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RICHMOND, Ky. – Eastern Kentucky University head football coach Dean Hood announced today that 15 student-athletes will join the Colonel program next fall. Six of those student-athletes come from the Commonwealth of Kentucky while two other student-athletes joined the EKU program this past January. The class includes five linebackers, two defensive backs, two defensive linemen, two offensive linemen, one quarterback, and three multiple position players.

“I think we were able to sign a very balanced class this year,” Hood said. “We were able to help ourselves in some much needed areas such as linebacker. Our recruiting emphasis was in the state of Kentucky and the surrounding region. As for the three athletes we signed, they can all play a variety of positions – wide receiver, running back, defensive back – and we’ll just fit them in where needed come the fall.”

The six incoming players from Kentucky are athlete Charlie Banks (Letcher County Central High), offensive lineman Ryan Bonner (Paul Blazer High), linebacker Ichiro Chiba (Oldham County High), linebacker Tyler Horn (Mercer County High), defensive lineman Seth Logsdon (Central Hardin High) and offensive/defensive lineman Justin Meredith (Warren Central High).

Banks was an honorable mention all-state quarterback who threw for 2,002 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior. He also ran for more than 1,000 yards and 20 scores. Bonner is a three-time all-area performer out of Ashland who played on both the offensive and defensive line. Chiba, hailing from the same high school as former EKU All-OVC safety Brandon Gathof, was the district Defensive Player of the Year.

Horn was the Defensive MVP and team captain for Mercer County this past fall. Logsdon, who attended the same high school as current Colonel Paul Henry, posted 112 tackles, four sacks and two interceptions as a senior on the way to earning first team all-region accolades. Finally, Meredith was an all-state and all-conference pick out of Bowling Green.

Uriah Grant and Marcus Williams enrolled at Eastern Kentucky for the 2009 spring semester. Grant, a defensive lineman transfer from West Virginia, was rated a three-star recruit out of high school by Rivals.com. Williams, a defensive back, played in nine games for Wake Forest during the 2007 season and finished with eight tackles and one interception.

The EKU football team concluded the 2008 season 8-4 overall while earning the program’s 20th Ohio Valley Conference title and 31st consecutive winning season. 

Student-Athlete Profiles
Charlie Banks
Athlete, 6-2, 210
Whitesburg, Ky., Letcher County Central High School
--Two-time all-district selection
--Honorable mention all-state by the Louisville Courier-Journal
--Elite 22 in the state of Kentucky
--Class 5A District 8 KFCA Coaches Player of the Year
--Pikeville Medical-Leader 2008 Player of the Year
--Team captain
--As a senior, completed 116-of-194 passes for 2,002 yards and 20 scores, also rushed 114 times for 1,105 yards and 20 touchdowns
--Scored 43 touchdowns as a junior
--Hal Rogers Scholar (4.09 weighted GPA)

Ryan Bonner
OL, 6-2, 240
Ashland, Ky., Paul Blazer High School
--Three-time all-area performer
--Team MVP
--Team Defensive Lineman of the Year
--Led team in receptions and touchdown receptions as a tight end
--Recorded 54 tackles and nine sacks on defense
--Voted best offensive lineman as a junior

Anthony Brown
LB, 6-2, 220
Cincinnati, Ohio, Winton Woods High School
--Two-time first team all-league selection
--Honorable mention all-district and all-city
--Finished with 51 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, five sacks and three forced fumbles as a senior
--Team Defensive Player of the Year
--Helped lead team to playoffs for three straight seasons
--Won two league championships
--Won first playoff game in school history

Ichiro Chiba
LB, 6-1, 215
Buckner, Ky., Oldham County High School
--First team all-state by BluegrassPreps.com
--Three-time first team all-district player
--District Defensive Player of the Year
--Defensive Player of the Game at Kick-Off Classic
--Led team in tackles as a junior and senior
--Posted 113 tackles, 24.5 tackles for loss and four sacks as a senior
--Placed third in the 2008 state wrestling championships in the 215-pound weight class
--Ranked first in the 215-pound wrestling weight class as a senior

Dwayne Fields
FS, 5-11, 180
Atlanta, Ga., Westlake High School
--First team all-metro and all-region
--Team captain
--Metro area Defensive Player of the Week three weeks in a row
--Track and field Athlete of the Year two years in a row
--Long jump regional champ
--Served as a representative on the Voluntary Exchange Team (organization which helps feed the homeless during Thanksgiving)
--Chose EKU over Morgan State and Middle Tennessee State

Zavier Foster
LB, 6-0, 190
Villa Rica, Ga., Villa Rica High School
--First team all-region
--Team captain
--Team MVP
--Region Offensive Player of the Week
--Region Defensive Player of the Week
--Chose EKU over Jacksonville State and Tuskegee

Devin Gainer
DL, 6-2, 270
Ringgold, Ga., Ringgold High School
--Team captain
--Second team ‘Best of Prep’ in Chattanooga, Tenn.
--Team leadership award winner
--Member of Skills USA (organization which provides Secret Santas for underprivileged kids)
--Chose EKU over Chattanooga

Uriah Grant
DL, 6-1, 280
Miramar, Fla., Everglades High School
--Transfer from West Virginia
--Three-star recruit by Rivals.com
--Ranked 55th best defensive tackle nationally out of high school
--Ranked 97th best player in the state of Florida as a senior
--Two-time all-county pick
--Posted 85 tackles, 14 sacks, 10 quarterback knockdowns, four forced fumbles and one blocked field goal as a senior
--Invited to play in North-South all-star game
--Helped Everglades win back-to-back district championships
--Squatted 480 pounds and benched 415 pounds

Tyler Horn
LB, 6-3, 210
Harrodsburg, Ky., Mercer County High School
--All-district and all-area linebacker
--Team captain
--Defensive MVP
--Team linebacker award
--Hammer Award for hardest game hits

Seth Logsdon
LB, 6-4, 210
Sonora, Ky., Central Hardin High School
--First team all-region
--First team all-area
--Team defensive MVP
--Captain Award winner
--Two-time Iron Man Award winner
--Posted 112 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, four sacks and two interceptions as a senior

Justin Meredith
OL/DL, 6-2, 270
Bowling Green, Ky., Warren Central High School
--All-state
--All-conference
--Team MVP
--Two-time Strongest Dragon Award winner
--Member of Catholic Heart Work Camp (provides services to underprivileged kids)

Myer Nolan
Athlete, 5-10, 180
Atlanta, Ga., Mays High School
--First team all-region
--Honorable mention all-state
--Team captain
--Mays High Defensive Player of the Year
--Member of one of the fastest 4x100-meter relay teams in the state of Georgia
--Chose EKU over Presbyterian and Jackson State

Justin Williams
Athlete, 5-11, 180
McDonough, Ga., Eagle’s Landing High School
--3A Region Player of the Year
--Honorable mention all-state
--First team all-region and All-Southern Cresten
--Team MVP
--Served on Regency Christmas Kids Organization (helps to raise money for underprivileged kids during the holiday season)
--Featured in Sports Illustrated ‘Faces in the Crowd’ for his performance in 35-21 win over Spalding County (106 yards on 10 carries, 10-of-14 passing for 244 yards and three touchdowns, returned four interceptions for 162 yards)
--Chose EKU over Kent State, South Alabama and Houston

Marcus Williams
DB, 5-9, 175
McDonough, Ga., Eagle’s Landing High School
--Transfer from Wake Forest
--Played in nine games for WFU in 2007 with eight tackles and one interception
--Two-star recruit by Rivals.com
--Played quarterback and defensive back in high school
--Accounted for 7,168 yards in high school career
--Passed for 867 yards and eight scores as a senior, also ran for 1,267 yards and 20 touchdowns
--Posted 63 tackles and two interceptions as a senior

Taylor Wood
QB, 6-2, 215
Delaware, Ohio, Rutherford B. Hayes High School
--Second team all-state
--Two-time all-conference pick
--Quarterback for the South in Ohio North-South all-star game
--Led team to first playoff appearance in school history
--Team captain and MVP
--Completed 100-of-189 passes for 1,827 yards, 21 touchdowns and five interceptions as a senior, also rushed 159 times for 808 yards and seven scores
--Career passing leader at Rutherford B. Hayes High with 3,252 yards