Henderson State Inks 48 on National Signing Day

[Seminole Indian]

Henderson State head football coach Scott Maxfield announced that 48 student-athletes have signed National Letters of Intent to continue their careers with the Reddies.

Since 2010, Henderson State has experienced great success winning four conference championships, appearing in the NCAA Division II Playoffs three times, and recording the best record among all football playing institutions in Arkansas at 68-22.

Those accomplishments have attracted some of the best talent including nearly 20 Arkansans.

"I am very proud of our coaching staff in the work they did in bringing in some very talented players that will fit into our program," said Maxfield. "The staff worked diligently in addressing our needs and I strongly believe that these young men will help us continue to achieve our goals of winning conference championships and possibly a national championship."

One area of concern was the defensive secondary with 14 safeties and corner backs joining the program.

Highlighting some of those players that will be part of the secondary are Arkansans Tyler Berry, Jon Faulkenberry, Ketric Sledge, Randarius Terry, and Rondale Messer along with out-of-state signees D'whan Poole and Gunnar Reiss.

Berry was an All-State selection at Bearden High School where he totaled 83 tackles and 8 interceptions.

Faulkenberry played at Gentry High School where he earned all-conference and All-State honors on both sides of the ball. A versatile athlete, Faulkenberry threw for nearly 1800 yards and 16 touchdowns while rushing for 1150 yards a 19 touchdowns in his final season.

Sledge totaled 48 solo tackles and recorded four interceptions his final season at Fordyce High School. A three-time All-Conference and All-Region selection, Sledge compiled more than 150 total tackles during his career with the Redbugs.

Terry prepped at Crossett High School and was an all-conference selection after recording 110 tackles with 14 tackles for loss and 7 sacks his senior season.

Messer was a first-team all-conference cornerback at Bryant High School. Also an all-conference performer in track, Messer totaled 86 tackles along with four interceptions and three sacks last season.

Poole comes to Henderson from Indian Rocks Christian Academy in St. Petersburg, Fla. where he was a Blue-Grey All-American. A Pinellas County All-Star, he totaled 45 tackles and had 4 interceptions.

Reiss is a two-time all-league selection from McPherson High School in Kansas. Reiss was named one of the top 25 defensive backs in the state of Kansas after having nearly 50 solo tackles with 5 tackles for lost yardage and 7 pass break-ups as a senior.

The Reddies also loaded up on the defensive line with the addition of Jarett Fox, Treyvan Smith and Bailey Soule'.

Fox was a two-time all-conference defensive lineman at Dierks High School, while Smith played at Strong High School earning all-conference honors after compiling 75 tackles and 14 sacks his senior season.

Soule' was a Class 4A All-State defensive lineman his senior year at Gravette High School having collected 82 tackles with 19.5 tackles for lost yardage and 10 sacks in 2017.

Henderson also added its share of offensive players including wide receivers Hayden Holtgrewe, Ka'Darius Pearson, quarterback Jakota Sainsbury, and running back Caleb Horton.

Holtgrewe was a three-time all-conference selection at Pea Ridge High School where he totaled 83 receptions for 1271 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Pearson was a standout at Prescott High School where he earned all-area honors and helped lead his team to the state championship. Pearson totaled 35 receptions for 683 yards and 9 touchdowns last season.

Sainsbury is another product from Pea Ridge that chose Henderson State. A three-time all-conference quarterback, Sainsbury led Pea Ridge to a state championship completing 167-of-262 passes for 2,419 yards and 28 touchdowns.

Horton comes to Henderson from Gadsden, Alabama where he played at Etowah High School. Another two-way player, Horton was a two-time all-county and all-region running back rushing for 980 yards and scoring 14 touchdowns as a senior.

The Reddies added numerous offensive lineman including Hunter Church of Glen Rose, William Hawkins of Prairie Grove, Brett Bush of Clear Creek High School (Houston, Texas), Tanner Thornton of Okeechobee (Florida) High School and Dimitri Villarreal of Galveston Ball High School in Texas.

Also joining the Reddies is kicker Temo Martinez of Dardanelle. Martinez earned all-conference and All-State honors last season kicking more than 60 extra points and seven field goals.

For player Bios visit the official site:
http://www.hsusports.com/news/2018/2/1/hsu-football-signing-day.aspx

[DeltaBoy]

Good bunch of FB Players.