniarz (Perronville/Bark River-Harris), defensive lineman Joshua LaRocque (Sterling Heights/Stevenson), linebacker Kyle Fitzpatrick (Vestaburg), and defensive back Chris Brown (Redford/Union). Those six were named to one of the four Associated Press Class All-State football teams which were chosen by Michigan sports writers and broadcasters.

Ferris also secured the services of wide receivers Keenan Bowman (Detroit/Cass Tech), Bobby Enell (Ada/Grand Rapids West Catholic), and Anthony McCord (Detroit/Crockett). FSU picked up some size with 6-7 Chris Harding (Livonia/Detroit Catholic Central) and Jacob Moreno (Holt), a pair of tight ends. The Bulldogs grabbed an athletic offensive linemen in Matt Wellman (Portland). Pierce also landed another quarterback in Kyle Foster (Plainfield, Ind./Cascade), who should fit well in FSU’s offensive system with his excellent arm and mobility.

One of the recruiting class’ biggest backfield performers might be 5-10, 245-pound tailback Leonard Curry (Detroit/Kettering) from Grand Rapids (Mich.) Community College. Curry received National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) All-America Honorable Mention honors along with being named an an all-conference and all-region pick this past fall after rushing for 946 yards and 12 touchdowns. He played an integral role in the Raiders capturing their first-ever Midwest Football Conference Championship title and competing in the NJCAA Valley of the Sun Bowl National Championship game.

The Bulldogs also focused on the defensive side, starting with four other interior linemen besides Bloniarz and LaRocque. Ends Howard Copeland (Detroit/Crockett) and Richard Nine (Bay City/Central) will be joined by tackles Dave Reese (Brighton) and Anthony Ullman (Battle Creek/Harper Creek). The linebacking group, which Pierce categorized as a unit with excellent mobility, includes Fitzpatrick, Matt Giesow (Brighton), and Ryan McMillen (Livonia/Stevenson). In the secondary, Ferris as evidenced by with the signings of the 5-11 Brown .

“We went after people who have big-play capabilities and can break open a game,” Pierce said. “When we watched these guys on videotape, all were elusive when the ball was in their hands."

“I believe the potential of this recruiting class is tremendous,” stated Pierce, who may add a few more prospects to this year's recruiting class within the next few days. “It’s one of our better classes and I think if you combine this group with last year’s, we have a great nucleus for the future.”

2006 Ferris State Bulldogs Football Recruits
Name	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Hometown/High School (Junior College)	Head Coach (Junior College Coach)
Ricky Anderson	QB-WR	6-1	190	Muskegon Heights	Antonio Shauba-Baruti
Justin Bloniarz	DE-TE	6-3	225	Perronville/Bark River-Harris	Jack Witham
Keenan Bowman	WR	6-2	180	Detroit/Cass Tech	Thomas Wilcher
Chris Brown	DB	5-11	190	Redford/Union	Miles Tomasaitis
James Cannon	TB	5-6	160	Whitehall	Andy Malbouef
Howard Copeland	DE	6-1	191	Detroit/Crockett	Rod Oden
Leonard Curry	TB	5-10	245	Detroit/Kettering (Grand Rapids C.C.)	Leon Bogard (Jim Schulte)
Bobby Enell	WR	6-4	202	Ada/Grand Rapids West Catholic	Jake Kenyon
Kyle Fitzpatrick	LB	6-1	194	Vestaburg	Ben Steele
Kyle Foster	QB	6-3	200	Plainfield, Ind./Cascade	Derek Moyers
Matt Giesow	LB	5-11	227	Brighton	Bill Murray
Chris Harding	TE	6-7	220	Livonia/Detroit Catholic Central	Tom Mach
Joshua LaRocque	DL	6-1	285	Sterling Heights/Stevenson	Ric Bye
Anthony McCord	WR	6-1	170	Detroit/Crockett	Rod Oden
Ryan McMillen	LB	6-1	205	Livonia/Stevenson	Tim Gabel
Jacob Moreno	TE-DE	6-2	235	Holt	Mike Smith
Richard Nine	DE-TE	6-5	210	Bay City/Central	Morley Fraser
Tyler Reed	TB	5-11	205	Holt	Mike Smith
Dave Reese	LB-DL	6-1	240	Brighton	Bill Murray
Anthony Ullman	DL	6-2	250	Battle Creek/Harper Creek	Ed Greenman
Charles Wasson	TB	5-10	209	Orchard Lake/University of Detroit Jesuit	Scott Merchant
Matt Wellman	OL	6-4	240	Portland	John Novara
Eric Williams	TB-WR	5-9	185	Saline	Mike Glennie