University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Cajuns Announce 2007 Signing Class
2/7/2007 5:00:00 AM | Football
Bustle and his assistants inked 16 high school student-athletes and two (2) junior college transfers. In addition to the four Louisiana commitments, the Cajuns coaching staff ventured outside the state to gain six (6) commitments from Florida, six (6) from Texas and two (2) from Alabama.
Louisiana-Lafayette signed eight (8) players on offense, nine (9) on defense and added one athlete.
“This class has a chance to be an exceptional class,” Bustle said. “We were very fortunate to keep our local athletes at home and to get the numbers that we needed at each position.
“We were able to stay at the top of our list at each position,” Bustle added. “We turned down some good football players and there were some hard decisions. I feel like this could be our most exciting class.”
Bustle and his staff received two commitments from players who completed their prep careers in Lafayette. Both Grant Fleming and Lance Kelley, who prepped at Lafayette's own St. Thomas More High School, will be future Ragin' Cajuns.
Fleming signed with the Cajuns as a defensive back. He ended his high school career with 263 tackles (95 solo), 16 pass breakups and 14 interceptions.
Kelley committed to the Cajuns as a wide receiver. He was an all-around threat for STM putting up numbers as a quarterback, a rusher, a receiver and a kick returner while also stepping into the STM secondary in key situations.
The Ragin' Cajuns' 2007 signing class saw the program pick up two prospects at quarterback. Bustle and staff signed Chris Masson from Christopher Columbus High School in Miami and Brad McGuire from Gulf Breeze High School.
Masson completed 150-of-293 passes for 1,805 yards and 19 scores in his senior season at Columbus High School. He earned Third Team All-Dade County honors by the Miami Herald which ranked him as one of the two best quarterbacks in the Miami-Dade County area.
McGuire completed 67 percent of his passes as a senior at Gulf Breeze. He's an athletic quarterback with great pocket presence and a solid arm for the short to intermediate routes.
Joining Kelley as a commitment at wide receiver was Jawanza Mitchell from West Mesquite (Texas) High School. In his only season of football at West Mesquite, Mitchell caught 34 passes for 598 yards and nine touchdowns.
Louisiana-Lafayette's two junior college commitments will bring help at the cornerback position. The Cajuns inked Justin Branden from Pearl River Community College who had nine interceptions last season. Scooter Rogers from Fort Scott Community College was a member of the First Team All-Jayhawk Conference and a Second Team All-American in 2006.
The offensive line received a boost with the addition of Jaron Odom of Boyd Anderson in Fort Lauderdale and Kyle Plouhar of Fontainebleau High School in Mandeville. Odom checks in at 340 pounds and Plouhar at 295. Odom was a Second Team All-Broward County selection in 2006 and was a member of the Broward County All-Stars. Plouhar was listed among the Top 20 offensive linemen in the state of Louisiana.
One member of the signing class is already enrolled in school for the Spring 2007 semester. Defensive lineman Jermaine Rogers of Davidson High School in Mobile, Ala., will enjoy the benefits of the Cajuns' off-season program and spring practices.
