It was a big day for local athletes with more than 85 area football players signing their letters of intent along with many players from non-football sports.
FULL FOOTBALL SIGNING DAY LIST – CLICK HERE
FULL NON-FOOTBALL SIGNING LIST – CLICK HERE
PICTURES: NATIONAL SIGNING DAY – CLICK HERE
Tyler, Allen headline massive signing class at Nixa
Logan Tyler and Chase Allen took very different paths to Florida State and Iowa State respectively, but both Nixa seniors were excited to finalize their college decisions on Wednesday at Nixa High School after several months of recruitment.
Tyler, an Under Armour All-American made his verbal commitment to Florida State several months ago, but that hasn’t stopped other programs from trying to flip one of the nation’s highest rated kickers.
A lifelong Florida State fan, there was never any real threat to his pledge to the Seminoles.
“It’s just kind of the formality of it,” said Tyler. “I’m glad that the recruiting process is over and now I can work on getting ready to play at the highest level. It’s an extreme blessing, but I’m happy it’s over.”
Chase Allen verballed to Iowa State last week, the school where his father, Terry, was the associate head coach from 2002-2005. Allen received more than a dozen FBS offers over the last three months alone, turning that time into a whirlwind in the sweepstakes to land his talents. And, like his teammate, he is happy to have everything behind him.
“People won’t stop coming after you until you put that pen on the paper, so now I’m officially a Cyclone and I’m happy about it,” said Allen. “There’s a lot of stress gone for me, now I’m excited to just get up there and try to make an impact.”
After spending the last three years playing nearly every position imaginable, except offensive and defensive line, Tyler will finally have the chance to focus on kicking at Florida State, where Fisher expects him to be in competition for all three kicking positions.
“Getting to just focus on kicking, I feel like I’m going to improve a lot,” said Tyler. “Especially in games, I’m not going to be tired every time I go to kick a ball; it’s not an extra something anymore, it’s what I do. I’m excited to see how much I improve over the next four years and where I’m at my senior year.”
After three decades of not having a major college football player, Nixa has now sent players to the SEC (Alex Murphy-Mississippi State), ACC (Tyler-Florida State) and Big 12 (Allen-Iowa State), the only program in Missouri to do so during that span.
“It speaks wonders about the coaching staff,” said Allen. “We’ve had a lot of talent with the last few classes, but there aren’t many schools in the state that have sent guys to the ACC, SEC and Big 12 in the last two years.
Hopefully we can continue the tradition of producing Power 5 players; we’ve got some great talent coming up.”
In all, eight Eagles made their intentions final on Wednesday.
Jacob Baird (RB/WR) and Mason Harvill (OL/DL) joined William Penn, Austin Heatherly (OL/DL) and Garrett Hulbert (WR/DB) signed with Southwestern Assemblies of God University in Texas, Carson Ray (LB) signed with Missouri S&T and Mason Stipp (OL/DL) signed with Missouri Western.
Soccer standouts Trustin Baker (Dury) and Daley Townsend (SBU), both of whom have played on Final Four teams at Nixa, also signed National Letters of Intent.
A trio of softball players also signed with besties Makaila Leonhart and Sydney Samuel joining Crowder and Riley Peterson heading to Drury.
Four Zizzers finalize college choice
After two of the best seasons in program history, the best since West Plains joined the Ozark Conference, senior Zizzers made their college decisions official on Wednesday.
Quarterback Sam Hall, offensive tackle Jett Sexton, tight end Gerard Dietrich and linebacker Dausen Neuschwander signed National Letters on Intent in front of family, coaches, teammates and classmates in what is considered the largest Signing Day class in three decades.
“This is the biggest signing day I’ve had as a coach; it’s really exciting,” said West Plains coach Steve Ary. “These guys worked so hard, they’re great students in the classroom, they’re smart on the football field and they’re great players. They are everything you want your kids to be; if you’re a high school coach then you want to coach these kids right here.”
After going winless in 2011 and 2012, West Plains went 21-12 over the last three seasons, including a share of the Ozark Conference championship in 2014 and a Class 4 Sweet 16 berth in 2015.
Transforming the Zizzer Football into one of the best programs in the Ozarks recently has given these four seniors the opportunity to extend their athletic careers.
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Aurora’s Husmann heads to FBS ULM
It’s been a long time since National Signing Day meant so much in Aurora. On Wednesday, first year head coach Kale Kilgo proudly looked on as a quartet of his Houn’ Dawg seniors put pen to paper signing to play college football. This senior class led the charge for Aurora’s magical run to the Class 3 semifinals last fall.
First team all-state defensive end Mason Husmann was heavily recruited by all levels, but ultimately chose the University of Lousiana-Monroe, an FBS team in the Sun Belt Conference.
“I was thinking Illinois State, but they convinced me to come down for a visit and I really liked the facilities, the coaches were hospitable and I really meshed well with the guys” said Husmann.
The coaches are hoping to add 30 pounds to Husmann’s 6’5”, 235 pound frame, but say if he does well enough he could play right away.
First team All-Big 8 selections Billy Meredith (WR/DB) and Skyler Cahill (WR/DB) are joining forces at Southwest Baptist University next fall.
Second team all-state lineman Gerritt Montomery is headed down the road to Missouri Southern State University where he will focus on the offensive side of the ball.
Lebanon trio signs with SBU
Lebanon seniors Brandon Horsley, Adrian Palmer and Ryan Skeens will continue their football careers together next year as they transition from Yellowjackets to Bearcats for Southwest Baptist next year.
"Having Ryan and Brandon go (to SBU) is just extra confirmation that this is my home and I will have brothers there already," Palmer said. "I will make a lot of new friends and new brothers there and more family, but it is nice to have family going along with you."
The trio will be heading an hour away, which will allow their friends and families to follow them closely throughout their college careers, but for each location was not the sole reason for choosing SBU.
"Location is key because it is only about an hour away. It is awesome to have all of the support that will be coming out," Skeens said. "My faith is very important to me and that is a very important part of SBU's program."
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10 Kickapoo athletes sign
Ten Kickapoo High School athletes, including five football players, signed with colleges on Wednesday’s national signing day.
Locally, lineman Michael Fowler and safety Mason Pack signed with Division II Southwest Baptist University. Guard Zac Bray signed with Evangel.
Pack, a first-team Class 6 all-state selection, was second on Kickapoo with 98 tackles and had a team-high seven interceptions. Fowler, a 6’5”, 265-pound offensive tackle, was named second team All-Ozark Conference.
Bray, who transferred to Kickapoo from Springfield Catholic before his junior season, was a first-team Class 6 all-state selection.
"The biggest factor was family," Bray said. "They've all been really supportive. My mom has been at every single game that I've ever had. She's never missed a game. (Family) was a big thing that went into (the decision)."
In addition, Kickapoo had Jacob Darrah (DE/Missouri Baptist) and Noah Smith (TE/William Penn) sign to play college football.
The Chiefs finished 12-1 overall, winning the Ozark Conference championship and their first district title since moving up to Class 6. Kickapoo’s season ended one game shy of the Class 6 state finals with a quarterfinals loss to CBC.
"We had a crazy year," Pack said. "It'll probably be my favorite memory of high school. Every game was fun."
Kickapoo’s five other signings on Wednesday were:
• Allyson Goodale, soccer, Columbia College
• Hannah Sweaney, soccer, John Brown
• Westin Gann, baseball, College of the Ozarks
• Kaitlyn Elmer, track, Olivet Nazarene University
• Sam Hockett, soccer, Harding
Record-setting Riley signs with Quincy
Parkview running back re-wrote the Viking rushing record book this past fall and was rewarded with a scholarship to Division II Quincy.
"It feels good. It is a sigh of relief to know where I am going. I can focus on getting better and getting my academics where they need to be," Riley said.
Riley rushed for 2,040 yards and 27 touchdowns that included a 330-yard, six-touchdown game against Glendale which was a school record.
It is a record that he hopes will stand for a while and help motivate future Vikings.
"When I first got here I saw a lot of people's records. I looked up to Cole Jenkins and a lot of the things he did and Connor Ratcliff," Riley said. "(Now) I have my own records and it just feels good. It is a legacy I know will be here at least for a while before somebody else breaks them."
He will now compete in the same conference as Jenkins who is a running back for SBU, which gives him confidence moving forward.
"It makes me feel like I can do just as good as him if not better. It is going to be exciting to play against him," Riley said.
Overall, Quincy is a school that fits Riley’s style and offers him a path to potential playing time right away.
"I like the coaches. I love the way they run the ball (with) a lot of downhill running. It is perfect for me and what I like to do," Riley said.
Riley finished his high school career with 648 carries for 3,788 yards and 53 touchdowns over his final two season.
Republic’s Jones chooses to walk on at Mizzou
Record-setting Republic running back Jerney Jones will realize a dream this fall when he heads to Columbia as a walk-on in the Mizzou football program.
"It is my dream college. I grew up a Mizzou fan and I knew it was the right place for me," Jones said. "I want to pursue a degree in business and they have one of the top business schools in the nation."
Jones was the COC Large Offensive Player of the Year after he rushed for a school-record 1,819 yards and 26 touchdowns, averaging 10.1 yards per rush. He also set a single-game record for Republic when he rushed for 442 yards and seven touchdowns in a win over Glendale.
