Football: Meet the 2014 UL signing class – bios, stats, notes on each Ragin’ Cajuns football signee

Daily Advertiser, Feb. 6, 2014

** ANTOINNE ADKINS

5-9, 180, WR, Meridian (Miss.) High/East Mississippi C.C.

NOTES: Teams won 2011 and 2013 NJCAA national titles … MVP of 2013 NJCAA championship game with six catches for 186 yards, two touchdowns … Missed 2012 season due to knee surgery … First-team all-state pick as a 1,200-yard rusher for a 14-1 team senior year in high school. … … 2013: 53 catches, 807 yards, eight TDs.

** C.J. BATES

6-1, 200, DB, Louisville (Miss.) High/East Mississippi CC

NOTES: Team won 2013 NJCAA national title … Signed with UL coming out of high school in 2012, but didn’t qualify academically … Missed 2012 season (knee surgery) … Rated the 48th-best juco WR by 247Sports.com, but will play DB at UL … Has three years left to play three … A 1,000-yard receiver senior in high school … 2013: 53 catches, 858 yards, 8 TDs, averaged 31.9 yards on nine kickoff returns.

DYLAN BOSSIER

6-2, 185, WR, Teurlings Catholic/Jones County (Miss.) JC

NOTES: Played for former NFL Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Giants and ex-Alabama head coach Ray Perkins at Jones County … Rated nation’s No. 26 juco receiver by 247Sports.com … Also visited Jacksonville (Ala.) State and cancelled scheduled visits to Tennessee-Martin, North Texas … Team finished No. 8 in juco national Top 10 poll … 2013: 32 catches, 510 yards, 4 TDs

TRAVIS CRAWFORD

5-11, 190, S, Holy Cross, New Orleans – Offers: Arkansas State, McNeese State, San Diego State, Southeastern Louisiana, Western Kentucky

NOTES: No. 50 on NOLA.com’s Nifty 50 2014 Louisiana recruits, LSWA All-State honorable mention … Told NOLA.com he picked UL over Arkansas State of the Sun Belt Conference because it was closer to home … Rated Louisiana’s 143rd-best prospect by 247Sports.com … Also a hurdler.

LORENZO CRYER

6-2, 185, WR/DB, Riverdale High, New Orleans

NOTES: Had four catches for 44 yards, one TD in Lake Pontchartrain Classic all-star game … First high school product to commit to UL (last May) … Rated Louisiana’s 148th-best prospect by 247Sports.com … Also plays basketball, sprints (11.09 100 meters) and throws javelin.

JORDAN DAVIS

6-3, 185, QB, Klein Oak High; Spring, Texas – Offers: Louisiana Tech, New Mexico State

NOTES: Ranked No. 37 by ESPN.com and No. 41 by 247Sports.com’s among dual-threat QB prospects nationally … One of the Houston area’s top nine QB prospects and top 100 recruits according to the Houston Chronicle.

NICK DUGGER

6-5, 300, OG, Gulf Breeze (Fla.) High

NOTES: Ranked the nation’s No. 104th-best OG recruit Scout.com … Selected to play in Pensacola Subway All-Star Game, played in Max Emfinger All-American Bowl … Offered after attending UL camp in New Orleans last summer … First-year starter as a senior.

KEN EDWARDS

6-6, 250, OT/DE, Neshoba Central High; Philadelphia, Miss.

NOTES: Scout.com’s No. 45 prospect overall in Mississippi and No. 106 OT prospect in the country, but plans to play defense at UL … 247Sports.com’s 32nd-best strong-side DE nationally … Picked to play in Mississippi’s Bernard Blackwell All-Star Game, nominated for U.S. Army All-American Bowl … 2013 stats: 74 tackles (45 solo), 4 TFLs

JESSE FREEMAN

6-4, 310, OG, Lee County High; Leesburg, Ga. – Offers: UAB, Georgia State, Middle Tennessee, Troy

NOTES: First-team Georgia Class 5A All-State pick, Atlanta Constitution-Journal … Scout.com’s No. 60 OG recruit nationally … Team went 10-2 last season. … Squats 530 pounds. … Picked to play in Florida-Georgia All-Star Game. … Starred at MVP Camp in Atlanta … Listed offers were held at time he committed to UL last summer.

GABE FUSELIER

5-11, 175, WR, Catholic High-NI – Offers: UL Monroe, Houston, Southeastern Louisiana

NOTES: All-Acadiana Offensive MVP, Daily Advertiser … LSWA first-team Class 2A All-State pick … Projected to play slot receiver … No. 119 prospect in Louisiana, according to 247Sports.com … 2013 stats: 59 catches for 1,218 yards and 15 TDs; 43 rushes for 573 yards, seven TDs

ADRIAN GOODACRE

6-4, 325, OG, Carthage (Texas) High – Offers: Houston, Memphis, Stephen F. Austin

NOTES: AP first-team Texas Class 3A all-state pick … No. 1 blocker on team that averaged 508.6 rushing yards per game, went 15-1 and won state title … Scout.com’s No. 117 OG recruit nationally … First-team All-East Texas pick, Longview News-Journal

DARRYL JOHNSON

6-5, 310, DT, Morgan City High

NOTES: Louisiana Class 4A All-State honorable mention … Nation’s No. 122 strong-side DE (247Sports.com) … 2013 stats: 70 tackles (50 solo), nine sacks for minus-30 yards, five forced fumbles, four blocked passes, three blocked field goals, two fumble recoveries … Also a track-and-field athlete.

ANTHONY JONES

6-6, 230, TE, Edna Karr High, New Orleans – Offers: Arizona, Arizona State, Auburn, Baylor, Florida State, UL Monroe, LSU, Louisville, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Tulane

NOTES: ESPN’s No. 14 TE prospect in the nation (247Sports.com’s No. 30, Scout.com’s No. 38) … Louisville made a late push to flip Jones, but could not … Team won 2012 Louisiana state title; was 2013 Class 4A runner-up with a 13-3 record … Played as backup TE to a Miami signee as a junior … Picked to play for USA Football in International Bowl.

LADARRIUS KIDD

6-3, 290 … DL … Harrison Central High; Gulfport, Miss. – Offers: UAB, Louisiana Tech, Texas Tech, Oklahoma

NOTES: Initially committed to UAB, then flipped to Texas Tech, then flipped to UL … On the (Biloxi/Gulfport) Sun Herald’s list of 10 most-wanted recruits in South Mississippi … Ranked No. 49 prospect in Mississippi by 247Sports.com … Received offer from Oklahoma after committing to Texas Tech last month, according to Scout.com.

TABORIS LEE

6-2, 285, DT, Choctaw County High, Ackerman, Miss. – Offers: Northwestern State, Akron

NOTES: Played in prestigious Mississippi-Alabama All-Star Game in Montgomery … First-team Mississippi Class 3A All-State pick … Also can kick, throw shot put … 2013 stats: 61 total tackles (46 solo), four TFLs, three fumble recoveries

DREW MOORE

6-3, 265, C/OG, University Lab, Baton Rouge – Offers: Southeastern Louisiana, Central Arkansas, McNeese State, Prairie View A&M, Southern

NOTES: Played on 14-1 team that lost to John Curtis in 2013 state-title game at the Superdome … Two-time All-District pick … Played in Shreveport All-Star game … Said he chose UL because “it’s a perfect fit for me.” … Ranked as nation’s No. 152 OG by 247Sports.com

DALVIN POPULIST

6-2, 205, QB, Northshore High, Slidell – Offers: Hawaii, Southeastern Louisiana

NOTES: Billed as a dual-threat quarterback, but described as “pro-style” by 247Sports.com … Two-time high school team MVP … 2013 stats: 67-of-150 passing for 1,123 yards, six TDs; 97 rushes for 686 yards, six touchdowns.

*** T.J. POSEY

6-0, 235, LB, Gadsden City High; Gadsden, Ala. – Offers: Kentucky, Memphis, Purdue, Southern Mississippi, Southern, Western Kentucky

NOTES: ESPN.com’s No. 15 ILB in the nation (247Sports.com’s No. 46, Scout.com’s No. 52 MLB) … Picked to play in prestigious Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Game. … Planned to play for Memphis before UL flipped him … Ranked Alabama’s No. 22 overall prospect by Rivals.com … From same Alabama high school program as current Cajuns Alonzo Harris, T.J. Worthy.

COREY TURNER

6-0, 195, S/RB, Miller-McCoy Academy, New Orleans – Offers: Southern, Tulane

NOTES: Recruited by UL as an “athlete” … Nation’s No. 189 S prospect according to 247Sports.com … First-team All-District pick … Helped team to first-ever state-playoff appearance.

DARZIL WASHINGTON

6-3, 215, OLB, West St. John High, Edgard/Eastern Arizona College/East Los Angeles College

NOTES: Committed to UL in 2011, then flipped to Texas A&M and signed with the Aggies, but didn’t academically qualify … Signed with Hawaii in 2013, but again did not qualify … Visited Utah State last month, and also had supposed interest from Arizona and Hawaii again … 2013 stats: 32 tackles including six sacks for minus-24 yards in seven games before getting injured at East Los Angeles College.

MALIK WILLIAMS

5-10, 175, WR/DB/ATHLETE, Jennings High

NOTES: Won LHSWAA Class 3A All-State honorable mention … Team lost to Livonia High in a Louisiana Class state-championship semifinal game … Had two TD catches, two interceptions in a 2013 win over Patterson.

* Not all scholarship offers were on the table after end of 2013 football season, but all reportedly were at one time or another

**Already on campus as mid-year signees

*** Already on campus as early high school graduate

Sources include: Scout.com, 247Sports.com, Rivals.com, ESPN.com, USA Today, nola.com, Albany (Ga.) Herald, Jackson (Miss.) Clarion Ledger, ETSN.fm, Choctaw (Miss.) Plain Dealer, UL sports information.