No. 17-ranked Louisiana Football has continued to position itself as one of the top Group of 5 programs in the country with the addition of 10 signees during the 2021 early signing period, head coach Billy Napier announced on Wednesday. As it stands, the class is comprised of student-athletes from three different states, with six of the signees coming from Louisiana. Six position groups are represented in the class. Below is a breakdown of the exciting signing class:
Key'Savalyn Barnes
CB | 5'11" | 188 | Logansport High School | Logansport, La.
Rated as the No. 46 overall recruit in Louisiana, according to 247Sports.com…Registered 42 total tackles with 3.0 tackles-for-loss on defense and 505 rushing yards with eight touchdowns as a junior…Had an additional 13 catches for 177 yards and two touchdowns during his junior season…Tallied four interceptions in 2018, including 38 total tackles over 10 games for a state semifinal-round playoff team…Labeled a three-time all-state athlete of the week, three-time all-district member and three-time all-parish member…Also plays basketball and runs track at Logansport.
Cejae Ceasar
S | 6'1" | 187 | Iowa High School | Iowa, La.
Rated as the No. 39 overall recruit in Louisiana by 247Sports.com…Invited to the 2020 World Bowl National Combine at the NFL Pro Bowl which was held last January…Participant in the 2020 National Combine at the All-American Bowl…Named an all-state member twice in high school career…Also a three-time all-district defensive back…Placed third in the 400-meter dash at the 2019 Class 3A State Championship with a time of 49.44 seconds…Chose Louisiana over Kansas State, ULM, Arkansas State, South Alabama, Tulane, New Mexico State and Air Force.
Kendre' Gant
ILB | 6'2.5" | 205 | Independence CC | Port St. Joe, Fla.
Redshirted at FIU in 2019 before transferring to Independence CC…Rated as the No. 3 outside linebacker and No. 42 overall player coming out of the JUCO ranks by 247Sports.com…Added 62 tackles, two interceptions and three forced fumbles during senior season at Port St. Joe High School…Collected 47 passes for 960 yards and 12 touchdowns during senior year…Rated as a 3-star prospect by 247Sports and held offers from FAU, Louisville, Southern Miss and UCF coming out of high school.
Hunter Herring
QB | 6'4.25" | 201 | Ouachita Christian High School | West Monroe, La.
Tabbed as the No. 48 overall player in the state and the No. 51 dual quarterback in the country by 247Sports.com…Threw for 2,769 yards with 34 touchdowns during his career at Ouachita Christian High School…Also ran for 2,181 yards and 48 scores, highlighted by back-to-back 20+ rushing touchdown seasons to end high school career…Led high school to the Class 1A-Division IV Championship title, earning MVP honors in that game…Named the Class 1A-Division IV Offensive Player of the Year…first team all-state member and District IV MVP…Chose Louisiana over South Alabama and ULM.
Tyrone Lewis, Jr.
S | 5'11" | 185 | Kansas State | Hammond High School | Hammond, La.
Spent two seasons at Kansas State before transferring to Louisiana…Rated as the No. 52 safety in the Class of 2019 by ESPN, while the recruiting website also tagged him as the No. 26 overall player in the state of Louisiana…Tallied 57 tackles and five interceptions as a senior in high school after posting 42 tackles and nine picks as a junior…Earned an all-state honorable mention from the LSWA as a senior in high school…Held offers from Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee and Utah before signing with Kansas State out of high school.
Mackey Maillho
OL | 6'7.25" | 353 | Mandeville High School | Covington, La.
Ranked as the No. 57 overall prospect in Louisiana and No. 130 offensive guard nationally by ESPN, as well as the No. 59 overall recruit according to 247Sports.com…Labeled a MaxPreps 2020 Preseason All-State selection…Took part in last June's Edge Assassins Elite 50 Showcase…Chose Louisiana over Tulane, South Alabama and New Mexico State.
John Stephens, Jr.
WR | 6'5" | 226 | TCU | Logansport High School | Logansport, La.
Spent three seasons at TCU before transferring to Louisiana…Hauled in 14 passes for 214 yards during time at TCU, with the majority of the stats accumulated during sophomore season…Appeared in all 12 games for TCU during the 2019 season and had a career-high three catches against No. 15 Texas and Texas Tech…After a stellar career at Logansport High School, was ranked as the No. 1 athlete in Louisiana and the No. 61 overall athlete in the country by 247Sports.com…Rated by ESPN as the No. 19 overall player in Louisiana…Tallied 1,001 receiving yards and 17 touchdowns as a senior…Also added 64 tackles and 12.0 tackles-for-loss during senior year.
Dre'lyn Washington
RB | 5'9" | 210 | Hemphill High School | Hemphill, Texas
Labeled as the No. 58 running back by ESPN and the No. 115 running back in the country by 247Sports.com…Rushed for 5,390 yards and 68 touchdowns in high school career…Carried the ball 169 times for 1,959 yards and 28 touchdowns in 2019…Earned a second team all-state selection last season…Earned first team all-district honors during sophomore, junior and senior seasons…Broke Hemphill High School's career rushing yards record…Ran track in high school and timed at 11.13 seconds in the 100-meter dash…Chose Louisiana over Arkansas State.
Cameron "Cam" Whitfield
OLB | 6'1.5" | 245 | Dawson High School | Houston, Texas
Earned the No. 97 strong-side defensive end ranking in the country and the No. 251 overall player rating in the state of Texas by 247Sports.com…Had an impressive high school career posting 123 total tackles, 31.0 tackles-for-loss and 12.0 sacks…Junior campaign was highlighted by 79 tackles and 23.0 tackles-for-loss…Named the 23-6A District Defensive MVP and earned a first team all-district spot in 2019…Chose Louisiana over Arizona, Washington State, Houston, Southern Miss and Memphis, among others.
Robert "Rob" Williams
WR | 6'1" | 170 | Trinity Christian High School | Humble, Texas
Graded as the best overall recruit in the class by 247Sports.com…Rated as the No. 68 receiver in the entire country and No. 61 overall player in the state of Texas by 247Sports.com…Hauled in 30 passes for 864 yards and 13 touchdowns on 28.8 yards per reception during 2019...Also a track team sprinter at 200 and 400 meters, long jumper and triple jumper…Chose Louisiana over Houston, Memphis, Louisiana Tech, Wyoming, ULM and UTSA.
Louisiana will play in the Sun Belt Conference Championship Game for the third-straight season on Saturday, Dec. 19, against No. 9 Coastal Carolina. The title game is slated to kickoff at 2:30 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on ESPN.
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